Information reaching the public is that the Authorities and management of Edo State’s Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma, has resolved on its plans to rusticate 16 members of the students’ union leadership in the school for leading a protest against the hike in tuition fees.
One of the pages of a letter was obtained showing a list of the affected students’ union leaders which was also copied to the university’s Vice Chancellor, Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellors – Academic and Administration – among other top university officials.
The students’ union leaders which the university is set to suspend included:
Oshioke Abdulfatai Ibrahim, Bahel Adaeze Princess, Edubamoh Lifted Oyinbo, Victor Orobosa Osakue, Oghenovo Andrew, Marcus Oluwadamilola, Theo-Doza Ekundayo Folorunsho, Osasumwen Emmanuel, and Emmanuel Enoghama.
Others were Igoh Christopher Osas, Adewole Adedayo, Olusegun Success, Ilegbodu Destiny, Abiola Oluwaseyi and Jimah Mubarak.
Sources gathered that the management had also reached out to the parents of the affected students’ union leaders and were using the Department of State Services (DSS) to threaten them.
“The DSS extracted the biodata of the students and called their parents, asking them to caution their children to withdraw from this struggle and stop asking the management to reverse the school fees. The DSS did that on Sunday,” one of the sources said.
But speaking on the situation, the school’s Public Relations Officer, Otunba Mike Aladenika, denied the planned suspension of the students.
He said “I don’t know where that document was gotten from. As an image maker, I have set the position, which affected the schools and the students. I don’t have such information. The circular that have been going around may be preemptive blackmail. The issue the management is treating as we speak is the meeting between some selected students and the DSS.
According to him, “If you have not done anything wrong, why do you think the Management should rusticate you? But you know you have wrong the law, you have wrong the system, and you have run fowl of the system, So you may be thinking that this should be the punishment for your running fowl, so you want to create an environment for sympathy that is why you are preemptive. The Management has not come up with such decision, but if you are now saying that the Management should punish you with that, maybe the Management will help you to do so.”
