UL Students Protest Over Late Registration Issue

Students of the University of Liberia continued their protest action on the main campus of the University of Liberia in an attempt to draw the government of Liberia's attention to their plight. According to the students' protesters, the administration of the UL had closed the registration exercise thereby denying over four thousand students access to enrollment for the up coming academic semester.

The students claimed that it was unfortunate and unfair to them for the UL administration to take such path in the midst of the country's fight to eradicate illiteracy. The students are calling on the immediate intervention of the Liberian leader into the matter to avoid further inconveniences.

The protest by the UL students drew the attention of the Minister of Youth and Sports, Eugene Nagbe and the Deputy Police Director for Operation, Abraham Kromah. The two government officials pleaded with the students to remain calm as their concerns will be addressed appropriately.

Minister Nagbe informed the students that the Liberian leader was concerned about their situation and that she will do everything to make sure that the situation is resolved.

The students' action erupted normal academic activities yesterday on the main campus of the UL and also impeded the free flow of traffic for few hours around the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Capitol Building. The students also threw stones and prevented vehicles from using the main street in front of the UL campus and during the stone-throwing, the acting senior police inspector sustained injury on his head.

Meanwhile, on the Fendell Campus of the University of Liberia similar protest brought all academic and other activities to a standstill when some angry students began to protest against the administration's failure to provide the scholarship slips.

The protest brought together students from various departments who are mostly beneficiaries of the University of Liberia Student Union scholarship.

During the protest, the angry students were seen putting instructors out of the classes while performing their professional duties at the Fendell Campus of the University of Liberia.

The students went from class-to-class singing songs and expressing disappointment and disagreement with the Administration's decision.

This situation caused many students to walk from the University of Liberia Fendell Campus to the Red-light Market while others were seen jumping on the backs and tops of commercial cars along the way.

That also caused serious traffic congestion at the campus' intersection thereby impeding the movement of private and commercial cars using that route.

According to the students they were protesting because they need the deadline of the registration to be extended or else other students who have met the administration's registration standard will not have the opportunity to sit in their various classes.

They also disclosed that the protest will continue until the University's authorities decide to address their plight noting that the majority of the beneficiaries have not yet completed their registration processes.

According to one of the Business and Finance officers at the University of Liberia on Fendell Campus who asked for anonymity, the issue is not with the University's authorities but rather it is ULSU which issues the scholarship slips. He alarmed that the listing of the scholars went to the university late and the scholarship slips were not enough to serve everyone on the scholarship list which he said is now the root cause of the problem at the University.