THOUSANDS of students of the University of Nigeria (UNN), Nsukka, Enugu Campus, on Monday, staged a peaceful protest against alleged hike in fees and other miscellaneous charges by the authorities of the institution.
It was observed that as early as 7.00a.m. on Monday, the main gate to the Enugu campus of the university had been locked against the students, who gathered to express their anger over alleged increase in fees.
It was also reported that some of the students, who were inside the campus as of the time of the demonstration, were locked in the campus for over eight hours.
One of the policemen dispatched to the scene told reporters that they were acting in line with directive from “authorities,” stressing that, they were being careful in handling the situation to avoid unpleasant scenario.
It was gathered that before the students could get to the main gate, security men had locked it up, thereby making it impassable for the protesting students, workers and students of the University of Nigeria secondary school.
One of the students, who spoke to newsmen, accused the vice chancellor of the university, Professor Barth Okolo, of high handedness and insensitivity to the plight of the students.
“We cannot accept a situation where the vice chancellor decided to increase fees from N25,000 to nearly N50,000; that cannot happen, especially when our hostels are bad and there’s no water. We don’t even have a conducive atmosphere for learning.
When contacted for comments, the secretary to the Vice Chancellor on Communications, Gabriel Ndu, told the Nigerian Tribune in a telephone interview that it was not true that there was an increase in fees.
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