OAU Management Queries Two Students Over Illegal Meeting

Management of Obafemi Awolowo University, ile Ife on 25th of October queried two of its Students for leading Students to hold an Illegal Meeting

The students Gbenga Oloniniran, a Student of the department of Economics and Alawode Afolabi of the department of English confirmed to have received the queries on the 31st of October and 1st of November, 2018 respectively.

According to letter dated 25th October, the management accused the two students of  leading Students to discuss issues related to their stay on campus, insecurity, exploitation from butteries owners, attempt by the management to increase tuition fees at the college of health sciences and the reinstatement of Students'Union, among others offenses The management gave the two students  48hours to respond to the query why disciplinary action should not be taken against them.

   Responding to the query letter, Oloniniran Gbenga confirmed that he received the query letter on the 1st of November. He said the students gathered that faithful day to discuss issues regarding their stay on campus "May I quickly place on record that on the day in question, students gathered in Angola Hall of Residence to discuss issues affecting them as pertaining to buttery exploitation and other welfare challenges, and as a student who has witnessed such exploitation in that hall, I was obliged to join the discussion. In some other climes or other universities, students would have taken laws into their hands, but by the intellectual nature of our university and the studentry, our tradition has always been that students usually discuss all of those issues collectively. And that students are being gaged and threatened from having peaceful gatherings to discuss their problems make mockery of civility. I am even more surprised that I’m being sent a query letter for being in a gathering of such”

Reacting to the allegation on the increment in school fees for students of health sciences and other matters raised, Mr Gbenga said “Again, on paragraph two, you said I was “making misleading statement on the attempt by the university management to increase students school fees at the college of Health Sciences”. May I state that it is an open secret among students in the College of Health Sciences that there are steps already taken by the Provost and the College authorities to introduce extra fees on students. On the 18th of October, a meeting was called where the Provost, the Deputy Provost, Dr Aregbesola Togun and a host of others were in attendance and some group of persons which were classified as parents and in that meeting the sum 85,000 naira which was classified as professional training fee was proposed and adopted by them, there after students have been threatened to call congresses to ratify it. To claim ignorance of this, is to do disservice to truth which we don’t expect from your reputable office Ma.

"Again, on the continuous proscription and assault on the union, we maintain as always that it is illegal, and that students have rights to freely organise themselves as a union, and as such we demand that the ban on the students’ Union must be lifted as the Union is the only platform where students can ventilate their opinions."

He also denied that he was never suspended by the University management. "On paragraph 3 sub section “v”, you stated that “flouting the orders of the university Management after granting you a ” compassionate reinstatement “, during the Harmattan Semester, (2017/2018 Academic Session)". " May I humbly state that at no time have I been suspended by the university except the illegal and unjust incarceration I suffered at Kosere Prisons by the university, which the Vice Chancellor has since openly denied to be part of.

"Permit me, Ma, to say that a society that gags and suppresses the expression of students unjustly will only encourage gangsterism and violent recourse to resolving their problems. This, we have always preached against.”
“Ma, the culture of Great Ife that our fore fathers have made sacrifice for and have sustained over the years should not be destroyed because of the exigencies of the current moment.
With kind regards to your esteemed office, I appreciate the opportunity to respond to this letter.
Thank you.
Yours faithfully,
Gbenga Oloniniran”

Also in his seperate response, Alawode Afolabi Samuel stated that he received his copy of the query on the 30th of October 2018. His response read:Afolabi Samuel Alawode,
Department of English,
Faculty of Arts,
Obafemi Awolowo University.
1st of November, 2018.
To: The Registrar,
Obafemi Awolowo University.
Dear Ma,
RE: OFFICIAL QUERY.
I write in response to the letter from your office dated 25th of October which I received on the 31st of October and titled ‘Official Query’.
In the said letter, You stated that “On 19th October, 2018 at about 5pm, you Alawode Afolabi ( a.k.a. Aforevo), led an illegal group of students under the aegis of “Action Committee of the suspended Students’ Union” to hold an illegal meeting with some students and Executive members of Angola Hall of Residence with about forty (40) students in attendance.” May I quickly place on record that on the day in question I was not anywhere near Ife, in actual fact I was far away in Ogun State. It baffled me when I received a query letter that I led a group of students in an “illegal” congress, I then wonder how a person can be in Ogun state and be leading students in Ife at the same time. However, as you clearly mentioned that it was a meeting of students and their executives, I then wonder how such a meeting of students which was held in broad day light where students and their executives were in attendance to discuss the state of their welfare and the exploitation going on their Hall by the owners of the buttery can be classified to be an illegal gathering of students. May I also assure you, Ma, as citizens of Nigeria and university students for that matter their right to freely associate and gather to discuss issues that touch on their welfare is fully protected by the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and so that meeting can not be said to be illegal.

Again, on paragraph two you said I was “making misleading statement on the Attempt by the university management to increase students school fees at the college of Health Sciences”. May I state that it is an open secret among students in the College of Health Sciences that there are steps already taken by the Provost and the College authorities to introduce extra fees on students. On the 18th of October, a meeting was called where the Provost, the Deputy Provost, Dr Aregbesola, Dr Togun and a host of others were in attendance and some group of persons which were classified as parents and in that meeting the sum 85,000 naira which was classified as professional training fee was proposed and adopted by them, there after students have been threatened to call congresses to ratify it. To claim ignorance of this, is to do disservice to truth which we don’t expect from your reputable office Ma.
Again, on the continuous proscription and assault on the union, we maintain as always that it is illegal, and that students have rights to freely organise themselves as a union, and as such we demand that the ban on the students’ Union must be lifted as the Union is the only platform where students can ventilate their opinions.
On paragraph 3 sub section “v”, you stated that “flouting the orders of the university Management after granting you a ” compassionate reinstatement “, during the Harmattan Semester, (2017/2018 Academic Session)”. May I also state for the umpteenth time that at no time have I ever been suspended talk more of being reinstated on “compassionate grounds”. In fact, I will appreciate if the University produces Copies of my suspension and reinstatement letter that was received by me. It is important that we verify and cross check our facts before sending letters of these magnitudes to innocent students.
With kind regards to your esteemed office, I appreciate the opportunity to respond to this letter.
Thank you.
Yours faithfully,
Alawode Afolabi Samuel.
Egl/2015/158.
CC:
LEKAN ALABI ESQ. LEGAL PRACTITIONERS & CONSULTANTS, LEKAN ALABI CHAMBERS, POATSON BUILDING, 3RD FLOOR, PLOT 142, OBA AKRAN AVENUE, IKEJA, LAGOS. 08023600373″