ERC MOURNS THE TRAGIC DEATH OF 7 STUDENTS OF FEDERAL UNIVERSITY LOKOJA
WE PLACE THE BLAME FOR THIS TRAGIC LOSS ON THE INEPTITUDE OF THE UNIVERSITY MANAGEMENT AND GOVERNMENT
STUDENTS MUST FIGHT TO COMPEL THE SCHOOL MANAGEMENT AND GOVERNMENT TO PROVIDE MEASURES TO PREVENT RECURRENCE
The Education Rights Campaign (ERC) condoles with students of Federal University of Lokoja over the tragic loss of 7 students, who died under awful circumstances on Monday 17 February 2025. The deceased met a sad end when a truck crumpled the campus shuttle they boarded. Notably, the loss of innocent lives in this gruesome manner has become a frequent occurrence. This is majorly because the University management and government have not shown any concern beyond talks, neither have they shown any readiness to address the situation and prevent future occurrences. The university Vice Chancellor Prof. Okayemi Akinwumi, the Kogi state government, and the federal government must be held responsible for this painful loss.
The Federal University Lokoja is situated along the Lokoja-Abuja highway, something which exposes students and staff to the daily danger of commuting through this road which is in a terrible condition. This is what has been claiming innocent lives. Despite the severity of this situation, the University authorities and the government have not taken steps to ensure that preventive measures are provided. In addition to the need to repair the road, a pedestrian flyover and overhead bridge ought to have been constructed to ensure students and workers don’t have to deal with the daily dangers lurking on the road. Road safety officers should also be adequately positioned around the part linking the road to the campus while also constructing modernized speed-breakers.
It is necessary to state that many students reside off-campus because the University authorities have woefully failed to provide cheap, adequate and conducive accommodation for students on campus. For instance, hostel accommodation on campus costs about N130, 000 per student for a room to be occupied by 4 students, this is aside the terrible state of these hostels. This is why many students opt for accommodation outside the school. The University management, if genuinely concerned about students’ safety, must drastically reduce the cost of accommodation and also begin the process of building new hostels, commensurate with the population of students. These are the ways to ensure students are kept safe on campus and not exposed to unnecessary dangers outside.
We of the Education Rights Campaign (ERC) welcome the call of the students’ union for lecture-free days to mourn the deceased students. However, we strongly believe that the demands of the union should go beyond this. The students’ union is a democratic platform of students meant to protect their interest, a situation that concerns the lives of students must be treated with pertinent urgency. As a first step, we propose that the students’ union leadership call a general congress of students to allow students to discuss this sad incident and how to prevent future occurrences. The union must fight to ensure the university management and Government urgently provide adequate measures to prevent future occurrences.
Ogunjimi Isaac,
Deputy National Coordinator
Adaramoye Michael Lenin,
National Mobilization Officer
Are you dissatisfied with the situation of your school and interested in struggling to make it better and also make society better? Then join the ERC today as we campaign for a safe campus and a better education sector and society!