- Incident occurred on June 5 at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State.
- Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, was delivering a Distinguished Personality Lecture.
- The lecture topic was “Nigeria of Our Dreams.”
Drama unfolded at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, on Thursday, June 5, when two students interrupted a lecture by Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, with a protest.
Wike was on campus to deliver a Distinguished Personality Lecture at the university’s Oduduwa Hall, where he spoke on the topic, “Nigeria of Our Dreams.”
During the event, students Oladepo Joshua and Ejike Kelechi held a protest inside the hall, displaying placards calling for compensation for victims of recent demolition exercises in the FCT. Their action briefly disrupted the lecture and caused tension among attendees before security operatives escorted them out.
Witnesses said the atmosphere became tense, with some students reacting angrily toward the protesters.
“They were in Oduduwa Hall for the event Wike came for. We presently don’t know their whereabouts,” said a student who identified herself as Gift, speaking out of fear of victimization.
Another source stated, “I’m just getting to Floor 0. They were taken there along with security details attached to Wike. They wanted to take them away, but security operatives appealed to Wike’s security officials not to.”
Abiodun Olarewaju, the university’s Public Relations Officer, denied that the students were arrested, explaining that they were taken out of the hall for their own protection.
“Everybody has a right to protest,” Olarewaju said in a phone interview. “But minorities, microscopic minorities, should not disrupt what the overwhelming majority allows.”
“So, they were not arrested; they were only escorted out of Oduduwa Hall. We didn’t want the situation to escalate, especially since some of their colleagues were accosting them.”
He further explained “When about 20 students descended on two students, something could have happened. So, security operatives just took the two students out of the hall.”
Despite these clarifications, some student groups have challenged the university’s version of events.
The Alliance of Nigerian Students Against Neoliberal Attacks (ANSA) criticized what it referred to as the “arrest” of the protesters and demanded their immediate release.
“We demand the immediate and unconditional release of our comrades. We urge the Nigerian public, the Great Ife Students’ Union, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, other progressive unions, civil society groups, the media, and all defenders of justice to rise in condemnation of this repression,” ANSA’s Deputy National Coordinator, Ikechukwu John, said in a statement sent to The PUNCH.
Likewise, the Education Rights Campaign (ERC) condemned the development.
“The removal of those student activists is unacceptable and highlights the authoritarian climate on campuses,” said Adaramoye Michael, the group’s National Mobilisation Officer.
As of the time of reporting, the Students’ Union of OAU said it was still trying to confirm the full details of the incident.
“As of this time, I just heard rumours. I was not in attendance at the event and don’t have a detailed report yet,” said Aka Daniel, the union’s Public Relations Officer.
