Protest Rocks AAU, Akungba, as Students Block Road
By Staff Reporter
Protest on Thursday rocked Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), Ondo State, as aggrieved students barricaded the university’s main gate and adjoining roads over the prolonged strike that has kept them away from academic activities.
The students, under the aegis of the Students’ Union Government (SUG), took to the streets carrying placards with various inscriptions, demanding an urgent resolution of the issues responsible for the strike and the immediate reopening of the institution.
The protest caused a major disruption to vehicular movement around the university and adjoining communities, as students blocked key access routes leading to and from the institution.
The students said they had been forced to resort to the protest after repeated efforts by the union to engage relevant stakeholders failed to produce a concrete solution to the crisis.
Speaking during the protest, the SUG President, Folagbade Greatness Ayoola, said students could no longer remain silent while the prolonged closure of the university continued to disrupt their academic pursuits.
“We cannot keep silent because we are really facing challenges in our university. We keep hearing promises and pushing for a solution, but nothing concrete has happened. Until the strike is called off, we are not going to back down,” he said.
The Students’ Union General Secretary, Oluwatimileyin Amos, said the prolonged closure had created serious uncertainty for students, particularly final-year students whose examinations and graduation plans had been affected.
He appealed to the government and other stakeholders to urgently intervene and resolve the issues behind the industrial action, stressing that students should not continue to bear the consequences of a dispute beyond their control.
A 500-level student, Ogungbade James, also called on the authorities to find a lasting solution to the crisis so that academic activities could resume without further delay.
The students vowed to sustain the pressure until concrete steps were taken towards resolving the dispute and reopening the university.
The protest came after the university had remained shut for about 68 days, according to reports, leaving thousands of students at home and disrupting academic activities.
