Students of Moshood Abiola Polytechnic have issued a 24-hour ultimatum to Ogun State Deputy Governor, Noimot Salako-Oyedele, demanding an apology following a violent clash between protesting students and her security operatives.
The students had taken to the streets of Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, on Wednesday to protest against increased school fees and the dissolution of their Students Union Government. While marching to the Governor’s Office, the confrontation occurred near the OPIC area in Oke Ilewo.
At a press briefing on Thursday, Francis Adeyanju, Chairman of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Ogun Joint Campus Committee, called on the state governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, to investigate the alleged shooting of students by the deputy governor’s security detail.
Adeyanju rejected the claim made by the governor’s Special Adviser on Communication and Strategy, Kayode Akinmade, who alleged that the students attacked the deputy governor’s convoy with dangerous weapons.
“The statement by Akinmade is baseless and a deliberate attempt to tarnish the image of the students,” Adeyanju said.
Contrary to the allegation, Adeyanju explained that the students were peacefully marching and chanting solidarity songs to draw attention to their grievances when the security operatives opened fire.
“The students, on their way to present their demands at the Governor’s Office, encountered the deputy governor’s convoy and showed no hostility. Instead of understanding the peaceful nature of the protest, overzealous security operatives opened fire on defenseless students,” Adeyanju said.
He added that a NANS leader sustained an injury from the gunfire, while others scrambled for safety. The deputy governor’s convoy reportedly made a hurried U-turn after realizing the situation, but the shooting continued, damaging some of the vehicles in the process.
Adeyanju claimed there is video evidence and eyewitness accounts to support the students’ version of events, urging the deputy governor to take responsibility and issue a public apology.
“We demand an unreserved apology from the deputy governor and a retraction of the false accusations against the students within 24 hours,” he stated.
Adeyanju warned that failure to meet their demands would result in large-scale protests across the state, with students mobilizing from various regions to decry the “injustice and unprovoked attack” on peaceful protesters.
“If our demands are not met, we will organize massive protests across Ogun State, involving students from all six zones of the NANS,” Adeyanju warned.