…say ‘they now attack us four times per week’
Students of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, have cried out over the incessant attacks on them by suspected armed robbers.
The undergraduates, under the aegis of Save OAU Now Campaign, claimed that armed robbers and other criminals now attacked their hostels almost on a daily basis.
The students, in a statement signed by two others, who refused to disclose their names for fear of witch-hunt by the university management, claimed they now experienced robbery incidents, at least, four times a week since the management introduced a new accommodation policy.
They argued that the new accommodation policy introduced by the management had forced undergraduates to rent apartments outside the school campus at exorbitant rates.
The students said hostels outside the campus were porous and had exposed students to incessant attacks by hoodlums.
They have, therefore, called on the management of the institution to reverse the accommodation policy, which allowed for squatting of illegal occupants.
They said the lives of many undergraduates were in danger as they now had to contend with armed robbers and other categories of criminals almost every day.
The statement reads: “Over a hundred cases of armed robbery have been reported by students staying off-campus since the inception of the accommodation policy in 2018 with one claiming the life of a student, Babalola Abiodun. Students experience at least four robbery incidents in a week.
“We believe that this new move to further deny students accommodation on campus will lead to more danger for undergraduates.
“The recent announcement made by the management to deprive all returning students accommodation on campus will lead to inflation in the price of accommodation off-campus.
“This can only cause untold hardship for students and parents, who are already victims of a collapsed Nigerian economy.
“These adverse conditions will further push students towards cybercrime, prostitution, low academic performance as well as cultism as means to find protection.
“There are already rumours that the new blocks built with the NEEDS intervention funds of 2015 are being allocated for amounts between N60,000 to N150,000 as opposed to the legal fee of N3,090 approved by the University’s Senate.”
They also called for a reduction in accommodation fees on campus when ongoing hostels are completed.
