Parents of SS1 students at St. Francis Catholic School in Idimu, Lagos, have formally complained to the Abuja headquarters of the Citizenship and Leadership Training Centre (CLTC) — operators of the Sea School in Apapa — over the cost of the agency’s compulsory 10-day programme.
TheNiche has confirmed that the Sea School coordinator in Lagos has been queried by superiors in Abuja over the matter.
A highly placed source at the Sea School in Apapa told TheNiche that the Minister of Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, took interest in the issue after it was brought to his attention. He requested an explanation from the Director-General of the CLTC, who in turn asked the Director of Training for a report. The Director of Training then demanded a written response from the Sea School coordinator in Apapa.
The Citizenship and Leadership Training Programme is an initiative of the Federal Ministry of Youth Development. It teaches practical character and leadership skills to young Nigerians for a fee that covers feeding, accommodation, logistics and boat ferry to the venue. The Lagos centre is known as the Sea School.
St. Francis Catholic School initially billed parents ₦390,000 per child for the 10-day programme. The amount was later reduced to ₦290,000 on April 14.
A total of 122 students are involved.
Parents told TheNiche that the actual fee was “far less than ₦100,000,” citing a source at the CLTC head office in Abuja. A separate source confirmed the official rate was ₦60,000.
The discrepancy has triggered claims and counter-claims among parents, St Francis School and Sea School officials.
TheNiche has seen documents, provided by a contact person at St. Francis Catholic School, which originated from the Sea School in Apapa. The documents list a charge of ₦20,000 per day for the 10-day programme, totalling ₦200,000. The contact person said the additional ₦190,000 was meant to cover logistics, including medical tests, branded T-shirts, transportation and other costs.
When TheNiche confronted a Sea School official with the information, the official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak publicly. He said the ₦20,000 daily rate was negotiable, depending on the number of students, type of meals, duration of electricity supply in the camp and other logistics.
According to the official, discussions between the Sea School and St. Francis officials about this year’s programme and cost per child began in mid-January. When informed that the school had already included the training fee in its first-term bill (September 2025) and second-term bill (January 2026) before the meeting, he said he didn’t know why they did so.
The official added that a final arrangement of ₦10,000 per day — totalling ₦100,000 per child — was reached only after parents began raising concerns. He said that prompted another round of talks with the management leading to the N10,000 per day charge. According to him, from the N10,000 per day charge, 50% would be remitted to the federal government, while the Sea School would retain the balance for logistics.
Meanwhile, a letter from St. Francis Catholic School to parents, dated April 14 and signed by T.M. Hart (Mrs.), states that the revised charge is now ₦290,000 instead of ₦390,000.
The letter reads:“This is to notify you that the SEA school has revised the bill given to the school. In view of this recent development, the amount to be paid now is N290,000 and not N390,000. Those who have already paid, and have sent their proof of payment to the designated SS1 email should expect a refund before the end of next week. Alternatively, send your proof of payment to the bursar.”
Parents say the fundamental issues remain unresolved even after the reduction, including the exact amount due to the Sea School, the cost of incidental items, and a clear breakdown.
St. Francis Catholic School Administrator, Rev. Fr. Francis Koshoffa, was quoted by an online newspaper Pan-Atlantic Kompass as saying the additional ₦190,000 covers supplementary services and logistics required to support students before, during and after the programme.
According to him, the charges include medical tests, customised T-shirts, logistics, transportation, and administrative fees paid to the school for staff stipends and overnight supervision on the students’ return from the Sea School.
Rev. Fr. Koshoffa said the breakdown reflects operational realities and insisted there was “nothing untoward” in the structure of the fees.
The parents are still demanding greater transparency, claiming even the Administrator’s interview quoted by Pan-Atlantic Kompass was not shared on the school WhatsApp platform.