This past week was characterised with sad stories in different universities, polytechnics across Nigeria among the students.
Student activist killed hours after facing LASU panel’
The Education Rights Campaign has lamented the death of a student activist, Nurudeen Alawonle, popularly known as Omomeewa, some hours after he was invited to face a disciplinary panel set up by the Lagos State University.
The PUNCH had reported that Alowonle was shot dead on Wednesday, according to a release by the LASU Students’ Union on Thursday.
It was gathered that the activist, who had a four-month-old baby, was shot dead around LASU U-turn, Iba road.
UNIZIK student commits suicide over alleged hike in school fees
A 200-Level student of Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka, Anambra State, has reportedly committed suicide over an alleged hike in school fees.
The deceased, a native of the Isuikwuato Local Government Area of Abia State, was said to be studying Industrial Physics.
His body was reportedly found dangling inside one of the hostel blocks on campus.
A source who preferred anonymity said, “The deceased locked himself inside the room for days and was sobbing over his inability to pay the new regime of school fees introduced by the management,” adding, “when the door was broken, he was seen dangling with a rope around his neck.”
Another source, who described the deceased as a quiet and calm student, said he never showed any signs of depression before the incident.
The Chief Security Officer of the institution, Ken Chukwura, said the deceased’s roommates had been invited for questioning while investigations had commenced.
Confirming the incident, Police Public Relations Officer, Ikenga Tochukwu, described the incident as unfortunate, adding that investigations had commenced.
The students of the institution had recently protested for five days over a hike in tuition. The management later slashed the fees after a meeting with the Students’ Union Government of the university.
Taraba University Student Found Dead In Hostel
A 200-level student of the Taraba State University in the Peace and Conflict Resolution Department has died after a brief illness.
According to an anonymous source, the student identified as Patience Samson was rushed to the school clinic on Saturday after her fellow students discovered she was critically ill.
She was attended to and discharged later in the day.
However, the source further disclosed that Samson was found dead in her hostel by Sunday morning.
The University’s Director of Communication, Sa’ad Mohammed, confirmed the incident to Channels Television via a telephone interview, stating that more details regarding the student’s death will be revealed.
Her remains have now been deposited at a morgue awaiting autopsy.
Nigerian Polytechnic Student Kills Pregnant Girlfriend, Buries Her In Shallow Grave
A polytechnic student in Nigeria, Mumini Abubakar has killed his girlfriend, Franca Elisha, and secretly buried her remains in a shallow grave.
Abubakar was said to have allegedly killed Franca, a Diploma II student of the Federal Polytechnic, Mubi, Adamawa state, in the process of aborting her pregnancy.
SaharaReporters learnt that the late Franca had informed her boyfriend, Abubakar of her pregnancy, and the latter decided to terminate it.
He was said to have allegedly sought the help of his friend, Huzaifa Shu’aibu, a student of the College of Health Technology, Mubi, who injected Franca with a drug to terminate the pregnancy.
The duo and one other accomplice have been arrested in connection to the crime, as revealed by the police.
Spokesperson for the police in the state, DSP Suleiman Nguroje, on Saturday, confirmed to SaharaReporters that Mumini Abubakar, Huzaifa Shu’aibu, and Rabi’u Adamu were apprehended in connection to the crime.
Abubakar, a resident of Sanda ward under the Yola-South Local Government Area had allegedly treated the late Franca like his wife, leading to the pregnancy.
However, when he was informed by Franca of the pregnancy, he decided to abort it.
He reportedly took the deceased into his room located at the students’ community behind Adamawa State University, Mubi, for the abortion on August 6, 2021.
A friend of the deceased who spoke on condition of anonymity said, “To carry out their planned abortion, the accused invited his friend and a student of the College of Health and Technology, Mubi, Huzaifa Shu’aibu, who supplied an injection for the abortion.
“Huzaifa injected Franca with a powerful drug for abortion after which she fainted immediately, but as God would have it, she later regained consciousness.
“In order to perfect the termination of the pregnancy, Huzaifa gave the late Franca a second round of the injection after she had regained her consciousness, but unfortunately she fainted for the second time and subsequently died.
“Thereafter, the duo invited one of their friends and a student of the polytechnic, Rabiu Adamu, and the trio waited until midnight to Bury the corpse in a shallow grave.
“The remains of Franca were buried along with a mobile phone and a National Identity Card, belonging to the deceased in an effort to destroy evidence.”
However, the father of the deceased, Elisha Iliya, a resident of Sabon Gari, Mubi, told our reporter that “my daughter left home on the fateful day for school, but did not return home as usual”.
“We searched everywhere as well as made contacts, but to no avail.
“We decided to contact her friend and fellow student, who told us she last saw my daughter with Abubakar on the day she was killed while running to the hostel because it was raining.
“It was the girl who helped us to locate the whereabouts of Abubakar, to effect his arrest.
“Abubakar was arrested while playing football as if nothing had happened. He however led the police to my daughter’s shallow gravesite,” he said.
Confirming the incident, Nguroje, said, “The death of the lady was reported to the command after which the Commissioner of Police, Adamu Alhaji, ordered the investigation and arrest of the suspects.
“Investigation so far revealed that it was Mumini Abubakar who impregnated her and that it was Huzaifa Shu’aibu, who administered the injection, while Rabiu Adamu assisted in burying the corpse,” he said.
Outrage in Owerri as police invade IMSU hostel, abduct students
Policemen attached to the Imo state police command have come under serious attack from residents of Owerri, the state capital, following the brutalization of students of Imo state university, Owerri, living at Olive hostel.
Our correspondent who visited the hotel located in front of the university on Friday afternoon, was told by few of the students who were still around that the cops stormed the place around 9pm on Thursday.
The undergraduates said that the policemen stormed the hostel, vandalized doors of over 15 rooms, threw teargas cannisters, brutalized them, including female occupants and arrested no fewer than 21 of them.
The enraged students said that some of the arrested students were made to pay N60,000, N30,000 and N20, 000 before they were allowed to go from the police station on Thursday night and Friday morning, respectively.
Our correspondent’s investigation revealed that about four students who had not been able to raise bailout money were still being held in police custody.
One of the students who identified himself simply as, Murphy, said ” two occupants of one of the rooms in the hostel were having issues and one of them left and invited his police boyfriend.
After one hour, policemen in three jeeps stormed the hostel and started beating everybody. They used planks on us, including the female students. They broke into rooms and destroyed properties, including doors of no less than 15 rooms. They also took money and phones and arrested no less than 21 students.
“Some came home after paying N60,000, N30,000 and N20,000, respectively. Some of the brutalized students are receiving treatment in undisclosed hospitals. As we speak, some are still in police custody because they don’t have money to bail themselves.
“The irony of the matter is that the girl who called her police boyfriend is squatting with the girl she fought. She came on an Industrial Training from a university outside the state.”
When contacted, the IMSU spokesperson, Ralph Obinjoku, said that the Chief security officer of the university and Dean students affairs had swung into action.
The police spokesperson for the command, Micheal Abattam, said that the Commissioner of Police, Rabiu Hussaini, had ordered holistic investigation into the incident.
Gunmen kidnap ABSU lecturers, others
Gunmen suspected to be kidnappers have reportedly kidnapped lecturers of the Abia State University, Uturu.
Information about the kidnap at the time of filing report was still sketchy, but our correspondent gathered that the incident occurred along ABSU-Ogboro road in Isuikwuato Local Government Area of the state.
The gunmen were said to have shot one Miss Ezinne Esike in her stomach and thigh.
She was said to be receiving treatment at an undisclosed private hospital.
The names of the ABSU lecturers were given as Prof. S. O Eze of the Department of Industrial Chemistry and Mr. Christian Afulike of the Department of Mass Communication (a former Student Union Government President of the university), an indigene of Umuobiala in Isuikwuato LGA.
The gunmen were said to have abandoned Afulike’s car and phone along Isuikwuato-Uturu road.
A source within the university community who confirmed the kidnap of the professor said that he was not the primary target.
”The gunmen were attacking a commercial bus when the professor ran into them.
”They picked the professor and others and moved them into the bush.
”From the information available, soldiers from the 14Brigade, Ohafia have rescued three persons as at the early hours of today (Friday).”
Asked about the reported ransom demanded by the hoodlums, the source said “I don’t know about any ransom demand. The truth is that no one can say how many people that were abducted alongside Prof. But we hope that the professor and others will regain their freedom.”
When contacted, the Army Public Relations Officer (APRO) Captain Iliya Dauda, confirmed the rescue operation which he said was carried out by troops of 143 Ranger Battalion of 14 Brigade, Headquarters, Ohafia.
According to the APRO, the rescued victims have been handed over to the Police.
The Abia State Command Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Geoffrey Ogbonna in a telephone interview also confirmed the rescue of the victims.
Ogbonna went further to disclose that five persons have been rescued by the police as efforts to rescue the professor were ongoing.
The Vice-Chancellor of the institution, Distinguished Professor Onyemachi M. Ogbulu, says he has received with deep shock and sadness, the news of abduction of two lecturers of the university.
”The Vice-Chancellor assured the families, university community and the public, that all combined security operations have been deployed to ensure the immediate release of these academics from their abductors without any harm.
”The Vice-Chancellor on behalf of the Governing Authorities of ABSU urge for calm and prayers at this time and not rumors that may escalate the situation.”
