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…NANS calls for caution
From Oluseye Ojo, Ibadan
Seven operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) were attacked and held hostage by staff and students of the Federal College of Forestry (FRIN) in Ibadan, Oyo State on Tuesday, October 24.
The operatives were on a routine verification exercise of a surety who stood for a suspected internet fraudster in EFCC custody.
The EFCC operatives had been accused of entering the campus of the institution on Tuesday and were alleged to have shot some students in the process of making arrests. Efforts efforts to get details of those that were reportedly shot did not materialise.
Dele Oyewale, the head of media and publicity for the EFCC, stated that the commission exercised restraint in the face of the unprovoked attack and refrained from applying any force against the attackers.
He also added that no student or staff of the college was shot, as armed operatives merely fired into the air to disperse the unruly crowd.
Oyewale said in a press statement made available to journalists in Ibadan on Wednesday that the operatives were in the college to authenticate the address and identity of one Oluwakemi, who stood as a surety for one Alakinde Khalid Kolawole, a suspected internet fraudster in the custody of the commission.
He explained: “A surety verification exercise is a standard law enforcement practice for the perfection of bail conditions of a suspect. This fact occasioned the mission of EFCC’s operatives at the college.
“For some inscrutable reasons, students and staff of the college went on a frenzy of attacks against operatives of the EFCC, who were on an authorized assignment. This is in spite of the fact that the college community was duly informed about the mission of the EFCC’s team.
“The college’s Student Union President, in concert with his colleagues and some staff of the institution, reportedly ignited violent confrontation with operatives of the EFCC. Two main entrance gates to the college were barricaded with a car believed to be owned by one of the lecturers of the college.
“The bus that conveyed operatives to the college was vandalized, even, as students and staff of the college threw stones and dangerous objects at the vehicle. A rescue team that came successfully released the seven operatives held hostage by the riotous crowd.
“It is noteworthy that, operatives of the Commission exercised restraint in the face of the unprovoked attack and refrained from applying any force against the belligerent attackers. No student or staff of the college was shot, as armed operatives merely fired into the air to disperse the unruly crowd.
“The Commission wishes to assure the public that it will continue to perform its duties in line with its mandate, and unprovoked attacks against personnel of the Commission will no longer be tolerated.”
Meanwhile, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Oyo Joint Campus Council, has condemned the development via a statement released by its General Secretary, Tiamiyu Olayinka Ibrahim. The students’ body expressed its disapproval of why it decribed as “uncoordinated actions” of the EFCC operatives and called for caution.
The NANS leadership in the statement released, expressed their displeasure on the attacks and uncoordinated actions of the men of the EFCC, and encouraged her members to be law abiding and constantly seek legal means.
The student body, therefore, called that EFCC and other Security Operatives should stop brutalizing and harassing students as well as desist from badging into campuses without the school management approval.
NANS Oyo JCC promised a lasting solution as it planned to work with human rights groups to ensure it’s not an empty rhetoric. They are working diligently to ensure countermeasures against all forms of assault in the campus.
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