NAUS Petitions Osun Govt, Demands Immediate Lifting Of SUG Ban At UNILESA

The National Association of University Students (NAUS), Osun State, has called on the Osun State Government to lift the prolonged ban on student unionism at the University of Ilesa (UNILESA), describing the restriction as unjust, outdated and injurious to students’ welfare and academic growth.

In a statement signed by its Chairman, Adeleke Samson Okikijesu, Vice Chairman, Comrade Olalekan Johnson D., General Secretary, Oloyode Ayomide Barakat, Public Relations Officer, Akinboboye Daniel, the association maintained that the transformation of the institution from a College of Education to a full-fledged university should naturally exempt it from the five-year student union government (SUG) ban initially meant for newly established tertiary institutions.

According to NAUS, the continued enforcement of the policy at UNILESA amounts to stifling the voices of students and denying them proper representation in critical matters affecting their lives on campus.

NAUS decried what it termed an alarming increase in insecurity within and around the university, citing several cases of armed attacks on students in hostels. In one instance, the union revealed that machete-wielding assailants stormed two student lodges, injured occupants and made away with over 30 mobile phones.

It lamented the lack of a functional SUG to serve as a rallying point for coordinating security responses and amplifying students’ concerns before the university management and relevant authorities.

The student body further questioned the justification for high tuition fees—ranging from ₦200,000 to ₦1.5 million—when students are denied a formal structure to seek redress, demand accountability or agitate for improved learning conditions.

It therefore urged the Osun State Government, House of Assembly and education stakeholders to act without delay by reinstating student unionism at UNILESA, saying anything short of that amounts to gagging the future leaders of the state.