OAU students decry state of infrastructure

STUDENTS  of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, have expressed their dissatisfaction with the deplorable state of facilities in the university’s halls of residence and lecture theatres.

The Financial Secretary of the Adekunle Fajuyi Hall in the university, Adetona Olatomiwa , said “The state of infrastructure on  campus is bad. Many buildings are not being maintained by the university management.

“Our lecture theatres are too small compared to the population on ground. The school management should do something about the congestion at lecture theatres and halls of residence.”

Also reacting, a student of the College of Health Sciences, Shittu Aminat, said “The lecture theatres are filled with spoilt seats, non-functioning projectors and speakers. They all lack maintenance.”

The leadership of the students’ union, in a congratulatory message sent to the newly inaugurated vice chancellor, Professor Eyitope Ogunbodede, charged the vice chancellor to make students’ welfare a priority in his administration.

Part of the message read: “The union hereby demands a holistic overhauling of the general welfare condition of students on campus. The state of our halls of residence is nothing to write home about.

“Despite the unjustifiable increment in school fees regime introduced by the former vice chancellor, Professor Bamitale Omole, it is very sad and unfortunate that nothing serious has been done to improve the general welfare of students.

“We demand (that) your administration make it a point of duty to revamp and make better the general welfare condition of students on campus.”

The union also demanded immediate renovation of the existing halls of residence and building of new hostels to decongest the population of students living off-campus.

It regretted that students living off-campus have always been the targets of armed robbers, rapists, burglars and other criminal elements in the society.

By Bamidele Williams, Department of Animal Science, OAU, Ile-Ife.