FROM THE CEC-ELECT
PRESS RELEASE
THE VICTIMS OF CIRCUMSTANCES:
‘‘centre of safety turned den of death for Nigeria
students’’
Gentle men of the press, the working masses, the
base and threshold of change and the general
public, the doggedness and tenacity of Nigeria
students must be well adulated at this interval of
our continued struggle and sustained agitation for
better society which has been channeled towards
ensuring and attaining not just modicum of change
but as well a wholesale spread of the much needed
change.
The Students’ Union being the fifth estate of the
realm has and will continuously maintain its non-
partisan stand and will never cease to darn its gown
of being a pressure group so as to press home the
needs and want of its people. However, under this
same parlance, the Great Ife Union, a pacesetter in
Students’ Unionism both at the local and national
stage, will never stop to be at the vanguard of
political, economic and even moral agitation as it
affect Nigeria Students both at home and in
Diaspora.
The Great Ife Union with all sense of civility,
responsibility believes that the mood of the nation is
not palatable for silence; hence, Silence is no longer
golden. The Union believes that ‘‘the sending to
early grave’’ of shinning stars of the university
community is becoming alarming thus there is a
need for the community to stop it before it stops us.
The case is not becoming just too alarming but
utterly outrageous. This inimical and dastard act,
we believe , should we have a rational and a clear-
headed leadership at the helm of affairs of National
Association of Nigeria Students(NANS), should have
been condemned and repulsed by now but the Great
Ife Union is not in any way surprise by this ‘‘un-
Secre-Nene’’ act of NANS towards its immediate
constituency. NANS have at various point taken
reactionary and totally anti-students position.
Needless to say it is appositely unwise for us to
continue to look for an elephant with microscope.
ON THE DEATH OF MISS MARY MOTUNRAYO
IBITOLU ON 6TH MAY 2015
Gentle men of the press, with a swollen heart, a
grievous mind and a mourning soul we announce
and take pain to inform you of passing away of one
of the shining-star, dynamic and distinguished
image of our union, whom we lost to the cold and
vicious hand of death, who inadvertently fell the
victim of being a Nigerian. The atmosphere that
clouded her untimely death and the event that sent
her to her early grave is more than clear to the
media. The Great Ife union believe that the inept of
the government both at the state and federal level
have continued to hunt the innocent Nigerian
students. We discovered that late Miss Mary
Motunrayo Ibitolu, who was an emblem of beauty
and brilliance cum intelligence, upon her accident
was not quickly attended to by medical personnel;
the vehicle that hit her was not by any standard of
traffic regulations supposed to be on the road. If the
apparatus of the government had been up and
doing, the young lady could have saved or even
avoided the death. However, we have come to the
reality that she is no more with us. The Great Ife
community continues to mourn Miss Mary
Motunrayo Ibitolu who will forever remain in our
heart.
ON THE DEATH VICTIM IN U.I AND RESULTANT
PROTEST
Sequel to the mourning mood the student
environment is thrown into, the report of the death
of a fellow Nigeria student in the University of
Ibadan was thrown at us like cabbage of moribund.
Mayowa Alaran, a 200level student of Kinetic
Human Movement met his untimely death as result
of suffocation. Upon, getting to the University Health
Centre, students were utterly disappointed as the
management of the Health Centre failed to give
proper attention instead demanded unreasonable
items which eventually led to the death of the young
man. It brings to the court of reasoning which
should prevail during emergency...bureaucracy or
loose of protocol. This inhumane behaviour of the
management has become a re-occurring one.
These lackadaisical attitudes of management have
sent a lot of students to their early grave.
The Great Ife Students’ Union being a pacesetter
and always at the focal point of social justice
condemn this demonic act which is garnished with
chronic wickedness. We maintain that the welfare of
students should and must be of utmost importance
to the University Authority at all strata and the well
being of the studentry must not be jettisoned. We
enjoin the Authorities at the University of Ibadan to
do what is right and stop contributing to the
established decadence of the political abattoir
designed by the federal government and as such
should desist from making the ‘‘Centre of Safety’’,
the Den of Death for our Students.
The third law of motion states that for every action,
there is always equal and unequal reaction. The
protest by the U.I students was a reaction against
malicious act vented on them through the
lackadaisical attitude of the Authority. The students
have complained of the incessant erratic and
epileptic power and water supply. The trigger shot
that broke the silence was the death of late Mayowa
Alaran.
The Great Ife Union in the spirit of solidarity
strongly support our brothers in their ‘‘Just Battle’’
which is a generational fight for justice, an injury to
one is consider and injury to all. We believe that the
unhealthy treatment students of the University of
Ibadan are been subjected to is the modus operandi
on other campuses. The Great Ife Union is making it
bold to assert here, that we solidly and strongly
support the U.I struggles which we believe is
yielding positive result. We use this medium to
make a clarion call on the incoming government to
take the education sector seriously and better the
welfare condition of both staffs and students so that
the glory and brains that are capable of
transforming the fortunes of the land is not been
buried every day. However, a stern warning here,
should this lackadaisical attitude continue, the
future is bleak.
ON THE CONTINUED CLOSURE OF LASU
It should be noted to the press, the general public
that the Great Ife Students’ Union is not unaware of
the continued closure of the Lagos state University.
However, it has maintained a near- silent position
on this salient issue because of certain findings it
has been making. We have come to discover that
the state government is playing a lot of politricks
with lives of students of this institution. The
University premises have been under locks and
keys since the election break. However, the
elections has come and gone, the victors and
vanquished been made known, thus the question of
WHY THE CONTINUED CLOSURE? Comes to mind.
Time, they say wait for no man; then I begin to
wonder if the government of the day put this into
consideration at all. While these students continue
to lose irreparable time, their contemporaries in
private institutions are graduating, the sad story is
that upon graduation we are been judged with the
same yardstick. It’s high time we began to
understand that the future of these individuals is at
stake. Students, Students Leaders and Lecturers
should not be victimized for demanding and fighting
for their right. In consonance and alignment with
provisions of the 1999 constitution, section 18,
objectives on Education, confirms Education as a
right. Education should not be seen as a privilege.
The Great Ife Union condemns the malign and
utterly malicious act and considers this as an act of
victimization upon demand for justice. However, in
solidarity with the Students of Lagos State
University, we demand the immediate re-opening of
the institution for academic activities to commence
without any throat-cutting set of conditions.
On page 50 of the Guardian Newspaper of the 7th of
May 2015, the special adviser to governor on
education, Mr. Fatai Olukoya, was quoted as he
passed a lot of Anti-people, anti-students and even
anti-masses statements which lay credence to the
government insensitivity and irresponsibility to its
people and as a vibrant fifth estate of the state, we
demand a withdrawal of such uncultured and
reckless statement.
In conclusion, Greatest Nigerian students, Articulate
Nigerian students, let it be echoed that every
generation out of relative obscurity of purpose
discovers its mission either to betray it or to fulfil it.
Even at the most recent reactionary and backward
stance of NANS, the Great Ife Union, though, not
replacing NANS, is ready to be at the vanguard of
political agitation, political conscientisation, sane
leadership and progressive unionism as it has
always been. Being the most radically organised
union, it will continue to move and support the
cause of progressive unionism and assert the mood
of change on our campuses until our Aluta is
continua and we begin to see the reality that our
Victoria is Ascerta. We beseech appropriate
Authorities to do what is right and ensure a better
and conducive Nigeria.
Nigeria will be great again......Good people, Great
Nation.
REINSTATE OAU-6
ALUTA CONTINUA, VICTORIA ASCERTA
Emmanuel .O. Ojedokun
Public Relations Officer
Omotayo Akande President
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