University Of Ibadan (U.I.) At 60 And Its Unenviable Legacy

By

Hassan Taiwo Soweto

edurightsforall@yahoo.co.uk

 

60 years ago, the premiere University was established as a fountain of knowledge for the increasing quest of Nigerian for education. It soon became a sanctuary of the best minds in all fields of knowledge. It was also for a long time a melting pot of critical minds, poets and literary giants who would play crucial roles in the nationalist movement of Nigeria. In the run up to independence, students and lecturers from this University led an anti-imperialist struggle against the Anglo-Nigeria defence pact. It was therefore from beginning an institution where academic excellence and ideological fervour were encouraged and fostered. In those days, intolerance of opposing views was seen as an inexcusable crime in an academic environment. But that was then. Today, it has become a sanctuary of attacks on opposing views, clamp down of democratic rights, imposition of neo-liberal policies and ban of student unionism. At 60, the University which started as a premiere in all fields is today the last as it is the only University where student unionism has been banned for over five years.

 

At the events marking the 60th anniversary celebration of the University of Ibadan (U.I), Prof. Olufemi Bamiro reportedly assured students that independent unionism will soon be restored. Curiously, few weeks before, the same Vice Chancellor had told students that the union could not be restored because of the pending cases in court. This was after Uites had embarked on a massive protest on 14 October 2008 to oppose increment of fees and the continuous suppression of their right to independent unionism. It would be good if the Vice Chancellor is sincere about his promise to restore the Union. But such promises have been made in the past five years without positive result. But how and why did U.I, the premiere and once most prestigious University, descend into this low point at the prime of its life?

 

The U.I Student Union was crushed in a series of legal, administrative, political and violent attacks launched by the University management led by the then Vice Chancellor Prof. Ayodele Fayose. The battle raged for about 3 years from 2000 to 2003. It started with the bold and courageous attempt made by a generation of radical and socialist student activists to wrestle the U.I students' union from the domination of the university authorities who prior to then organised student union elections. To break from this modern day slavery, the students through the Student Representatives council (SRC) and congress reviewed the students’ union constitution to give greater autonomy to students in their affairs particularly in the choice of their leaders.

 

9 years ago, on 29th November 2000, the students' union election for 2000/2001 session was conducted in accordance with the provisions of this new students' union constitution. As expected, this ran contrary to the wishes and desire of the university administration of Prof. Ayodele Falase (a new administration then), who had desired a return to the ignoble days when the authorities ran the affairs of the students' union including the conduct of elections; a position the authorities usually employ to prevent radical students from partaking in students' union elections.

 

Having failed in its attempt to prevent the students from independently organising the students' union elections, the Prof. Falase-led authorities launched an aggressive programme of legal, political and administrative sanction against the newly-emerged student union leadership of Lawal Akeem (president) and Wale Eleto (General Secretary). Not able to subdue the new union leadership politically due to the mass support of the students, the university management filed an application at the Oyo State High Court seeking the court to declare the said union elections illegal.

 

In desperation however, it could not even wait for the outcome of the court case before it issued a fiat suspension order on the entire leadership of the union and all other students who had contested or served in the union electoral commission. In all, a total of 43 students were suspended from their academic programmes. Among those suspended were Lawal Ibrahim, Ali Ayodeji, Alayande Stephen, Anthony Oni, Adeosun F.A, Lawal Akeem, Wale Eleto and a host of others. Many of them have not been recalled since then.

After its failed attempt at the state high court, the management finally secured a judgement of the Federal High court Ibadan, restraining the elected officers of the union from acting as such pending the outcome of a substantive suit seeking to perpetually declare the elections illegal. Immediately, students appealed against this judgement at the Court of Appeal and on December 6, 2002 won the case against the management. But despite the Court of Appeal ruling that recognized students' rights of association and independent organisation of their activists, the University Management through the Senate went ahead to review the Students' union constitution and set up a Student Transition Committee.

 

When students’ resistance continued, the Prof. Falase Management sought the assistance of a motley crew of campus cultists (alliance of all colours), armed them with guns and machetes and used them to attack union leaders. At the end of the attack, several student activists including Wale Eleto (General Secretary) and Lawal Akeem (President) were hospitalised. Consequently, the cultists, heavily funded by Prof. Falase took over the Student Union Building and prevented authentic union leaders from gaining access to their office. Equally, radical student organizations like the Democratic Socialist Movement (DSM), CDHR etc were proscribed.

 

The success of the Prof. Falase administration in routing the radical forces on campus eventually led to the death of the Union. Hence, 5 years since then, several generations of students have continued to bear government anti-poor policies without any union that can defend them. It should be put on record that between 2000 and now, cost of education in University of Ibadan (U.I) has increased by more that 2000 percent as the management saw no possible resistance to any of its policies. In 2002, the management commercialised student hostels with the introduction of a so-called 'hall maintenance fee' ranging from N3, 500 to N20, 000 (for undergraduates and post graduates). In 2003, arbitrary fees such as ID card like were introduced while bed spaces were sold at the rate of N3, 500, N10, 000 and N25, 000 for undergraduate and postgraduate respectively.

 

Although, Prof.  Olufemi Bamiro-led management can be excused on the ground that it was his predecessor that banned the union. However, he too has shown that he enjoys an environment devoid of an independent student union. This explains the recent over 500% increment of fees carried out by his administration which led to students protest on the 14th of October 2008. This new regime of fees has added to the problems of average U.I students aside other problems which plague students in the university like worsening welfare conditions, epileptic water and electricity supply, overcrowding in hostels and inadequate lecture theatres etc.

 

Surely, a management that could impose this kind of charges on students will not be interested in restoring a union. But there is nothing wrong in taking the Vice Chancellor by his words. He has said soon the student union will be restored, let’s hope soon is not another 5 years. However, it must be stressed that the claim that the management is interested in restoring the union but for the case in court is patently false and misleading. If Prof. Olufemi Bamiro announces that he is ready to restore the union and permit democratic elections to hold as well as reinstate all those victimised for their defence of the Union, the case in court can always be withdrawn. This is a challenge to Prof. Olufemi Bamiro. If he restores the union, he will mark his name in history as a man who reversed the wrongs of the past. But if he does otherwise, he would have confirmed our suspicion all along that he is not different from Ultra-right and despotic Prof. Ayodele Falase.

 

Hassan Taiwo Soweto

National Coordinator, Education Rights Campaign (ERC)

E-Mail- edurightsforall@yahoo.co.uk