LAUTECH Expels Three Students Over Election Violence

The authority of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology ( LAUTECH ), has suspended eight students and rusticated 3 others for their involvement in the crisis that erupted during Students’ Union election on June 13.

In a Statement, the University Registrar, Mr. J.A. Agboola stated that the management approved the sanction after it “considered at length the report and recommendation of the panel set up to investigate the student crisis.”

The son of the ex-Osun SSG Moshood Adeoti, was among the eight students suspended by the university authority, eight of the students sanctioned were currently in their final year.

In an earlier statement on June 16 after the Students’ Union election, the University, in an attempt to debunk a report by online blog Naijaloaded, had denied there being any “chaotic situation,” stating that there was “No fire in LAUTECH over Students’ election.”

Lekan Fadeyi, the University Public Relations Officer, further clarified that a few students belonging to “unrecognized” political groups “wanted to start trouble” after the election which “was held peacefully.”

The Nation reports that he alleged that one of the students who previously served as the Speaker of the Students’ Representative Council “led thugs carrying guns and machetes” to invade the office of the Acting Dean of Students’ Affairs Dr Sunday Adewale, and that he also ambushed the Dean’s residence the previous night “threatening to kill him.”

The rustication however greeted with mixed opinions by the students as the news is coming amid rumors to increase the school fees to as high as N300,000 from the current N150,000, which was also a recent increment from N72,500.

“They have unjustly rusticated numbers of students’ leaders on the basis of demonstration without vandalization after the last students’ union election,” said Oke Oluwaseun Isaac a former students’ union leader of the university.

Oyedeji Ahmed, an activist and recent graduate of LAUTECH said, “I am not opposed to sanitizing the institution, neither am I in support of students’ act of lawlessness or indiscipline but a decision at this crucial time is unhealthy.”