Protest At UNILAG Over Rustication, Others

Institution denies students’ involvement

Movements in and out of the University of Lagos
(UNILAG), Akoka, were yesterday disrupted by
protesting students who were demanding for
immediate and unconditional reinstatement of the
11 executive members of the institution’s students
union. The protesters, who defied the heavy rain,
barricaded the university main gate hindering
students and visitors from entering the premises.
Other demands include a call to lift the “illegal ban
on the UNILAG Students Union” and “improvement
in welfare and conducive learning environment.” Besides, the students at the protest led by the
leadership of the Lagos State Chapter of the Joint
Campus Committee (JCC) of the National
Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) and the
Alliance of Nigerian Students against Neoliberal
Attacks (ANSA), asked the management of the institution to retract the indemnity forms it
mandated students to sign and stop attacks on
activists and unionism.


Meanwhile, Deputy Registrar, Information Unit of
the institution, Toyin Adebule, in a telephone
conversation with The Guardian, denied that the
protesters are UNILAG students. According to him: “The protesters are activists and
rusticated students who lost their case in court.
Now that they have lost in court, they put up the
jankara protest. We have issued a press statement
to that effect informing the public that the
University of Lagos students are not protesting. The gathering outside the gate consists of
rusticated students and allies. They have
challenged the university in court and the case has
been struck out.”