A protest took place at the Federal University Oye Ekiti on Monday as members of the National Youth Council of Nigeria and the Southern Nigeria Youth Congress demanded the suspension of the Vice Chancellor, Professor Abayomi Sunday Fasina, over alleged misconduct and abuse of office.
The protesters, who stormed the university in large numbers, carried placards and called for urgent intervention from the Federal Government to rescue the institution.
Speaking during the protest, the Ekiti State Chairman of the National Youth Council of Nigeria, Segun Bankole, accused the university’s leadership of mismanagement and corruption. He said the institution had been taken over by what he described as a cabal that turned it into a centre of impunity. According to him, “the university has been hijacked by a cabal who have converted its resources into personal wealth while academic growth is suffering.”
Bankole also raised concerns about the role of the Pro Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council, Senator Victor Ndoma Egba, alleging that he violated directives by relocating Council meetings and the Vice Chancellorship selection process to Abuja. He stated that this change had resulted in unnecessary spending of millions of naira on travel allowances instead of focusing on the development of the university.
The protesters further alleged that the university leadership had marginalised Ekiti indigenes in employment, claiming that only a few were engaged as contract staff with very poor remuneration. They also condemned what they described as questionable approvals for funds, including the alleged N128 million approved for a research leave for the Vice Chancellor. The Ekiti Chairman of SNYC, Emmanuel Aladejare, said the approval was “a gross aberration and unheard of in academic institutions.”
Among their demands were the immediate suspension of the Vice Chancellor to allow full investigation of the allegations against him, the removal of Senator Ndoma Egba as Chairman of the Governing Council and a halt to the ongoing Vice Chancellorship selection process. The youth groups also called for the setting up of an independent investigative panel to probe alleged sexual harassment within the campus and ensure justice for victims.
The protesters urged President Bola Tinubu to intervene quickly to prevent further damage to the institution. They also demanded a forensic audit of the university’s finances and property, the return of Council activities to the FUOYE campus and legal protection for whistleblowers and anti corruption advocates within the institution.