The Lekki Headmaster: Full Summary, Characters, Themes & JAMB 2026 Exam Guide
Author: Massodih Okon | Updated: March 2026 | JAMB 2026 Use of English
If you are preparing for the 2026 UTME and you have not yet started reading The Lekki Headmaster, this guide is exactly what you need. JAMB has selected this novel by Kabir Alabi Garba as the official Use of English reading text, and you can expect at least 10 questions on it during the exam.
This page gives you a complete, honest summary of the novel, chapter by chapter along with the key characters, major themes and the kinds of questions JAMB is likely to ask. Read carefully, because understanding this story goes beyond just passing an exam. It is a book that speaks directly to the Nigeria we live in today.
Quick Fact: The Lekki Headmaster was written by Kabir Alabi Garba, published by Basmallah Communications Limited. It has 63 pages spread across 12 chapters. The setting is Lagos, Nigeria, mainly Lekki and Badagry. Read JAMB UTME 2026 Exam Date & April Timetable
What Is The Lekki Headmaster About?
At its heart, this novel tells the story of Mr. Bepo Adewale a principal who has spent 24 years building one of the finest schools in Lekki, Lagos. He is loved by his students, respected by his colleagues and considered a pillar of the community. Then one day, his wife and children travel to the United Kingdom. They settle in, and Seri his wife begins asking him to come join them.
Bepo is torn. On one side is a comfortable life in England, a teaching job in London and a family waiting for him. On the other side is everything he has built: his school, his students, his identity. The novel follows him through that painful, very Nigerian decision to “japa” or to stay.
The story is funny, thoughtful and sometimes deeply moving. It captures the japa syndrome the wave of Nigerians leaving the country in search of better opportunities but it does not treat it as a simple matter. Garba asks harder questions: What do we owe to the people we leave behind? What is home, really? JAMB Exam Day Preparation Checklist: Requirements & Complete Guide (2026)
Basic Information About the Novel
- Title: The Lekki Headmaster
- Author: Kabir Alabi Garba (Ph.D., Mass Communication, University of Lagos)
- Publisher: Basmallah Communications Limited
- Length: 63 pages, 12 chapters
- Setting: Lagos, Nigeria (Lekki and Badagry)
- Genre: Fiction / Educational Narrative
- Dedication: “To all teachers committed to the cause of sound education. You are truly the real builders of the nation.”
Chapter-by-Chapter Summary
Chapter 1 Dawn
The novel opens at Stardom Schools during morning assembly. Something is immediately wrong. Mr. Bepo Adewale a man who has held this school together for over two decades walks to the podium and breaks down in tears. No one knows why. Students are confused. Staff members are rattled. The vice principal, Mrs. Grace Apeh, quietly takes over and brings the assembly to a close.
This unexpected scene sets the tone for the entire book. Bepo is not a man who cries in public. Something serious is weighing on him, and we are about to find out what.
Chapter 2 Dusk
After five days of silence, Bepo finally tells his closest colleagues what is happening. His wife Seri and his daughters Nike and Kike are already living in the UK. He has been offered a teaching position in London. The family wants him to come. He has been holding this inside, trying to make sense of it, and the weight became too much at assembly.
His colleagues are puzzled by his hesitation. Mr. Audu jokes that he would run to the airport immediately if he had such an opportunity. Why would anyone cry over leaving Nigeria for a salary of £3,600 a month? But Bepo is not like everyone else. This school is not just a job to him.
We also learn the origin of his nickname in this chapter. When he was headmaster at Stardom Kiddies, he used to imitate characters from the classic Nigerian TV drama, Village Headmaster. The name stuck, and Bepo became The Lekki Headmaster.
Chapter 3 The Japa Syndrome
Bepo begins doing what many Nigerians do when they consider leaving, he listens carefully to the stories of those who have already gone. He hears about hourly wages, about Nigerians abroad earning the equivalent of ₦150,000 or more in a single day. He speaks with Sola, a former Stardom teacher now settled in the UK, who reassures him that everything will be fine.
But Bepo also hears the other side. People who struggled to adjust. Cultural differences that were harder than expected. The loneliness. This chapter is a quiet, honest look at what the japa conversation really sounds like in Nigerian homes and staffrooms.
Chapter 4 The Grammar War
This chapter shifts to a memorable incident from the school’s past. During an Open Day event, a parent publicly accused Mr. Fafore, the English teacher, of making a grammatical error. The parent demanded that Fafore be dismissed. Principal Bepo stepped in, investigated the claim, and proved that Fafore’s usage was correct.
The chapter says a great deal about the pressures teachers face, especially in private schools where parents sometimes feel that paying school fees entitles them to overrule staff. Bepo’s defence of Fafore shows the kind of leader he is fair, principled and willing to protect his team.
Chapter 5 The Beesway Years
Before Stardom, Bepo worked at Beesway Group of Schools. It was not a happy experience. The school’s name was grammatically incorrect, and he raised the issue which did not endear him to the management. More seriously, he began to suspect that the school’s director was involved in rituals. He eventually left.
This backstory matters because it shows us why Bepo values Stardom so deeply. He has seen what bad educational leadership looks like, and he has chosen to build something different. Stardom is not just a workplace. It is a proof of what education can be.
Chapter 6 Ade as Well as Jide
One of the novel’s quieter chapters, but important. We meet Jide, the grandson of Bepo’s landlord. Bepo has been teaching Jide elocution and African history for free every weekend. No contract, no payment just a man who cannot stop teaching when he sees a young mind that needs guidance.
We also see the rivalry between two students, Banky and Toss, whose competition began back in JSS 3. Their clash touches on themes of family, politics, and the way old grudges can shape young people.
Chapter 7 The Cooperative and the Cars
Something suspicious is happening at Stardom. Several members of staff have suddenly started appearing with expensive cars. The school’s Managing Director notices and becomes concerned. The Stardom Cooperative Society, a savings group for staff, has accumulated a significant amount of money and it seems some people may have helped themselves to more than their share.
This chapter introduces themes of corruption and institutional trust. Even in a school that prides itself on integrity, human nature can complicate things.
Chapter 8 The Prefect Elections
Stardom Schools introduces a democratic process for electing student prefects. It is a bold idea letting students vote for their own leaders rather than simply having the principal appoint them. The process is messy, passionate, and very revealing about what students actually value in their peers.
The unresolved rivalries from earlier chapters resurface here. Bepo watches, occasionally steps in, but mostly trusts the process. It is another window into his philosophy of education.
Chapter 9 Point of No Return
This is one of the most symbolically rich chapters in the book. Bepo visits the Point of No Return the historic site in Badagry from which enslaved Africans were shipped to the Americas, never to return. Standing there, he begins to draw painful connections between the forced migrations of the past and the voluntary exodus happening in Nigeria today.
Garba handles this comparison carefully. He is not saying that japa is the same as slavery. But he is asking whether something important is lost when a whole generation of Nigeria’s best people decide to leave and whether that loss is as final as it looks.
Chapter 10 The Farewell
Stardom Schools throws Bepo a three-day farewell celebration. There is a novelty football match, debates, cultural performances, and a moving Canoe Dance. During the dance, Bepo has a vision almost like a dream of the transatlantic slave trade. He sees the pain, the ships, the departure. He is deeply shaken.
Mrs. Gloss presents him with a $10,000 cheque the largest farewell gift the school has ever given anyone. The occasion is joyful, but there is sadness underneath it all. Nobody quite believes he is really leaving.
Chapter 11 The Airport
Bepo is at the airport. His bags are packed, his documents are ready. Then he falls asleep and has a vivid, disturbing dream in which he is commanded to board a slave ship. He wakes up shaken.
The dream is his subconscious speaking. Part of him does not want to go. Part of him knows that London is not where he belongs, at least not in the way his colleagues imagine. But can he really turn back now?
Chapter 12 The Return
In the novel’s final chapter, Bepo does something no one expected. He turns around and comes back to Stardom Schools and announces that he is staying. He is not abandoning his wife and daughters but he has realised that his place, his purpose, is here.
The staff and students are overjoyed. The chapter closes on a note of warmth and reaffirmation a man choosing his calling over comfort, his community over convenience. It is a powerful ending, and one that feels very honest about what Nigeria both demands and deserves from its best people. Common Mistakes That Make Students Fail UTME (2026): Requirements, JAMB Registration Portal Errors & Complete Guides
Key Characters in The Lekki Headmaster
Mr. Bepo Adewale (The Protagonist)
Bepo is the heart of the novel. He is a tall, light-skinned man in his late forties, deeply committed to education and to Stardom Schools. His nickname comes from his talent for mimicking characters in the old Village Headmaster TV drama. He is principled, empathetic, occasionally stubborn, and fiercely loyal to his students. His internal conflict between family and vocation drives the entire story.
Mrs. Seri Bepo
Bepo’s wife, already settled in the United Kingdom with their daughters Nike and Kike. She loves her husband and wants the family together, but she does not fully grasp or perhaps does not want to engage with how much Bepo’s identity is tied to his school. She is not a villain; she is a woman trying to build a better life for her children.
Mrs. Ibidun Gloss
The school’s most memorable teacher. Sharp, witty, and known for remarks that cut to the point without being unkind. She is one of Bepo’s most trusted colleagues and is often the one who says in three words what others spend an hour circling around.
Mrs. Grace Apeh (Vice Principal)
The steady hand who holds the school together when Bepo is unable to. She takes over the assembly in Chapter 1 without drama and without making anyone feel worse. Competent, calm, and quietly indispensable.
Mr. Audu
The Fine Arts teacher, and a source of comic relief throughout the book. He is the colleague most vocally baffled by Bepo’s hesitation to leave for the UK. His jokes land, but they also reveal a deeper truth: for many Nigerians, the idea that someone would choose to stay is simply incomprehensible.
Jide
The landlord’s grandson, whom Bepo teaches for free on weekends. Jide represents the quiet, uncelebrated work that good teachers do the teaching that happens outside classrooms and outside contracts, simply because someone cares. JAMB Subject Combination for All Courses 2026: Requirements & Career Guide
Major Themes to Know for JAMB
The Japa Syndrome and National Identity
This is the novel’s most urgent theme. The japa syndrome the mass emigration of Nigerians seeking better lives abroad is presented not as a simple matter of ambition, but as a moral and emotional crossroads. Bepo’s struggle asks: what do we owe to the country that shaped us?
Dedication and Vocation
Bepo’s relationship with teaching goes beyond profession. It is a calling. The novel argues that some people find their deepest meaning in service and that walking away from that service, even for understandable reasons, carries a real cost.
Historical Memory and Modern Choices
The Point of No Return sequence connects Nigeria’s colonial past to its present-day brain drain. This is not a simple comparison, but it is a provocative one. Garba is asking his readers to think about whether voluntary departure and forced departure have more in common than we like to admit.
Integrity in Leadership
Both the Grammar War chapter and the Cooperative Society subplot deal with what it means to lead with honesty. Bepo’s defence of Fafore, and his discomfort with what he suspects is happening at Beesway, show a man who takes integrity personally.
Community and Belonging
Ultimately, Bepo chooses to stay because of community not because Nigeria is perfect, but because the relationships he has built here are irreplaceable. The novel suggests that belonging is not just about geography or salary. It is about who needs you and who you have chosen to be responsible for. JAMB Cut-Off Mark for Nursing 2026: Requirements, How Much Score Is Needed & Salary Guide
Likely JAMB 2026 Questions on The Lekki Headmaster
JAMB typically sets 10 questions from the reading text. Based on the novel’s content, here are the areas most likely to come up:
- Who is the protagonist of the novel, and what is his full name? (Mr. Bepo Adewale)
- What is the significance of the title “The Lekki Headmaster”? (His nickname from imitating Village Headmaster characters)
- What difficult decision does Bepo face throughout the novel? (Whether to leave Nigeria and join his family in the UK)
- Who presents Bepo with a $10,000 cheque at his farewell? (Mrs. Ibidun Gloss)
- What does the Point of No Return symbolise in the novel? (The link between historical forced migration and modern japa)
- What is the Stardom Cooperative Society, and why does it cause concern? (A staff savings group suspected of mismanagement)
- What was Bepo’s role at Beesway Group of Schools before Stardom? (He was a teacher/head who left due to ethical concerns)
- How does the novel end? (Bepo returns to Stardom and decides to stay)
- What does Bepo’s airport dream represent? (His subconscious rejection of migration)
- Which character is known for witty remarks? (Mrs. Ibidun Gloss)
How to Prepare for This Novel in Your JAMB Exam
The most important thing you can do is read the actual book. It is only 63 pages you can finish it in an afternoon. JAMB questions on the reading text are often very specific: they will test whether you actually read the story or just relied on summaries.
Pay special attention to the names of characters, their relationships, and the roles they play. JAMB likes to ask who said what, who did what, and why. Make sure you can explain the significance of key scenes especially the Point of No Return visit, the airport dream, and Bepo’s final decision to return.
Also study the themes. JAMB occasionally asks questions that test literary understanding: What does this symbol represent? What theme is explored in this chapter? If you understand the themes clearly, you will handle those questions with confidence.
Finally, do not ignore the smaller details. Character nicknames, specific locations, the name of the TV show Bepo mimicked these are exactly the kinds of things that appear in exam questions.
Need a copy of the novel? JAMB distributes the physical book through registration centres the cost is included in your UTME e-PIN. Make sure you collect yours. JAMB Registration Fee 2026: Cost, How Much & Requirements + Portal Guide
Conclusion
The Lekki Headmaster is one of the more enjoyable JAMB reading texts in recent years. It is not a difficult book. It is an honest one. Kabir Alabi Garba wrote it to spark a conversation about what Nigeria means to those of us who live here, teach here, and wonder sometimes whether staying is enough.
Read it with that spirit in mind not just for the exam, but for the conversation it starts. And when JAMB asks you those 10 questions, you will answer them well because you understood the story, not just memorised it.
Good luck with your 2026 UTME preparation. If you found this guide useful, share it with a classmate who needs it.
Massodih Okon, ExamGuideNG.com