Segun Atanda/
Online footage has shown the Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Atiba University, Oyo, scaling a fence in an apparent attempt to leave the institution after protesting Law students confronted him over the 10-year moratorium imposed on the university’s Law programme.
The footage, shared on Tuesday by National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) President, Akinteye Babatunde, appears to show the university official climbing over the fence in an attempt to leave the premises after Monday’s protest.
The incident followed a tense encounter between the DVC and students protesting the Council of Legal Education’s decision to place the university’s Law programme under a 10-year moratorium.
The Council announced the decision on Monday following resolutions reached at its Third Quarter Hybrid Meeting on August 13 at the Nigerian Law School headquarters in Bwari, Abuja.
According to the Council, Atiba’s facilities were “inappropriate and inadequate” for establishing and operating a Faculty of Law. It also found that the university had admitted and graduated Law students without obtaining the required regulatory approval.
The decision has raised serious concerns among affected students and graduates, particularly over their ability to proceed to the Nigerian Law School.
During Monday’s protest, the DVC, while attempting to calm the students, told them not to “talk rubbish” because they did not know what their future held.
When students insisted that the university should address the immediate crisis confronting them, the official reportedly told them, “Many of you are intellectually bankrupt.”
He further said that if the students eventually became as successful as he was, they should thank God.
The exchange triggered an angry response from the protesters, who repeatedly urged the university management to focus on resolving the crisis surrounding their Law programme.
At another point, a student attempted to draw the official’s attention to the August 19 date on a document relating to the Council’s decision. The DVC dismissed the date as irrelevant and urged the students to listen to him.
He also told the protesters that the problems surrounding the Law programme predated its accreditation, a comment that was met with boos from the crowd.
The latest development has further intensified pressure on Atiba University as students demand answers over the status of their education and their prospects of proceeding to professional legal training.
NANS, which joined the agitation, has accused the university management of continuing to admit students into the Law programme despite its alleged inability to secure the necessary recognition and approval from the Council of Legal Education.
In a statement dated August 24, NANS called on the National Universities Commission to withdraw Atiba University’s licence and demanded a clear pathway for affected students and graduates to proceed to the Nigerian Law School.
The Council of Legal Education had, in June, warned that students admitted into Law programmes in universities not accredited by the Council would not be eligible for admission to the Nigerian Law School.
The unfolding crisis has therefore moved beyond a dispute over a university programme, with students now demanding accountability over how they were admitted, trained and graduated, and what happens to their legal careers following the Council’s decision.
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