FUNAAB Students Clash with Police Over Alleged ‘Illegal Arrest’ on Campus
Students of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB) were involved in a violent confrontation with Nigeria Police Force personnel early on Thursday morning after police officers stormed the campus to arrest some students.
Videos circulating on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) show dozens of students protesting the incident. The students claim that police officers fired shots indiscriminately and even struck students with vehicles while attempting to carry out what they called an “illegal operation” on campus.
One student, pointing to a policeman, can be heard saying, “This is the man that shot at us.”
An eyewitness on X, Anthony Not Joshua, reported that the police arrived around 6:30 AM to arrest students. According to the post, the students mobilized to prevent the arrests, resulting in three students being taken into police custody. He added: “This is not their first time; they’ve been doing it for long. How long will this continue??”
The clash has raised concerns among former students of the institution, some of whom noted that these types of incidents are unfortunately recurring.
A former student, SIGMA-TEASE, commented, “I’m an alumnus of FUNAAB. It’s always been happening. Even when a student was shot in the eye, nothing happened. The student mustn’t back down, enough is enough.”
Other users, like Emmi Tee, also pointed out that such police actions were not new to the university, with some recalling specific areas on campus, such as Gate, Oluwo, and Isolu camp junctions, where similar incidents frequently occurred.
In one comment, GIRAN REPUBLIC suggested that Magbon SWAT operatives might be involved in the incident, with the comment reading, “Na so dem dey do for Abeokuta, e fit be MAGBON SWAT cos na front of NOUN NNPC be this. Dem be werey.”
As of the time of reporting, SaharaReporters’ attempts to reach the spokesperson for the Ogun State Police Command, Omolola Odutola, for a comment on the incident were unsuccessful, as she did not respond to phone calls.
The clash at FUNAAB has intensified calls for accountability regarding police actions on university campuses and prompted wider discussions on police brutality, particularly in relation to students’ rights and the use of force in campus arrests.
