AUCHI STUDENTS BURNS 100 VEHICLES

Benin – Independent news reports that Part Time Students of the Federal Polytechnic Auchi, Edo, on Thursday, went on rampage over the ‘No School Fees, No Exam’ policy recently announced by the management of the polytechnic.

It said that the riot led to the destruction of over 100 vehicles, including NTA news crew vehicles as well as properties worth million of naira by the students.

The incident, according to reports, started on campus two of the polytechnic when some students of the institution were allegedly denied access to the hall to write their first semester exam.

This was said to have angered the students who went on rampage, thereby disrupting other students already sitting for the exam and the school was later shut down by the school authority.

Some of the students who spoke to newsmen on condition of anonymity said that they were refused access to write their exam by management because they were yet to pay their school fees.

“We are protesting because the school management prevented us from writing our first semester examination on the account that we are yet to pay our fees and we believe that the school management is not fair to us and we want the policy reversed,” one of the student said.

Reacting to the development, the Dean, School of Evening Studies, Mr Mahmmud Garuba, faulted the protest by the students.

Garuba said that the management had announced the no school fees, no exam policy prior to the commencement of the exam.

He said: “Those that were denied access into the examination hall were not students as they have not registered since they claimed to have gained admission into the polytechnic.

“Enough sensitization was done on the ‘No School Fees, No Examination’ policy by the management and for them to go on riot and destroying properties of the institution is unacceptable,” he said.

The Public Relations Officer of the polytechic, Mr Mustapha Oshiobugie, said that those who were denied exam were not registered as students of the institution.

Oshiobugie however said that the management would meet to deliberate on the matter.

“The management are sitting now and at the end of their meeting they would come up with their decision.”

However, the police, with the assistance of Auchi vigilante group, have been able to put off the protest and arrests were being made as at time of filing this report.