PRESS STATEMENT
The Education Rights Campaign (ERC) condemns in strong terms the
unlawful arrest and subsequent remand in prison custody of Adeyeye Femi and 12
other student activists. The 13 students were arrested by heavily armed
Policemen on Friday March 31, 2017 around the premises of University of Lagos
on their way to show their displeasure at the suspension of a visually-impaired
student and to demand the reinstatement of all suspended student activists
The 13 student activists were taken into custody at Kirikiri
prison on Saturday, 1st April 2017 on the order of the Special Offenses Mobile
Court Oshodi where they were arraigned by the police on completely false
charges.
We demand their immediate release and that all charges against
them, which are clearly trumped-up, must be dropped. We also call on members of
the staff unions like ASUU, SSANU, NASU and NAAT in the education sector, to
prevail on the University of Lagos (UNILAG) management to immediately reinstate
all the activists under victimization and recognize the rights of students to
organize in a Students’ Union.
The students were arraigned on the false accusation of disorderly
conduct at Television Continental (TVC) where they had gone to press home the
demand for the reinstatement of rusticated student activists including a
visually challenged student who was the latest victim. This accusation has been
publicly denied by the management of TVC. According to the rejoinder by the
TVC, the students only came to their premises to condemn the
suspension/rustication of student activists and call for their recall. Besides,
the television revealed that they did not lodge complaint to the police
alleging any disruption or destruction of properties at TVC when the students
visited the station. Despite this clarification and denial of its claim by the
TVC management, the police through the Lagos State Commissioner of Police (CP)
has continued to lie brazenly to justify the actions of its operatives
The background to this illegal arrest and detention is the
repression of students’ activists at the University of Lagos for leading
students’ protests in April 2016 against poor welfare conditions, bed-bug
infested mattresses and high cost of food and basic needs on campus. 11
students’ activists were rusticated last year over the protest. Now the number
has increased to 13 with the rustication on Thursday 30th March 2017 of Ochuba
Chichebe and Lawrence Success, a visually impaired student.
We wish to make clear that the University of Lagos (UNILAG)
management is complicit in this illegal arrest and detention carried out by the
police because this is not the first time the UNILAG management had employed
the services of the police to disperse peaceful protests and repress those
campaigning against victimization of students’ activists.
We also call for the immediate removal of the Lagos State
Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni for turning the police, a public
institution funded by tax payers’ money, into private thugs of the management
of the University of Lagos.
Clearly, all the actions of the police since the campaign for the
recall of victimized students and restoration of banned students union
commenced in UNILAG show there is a criminal conspiracy between the University
of Lagos authorities and the Commissioner of police to continue to deploy the
police as private thugs of UNILAG to harass students and put down dissent view.
We also call for the disbandment of the special offenses mobile
courts which are kangaroo courts set up by the Lagos state government to
fast-track its agenda of using the judiciary to repress poor people, artisans
and traders all in order to raise the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the
state.
The arbitrary employment of the judicial system to stifle the
constitutional rights of students to protest, rally and hold dissenting
opinions is condemnable. The 13 students were brought before a Magistrate at a
mobile court specially created for Traffic offence. Aside the fact that there
are serious questions over the capacity of the mobile court to adjudicate over
this matter, there is no justification for exposing 13 young, vibrant youths to
the cruel experience of prison.
We demand that the UNILAG authorities put an end to its growing
vindictive actions. The Nigerian Police must stop the ingratiating service of
deploying state’s forces against student activists who are only making
legitimate demands for improvement in their conditions and an end to vindictive
suspension/rustication of students.
We reiterate our demands for the (1) immediate and unconditional
release of 13 unjustly detained student activists, (2) unconditional recall of
all victimized student activists, (3) restoration of banned students union and
respect for democratic rights of students and education workers, (4) removal of
Fatai Owoseni as Lagos CP for turning the police into the private thugs of the
UNILAG management, (5) end to the atmosphere of repression and fear imposed on
the campus, (6) improved academic and welfare conditions as well as (7)
democratic management of the university through the involvement of elected
representatives of students and staff in all decision-making organs.
Hassan Taiwo Soweto
National Coordinator
(07033697259)
Omole Ibukun
ERC National Secretary
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