LAUTECH Students Lock Down Osun Govt House Over Prolonged Closure Of Institution

Some students of Ladoke Akintola University, LAUTECH, Ogbomoso, on Thursday locked down Osun state Government House in continuation of their protest over prolonged closure of their school.

The protesting students,  who left the government office on Wednesday after several hours  without being attended to by any government official, before converging back at the popular Olaiya junction thronged to the government house, Okefia, Osogbo as early as 7:00 am where they blocked the entrance and the entire road, causing commuters to take alternative route.

The protest again caused heavy traffic and left many other road users on their ways to work stranded.

It would be recalled that the aggrieved students had on Wednesday barricaded the main road that leads to the heart of the state capital for more than two hours.

The students who had earlier in the morning converged at the popular Olaiya junction in their large number disrupted  vehicular movements for some minutes before taking their protest to the state Secretariat, Abere.

Thereafter, the students terminated their protest at Olaiya junction, where they blocked all the roads leading to a roundabout.

Meanwhile, some of the placards carried read  “AREGBE IS A FAILURE”, “SAVE LAUTECH NOW”, “Stop Playing Politics With Our Lives,  “Pay Our Lecturers, “Save Lautech, Save Our Future”, “Ogbeni Rauf Answer Our Calls”, “Aregbe You Are The Reason Why Jesus Wept”, “Lautech Must Arise Again”, “This Is Not The Change We Voted For”, Lautech Need Peace” among others.

The spokesperson of the students, Lawal Musbau, who said they staged the peaceful protest to show their displeasure against the current strike action in their institution, demanded the quick intervention of Governor Rauf Aregbesola to their plight.

The students said the varsity has been facing problems in the hand of political instability for many years which had caused many students and staff serious life deterioration.

They said that since the assumption of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola of Osun state and his Oyo state counterpart, Governor Isiaka Ajimobi, led governments, the university has degraded in value, norms and standard and has also lost dignity amidst in comparison with other varsities, as a result of  poor funding by the two states of Osun and Oyo.

The students  further stressed that  the strike has exposed the  students to many  social vices and has also turned workers of the institution to beggars.

“After  9 months strike  embarked by the school unions, due to the delay of monthly subventions, the governors are yet to stay alive and active to their responsibilities as the funding fathers. And after spending 3 months in school, the ASUU and JAC are both on skeletal strike with their slogan of No Pay No Work due to renege of their promises”.

“This situation has stagnated every student in a spot since 2015 till now especially for spending two years for a semester”.

“The entire students of L AUTECH have come together in solidarity to cry out to the governor for quick intervention because many atrocities ranging from students committing suicide, social vices and workers turning beggars amongst others has engulfed the citadel”.

Moreso, at the resumed protest this morning (Thursday) the Deputy Governor Mrs Titi Laoye-Tomori’s efforts to address the students was earlier refuted, but was later made possible with the intervention of the commissioner of police in the state, Fimihan Adeoye, who prevailed on the students to allow her speak.

Mrs Laoye-Tomori while appealing to the students, assured them that efforts were being made to find a lasting solution to the lingering crisis between the two owner states of Oyo and Osun, and the striking lecturers.

She disclosed that a meeting will be held by house committees on educations of the two states and all concerns with a view to ending the strike.