Polytechnic Students' Protest Paralyses Abeokuta Township

Polytechnic Students' Protest Paralyses Abeokuta Township

Polytechnic students in Ogun State took to the streets in Abeokuta, the state capital yesterday to protest the two months old nationwide strike embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP).

But, for the intervention of the security operatives, the students who were drawn from various polytechnics in the state, would have disrupted the formal opening ceremony of the 40th national council on agriculture, holding in the state capital, it was gathered.

As early as 6.00am, the protesting students had converged on the popular Post Office roundabout chanting anti-government slogans, before heading towards Oke Ilewo business district, onto the NUJ Iwe Irohin House Press Centre.

From there, they marched towards IBB Boulevard and at the NNPC Junction which is about 500 meters away from the national council conference venue, the students were stopped by security personnel that included police and men of the Nigeria Civil Defence Corps.

Travellers from Lagos, Ijebuode and Sagamu spent hours to get through the blockade caused by the students.

A traveller from Ikorodu, Mrs. Rafat Raheem, said the students' protest made her to spend extra two hours on a journey that should have taken only 20 minutes.

The students on their placards, called on the Federal Government to intercede in the ASUP strike. They also demanded for the establishment of a national polytechnic commission and release of the white paper on federal polytechnics.

The students were led by the various polytechnics' union leaders from the Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Federal Polytechnic and the state-owned ICT Polytechnics.