Dear Participating School,

We are delighted to invite your school to participate in the 16th Edition of The Co-Debaters Contest, an engaging platform designed to develop students' abilities in public speaking, critical thinking, logical reasoning, confidence, and effective communication.

To ensure fairness, transparency, and proper preparation, we wish to provide participating schools with the complete details of the contest, including the eligibility requirements, stages, scoring system, speaker selection, and competition rules.

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📌 DEBATE MOTION

«“A disciplined but poor leader has a better chance to win an election against an indisciplined but rich and popular leader in Nigeria.”»

Schools are free to choose whether to support or oppose the motion.

However, once the contest begins, a school/team must maintain the position it has chosen and will not be permitted to change its position.

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📅 EVENT DETAILS

🟢 OGUN STATE

Date: Tuesday, 20th October 2026

Time: 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Venue: Bimask Event Center, Ayo Fapohunda Street, Ijako Sugar, Ogun State.

Video Submission Deadline: Monday, 19th October 2026

🔵 LAGOS STATE

Date: Thursday, 22nd October 2026

Time: 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Venue: Oyewole Secondary School Multipurpose Hall, Mulero, Iyana Ipaja Road, Agege, Lagos.

Video Submission Deadline: Wednesday, 21st October 2026

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👥 PARTICIPANT ELIGIBILITY

The competition is open to secondary school students who are adequately prepared to participate in a debate competition.

Schools are strongly encouraged to select students who demonstrate:

- Confidence in public speaking

- Good understanding of the debate motion

- Critical thinking ability

- Logical reasoning

- Good communication skills

- Ability to respond effectively to questions

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🎥 PRELIMINARY STAGE – VIDEO PRESENTATION

Before the main event, each participating school/team is required to submit a 2-minute video presentation by its Chief Speaker.

Video Score: 5 Marks

The video presentation will be assessed and the marks obtained will be added to the participant's overall score.

VIDEO SUBMISSION DEADLINES

Ogun State: 19th October 2026

Lagos State: 21st October 2026

VIDEO SUBMISSION CHANNEL

All videos must be uploaded and submitted via WhatsApp to:

📱 +234 706 303 2331

Schools are encouraged to submit their videos before the deadline to avoid last-minute difficulties.

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🏆 COMPETITION STRUCTURE

The contest consists of three stages at the event, in addition to the preliminary video presentation.

TOTAL POSSIBLE SCORE: 65 MARKS

Stage| Activity| Maximum Marks

Preliminary| 2-Minute Video Presentation| 5

Stage 1| 2-Minute Presentation| 20

Stage 2| Real-Life Quiz| 10

Stage 3| Final 3-Minute Presentation| 30

TOTAL| | 65 MARKS

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🎤 STAGE 1 – 2-MINUTE PRESENTATION

Maximum: 20 Marks

All eligible participants will be given an opportunity to make a 2-minute presentation on the debate motion.

Participants will be assessed on areas such as:

- Understanding of the motion

- Quality and relevance of arguments

- Logical reasoning

- Confidence and delivery

- Clarity of presentation

At the end of Stage 1, the five participants with the qualifying scores will be selected to proceed to Stage 2.

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🧠 STAGE 2 – REAL-LIFE QUIZ

Maximum: 10 Marks

The five selected participants will participate in a real-life question-and-answer session based on the debate motion.

Participants will be assessed based on:

- Accuracy of responses

- Depth of understanding

- Relevance of answers

- Logical reasoning

- Ability to respond effectively under pressure

IMPORTANT:

No participant will be eliminated at Stage 2.

All five participants will proceed to Stage 3.

The marks obtained in the quiz will be added to each participant's accumulated score.

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🏅 STAGE 3 – FINAL PRESENTATION

Maximum: 30 Marks

The five finalists will each deliver a 3-minute final presentation on the debate motion.

The final presentation will be assessed based on:

- Strength and quality of arguments

- Understanding of the motion

- Logical reasoning

- Relevance and originality

- Confidence and delivery

- Effective use of the allotted time

The marks obtained at this stage will be added to the participant's accumulated score.

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📊 HOW THE FINAL SCORE IS CALCULATED

Each finalist's final score will be calculated as:

Video Score (5)

+ Stage 1 Score (20)

+ Stage 2 Score (10)

+ Stage 3 Score (30)

= FINAL SCORE OUT OF 65

Example:

Component| Score

Video Presentation| 4/5

Stage 1| 17/20

Stage 2| 8/10

Stage 3| 26/30

FINAL SCORE| 55/65

The final scores will determine the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd positions.

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⚖️ TIE-BREAK PROCEDURE

If two or more finalists have the same final score, the following procedure will be applied:

1. Stage 3 Score

The finalist with the higher Stage 3 score will rank higher.

2. Stage 1 Score

If the tie remains, the finalist with the higher Stage 1 score will rank higher.

3. Stage 2 Score

If the tie still remains, the finalist with the higher Stage 2 score will rank higher.

4. Judges' Tie-Break Question

If the scores remain equal after these comparisons, the affected finalists will answer the same tie-break question.

The judges will assess the responses based on accuracy, relevance, reasoning, and quality of response.

The judges' decision at the tie-break stage will be final.

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👤 SPEAKER SELECTION & REPLACEMENT

Schools have the flexibility to select their speakers according to their strengths.

A school may:

OPTION 1

Use one speaker throughout all stages.

OPTION 2

Use two speakers throughout the competition.

OPTION 3

Prepare different speakers for different stages.

This flexibility is provided because different students may have different strengths—for example, one may be stronger in presentation while another may perform better during the question-and-answer session.

IMPORTANT

Speakers may be replaced from one stage to another.

However:

- The replacement speaker must represent the same school/team.

- The school/team must maintain its chosen position on the motion.

- Changing a speaker does not permit the school/team to change its position.

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⚠️ IMPORTANT COMPETITION RULES

1. Schools are free to support or oppose the motion.

2. A school/team cannot change its position once the contest begins.

3. The position chosen by the school must be maintained throughout the competition.

4. All video submissions must be made by the applicable deadline.

5. The preliminary video presentation carries 5 marks and forms part of the final score.

6. Stage 1 determines the five participants who qualify for the next stage.

7. Stage 2 does not eliminate any of the five participants.

8. All five participants proceed to the final presentation in Stage 3.

9. The maximum possible final score is 65 marks.

10. Schools may use one, two, or different speakers throughout the various stages.

11. All participants are expected to demonstrate respect, discipline, sportsmanship, and professionalism throughout the competition.

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📝 PARTICIPATION FORM

All participating schools are required to complete the participation form:

"Complete the Participation Form" (https://inletaco-whatsapp-registration.onrender.com/?utm_source=chatgpt.com)

VIDEO SUBMISSION

WhatsApp: +234 706 303 2331

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🌟 OUR EXPECTATION

We encourage every participating school to prepare thoroughly and give students the opportunity to develop their confidence, reasoning ability, communication skills, and intellectual capacity.

This is more than a competition—it is an opportunity for students to think deeply, speak boldly, listen carefully, and engage intelligently with important issues.

COME PREPARED.

SPEAK WITH CONFIDENCE.

THINK CRITICALLY.

DEBATE WITH RESPECT.

WE LOOK FORWARD TO WELCOMING YOUR SCHOOL TO THE 16TH EDITION OF THE CO-DEBATERS CONTEST.

Thank you for your participation and support.

THE CO-DEBATERS CONTEST

16TH EDITION