24th April, 2012
Following two days of protest by students of the University of Ibadan, UI over poor electricity supply to the institution, the university authority has directed that the institution be closed down for two weeks with immediate effect.
The school authority declared the closure after an emergency Senate meeting held between 3pm and 5pm Tuesday to appraise the situation on ground.
Although details of the meeting were not known at the time of filing this report, a source revealed that the closure has become necessary to abort the indefinite protest by the students.
The source stated that the school authority would have time to fix some of the problems the students have complained about and ensure that electricity is generated within the campus so that the students will have at least seven hours of uninterrupted electricity daily.
Earlier, the Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Tamba Yabo Muhammad, visited the institution. In a meeting with the institution’s Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic), he charged the school authority to immediately address the plight of the students.
He said, “the school authority needs to improve the electricity situation on campus. If the school authority does its own part and the students continue with the protest, then we know what to do.”
Reacting, the DVC alleged that the students were demonstrating because they wanted to compel the school authority to give them two weeks break.
“We are already addressing their problems. We have bought inverters which will be installed today. We have also bought some generators. But we have just found out that their agitation include some other things. Their examination will start in three weeks’ time and they are demanding a break for three weeks. Students who are running four years programmes don’t mind spending six years on campus.”
But in a swift reaction, the students representatives debunked the allegations of the DVC.
The three students who spoke on behalf of the students were: president, Law Students Society, Miss Mariam Olafuyi; President, Association of Faculty of Arts, Mr. Olumuyiwa Adebayo and Chairman, Zik Hall, Olukannmi Ademola.
Olafuyi said, “we are not demonstrating because our exam is at the corner. It’s about ten weeks that we have resumed this academic session and we have never had stable light for two hours in a day. Library is not running the way it should. I don’t think we are asking for too much if we ask the school authority to look for a way of providing us light for seven hours daily. That is all we are demanding.”
By Gbenro Adesina/Ibadan