Students of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Iseyin campus, on Friday staged a peaceful protest over what they described as the alarming rise in cases of robbery, theft, and sexual assault targeting students in the community.
The protesters, who marched through major streets of Iseyin before converging at the palace of the Aseyin of Iseyin, decried the increasing attacks in student-dominated areas, particularly Ogbakuta and Ilabe.
According to eyewitnesses, the latest incident occurred on Thursday night when armed robbers reportedly invaded a students’ hostel in Ilabe. The hoodlums carted away laptops, mobile phones, and other valuables. They also allegedly attempted to rape a 500-level female student, who was said to have been macheted on the head after resisting the assault.
The attack, the students said, was one too many.
Carrying placards with inscriptions such as “Stop stealing our properties, our safety matters” and “Stop raping our girls, our safety matters,” the protesters called on the Oyo State Government and security agencies to urgently intervene.
A 400-level student who spoke with The Nigeria education news lamented the growing insecurity in the area, saying students now live in fear.
“We no longer feel safe. Reports of robberies and assaults are becoming too frequent. It’s getting out of hand. We need the government to act fast before something worse happens,” the student said.
The protesters urged the state government to deploy more security personnel to Iseyin and intensify night patrols around student residential areas to curb the activities of the criminal elements.
Efforts to reach the school authorities and local security agencies for comment were ongoing as of the time of filing this report.
