Students’ protest grounds UNILAG

UNIVERSITY of Lagos (UNILAG) Muslim students protested yesterday what they called management’s “clampdown” on their activities since October.

Under the aegis of Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria (MSSN), they marched round the campus, demanding respect for their right to freedom of association.

They carried placards with inscriptions, such as, “BringBack our MSSN-UNILAG,” “We say no to discrimination;” “Return our original MSSN;” “MSSN is a student body: vested interest, keep off;” “We demand freedom of association, Dr Ismail Musa, keep off from MSSN;” “DSA, Enough is enough; Let our MSSN-UNILAG live.”

A member of the outgoing MSSN executive committee, Kazeem Abdullahi, said the university acted on an anonymous petition, accusing the society’s leadership of financial recklessness.

He said: “The university has since looked into the allegations and found out that they were frivolous and unfounded. Yet, instead of lifting the ban placed on our activities, it imposed a staff adviser (Dr Ismail Musa) on us and forced our former staff adviser, to resign.

“Since las October, we could not conduct tutorial classes for our members, hold Sisters’ Circle, Qur’anic memorisation sessions, among others. In fact, our bus has been abandoned since then degenerating where it is parked. We do not understand why the management is doing this when other religious sects on campus are not being disturbed.”

Another student, who identified herself as Sheriffah, accused members of the committee set up to review the society’s bye-law and decide on the mode of electing new executives of foul play.

She said: “Despite turning down the voice of the majority when a congress was called, they still want to impose leaders on us. At that congress which has the presence of Dr Musa and a representative of the Dean of Students Affairs (DSA), a motion for the adoption of the reviewed bye-laws was moved. While 23 voted no to the adoption, 116 voted yes – that the review be adopted. Yet, the two university officials imposed the vote of the 23 students on us. Now, the management is saying 23 is bigger than 116. This is an indictment of our prestigious institution.

“We will not allow that to happen this time around. The association is meant for students and not management.”

Another student, identified as Akeem wondered why the management wanted a worker to be a signatory to the account of a students’ association, noting that would forfeit the essence of having the society as a training ground for future leaders.

“The situation here is terrible. It is unfair for anyone to attempt to impose leaders on students. A congress should be called for us to decide what we want. Dr. Musa should stop forcing people on us as our leaders,” he said.

Speaking with The Nation, the group’s spokesman, Mukaila Tajudeen,  said: “We were asked to submit and handover all necessary things to the staff adviser which we did on last November 9, with the DSA promising us that by January, a new set of executives would be constituted; but to our dismay, the reverse was the case. We did not get any information as regards the election; neither did we get any information as regards the conference or any information at all about the ongoing process. It is like we were just kept in the darkness not knowing what is going on and that is why we felt we were being taken for granted because we have been quiet all this while.

“We do not want a situation whereby the leadership of MSSN would be imposed on us like the staff adviser and members of the committee were imposed on us. Majority of those in the committee were not active members of MSSN. I cannot imagine why people who do not know about the constitution of a society would be asked to review the society’s constitution. We were all in the school when the University of Lagos Students Union (ULSU) was to be reinstated and a committee was constituted. Those that were in that committee were all student activists on campus. Since the committee is lopsided, I am very sure the review they are going to give us will also be lopsided.”

Reacting, Dean, Students Affairs (DSA) Prof Tunde Babawale said the students’ agitations were based on falsehood.

Babawale said management did not clampdown on MSSN’s activities, but has been trying to help the society resolve its internal crisis since last year.

He said: “There is no truth in that allegation because the school respects the right of students to associate, although it provides guidelines to regulate their activities. The MSSN had internal crisis in 2015, so the management had to intervene to curb the crisis.

“A panel approved by the Vice-Chancellor (Prof Rahamon Bello) was set up and it traced the root of the crisis to problems contained in the constitution of the MSSN. Consequently, the VC directed that we set in motion an all-inclusive machinery for a review of that constitution. A meeting was held with all stakeholders of MSSN, including all the students and the decision to set up the committee was made.

“That review committee started its work in January and submitted its report only last Wednesday. Now, the procedure is to submit that report to the VC after a review by the Students Affairs Office to pave the way for election of the new executives.”

Babawale called for calm, saying: “The report of the committee was submitted to me last Tuesday and Wednesday. The January deadline cannot be met if the reports are not submitted in time. The management of this university is not interested in stampeding MSSN activities”.

He said a congress would be called on or before Thursday.