Students of the Federal College of Agriculture, Akure, (FECA), Ondo state, yesterday trooped to the streets in protest of the rape of three female students of the institution by some hoodlums who invaded the campus at the early hour of Tuesday.
The aggrieved students who defied all entreaties from the regular police officers who came to arrest the situation had demanded for the arrest of the hoodlums and the Chief Security Officer of the institution.
Some journalists who tried to probe into the genesis of the protest were molested by the students, threatening to kill any reporter who attempts to gain entrance into the school premises.
Meanwhile, the ever busy Fiwasaye/Owo road was blocked by the students causing traffic gridlock that lasted for several hours.
The irate students who carried sticks and leaves molested motorcyclists popularly called okada, motorists and journalists who wanted to find out the cause of the protests.
According to the institution student Union leader, Oladapo Akindamini who later spoke with journalists, about five hoodlums led by a part time student of the school invaded the campus around 12 midnight and headed to the female hostel to molest them.
He stated that the students were alerted by the noise from the female hostel only to have discovered later that two of the female students were raped, while the third student was molested with cuts all over her body.
Akindamini said ” before we could rush to the female dormitory to save the situation, two of our female students had been raped, while one was molested. Two of the students were also wounded when the rapists were trying to overpower them and we had to rush them to the General Hospital for treatment”
He explained further that the students who were preparing for their examination trooped out of their hostels and apprehended one of the hoodlums who was handed over to the security officer who kept him in an open room instead of handing him over to the police and the hoodlum eventually escaped.
Irked by the action of the Security Officer , the student decided to table their grievances before the Provost of the school whom they claimed handled the development with kid gloves.
The major grouse of the students was that the security in the campus could no longer guarantee the safety of students and staff living in the school campus.
Akindamini said what angered the students was the conduct of the Chief Security Officer who allowed one of the hoodlums arrested by the students to escape and the threat of the hoodlum to stage revenge .
All attempts made to speak with the Provost of the school , Dr. Mary Ogunkoya, was not successful as calls put to her phone did not go through, but one of the staff of the school who spoke on condition of anonymity said the provost was trying to check the students activities on the matter before inviting the police, saying the matter was an internal one.
He said ” the Provost has commenced investigation into the crisis and the involvement of the Chief Security Officer of the school”
Confirming the development, the Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Wole Ogodo said the police successfully put the situation under control, affirming that the victims have reported the incident to the Divisional Police station in Ijapo, Akure.
He however said the victims have been taken to the hospital for treatment while investigation is ongoing to arrest those behind the criminal act.
Comments