Students lock Benue University over poor treatment of shot president

The National Union of Benue State Students (NUBESS) on Monday protested the poor handling of its National President, Comrade Smith Tyonor, who was allegedly shot by unknown persons in Makurdi.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the students, who organised a peaceful protest, blocked the two gates to  Benue State University (BSU) to demand better treatment for their president.

NAN reports that Tyonor was allegedly shot at the weekend and was immediately taken to Benue State Teaching Hospital (BSUTH) in Makurdi for treatment.

Addressing the protesters at the BSU first gate, the Director of Welfare of NUBESS, BSU Chapter, Comrade Robert Faga, said they wanted the management to transfer the victim to a secured and better hospital so that he could good and adequate treatment.

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Faga said that the student leader was not a cultist and was also not shot by cultists, but rather it might be sponsored by other factional NUBESS union groups.

“We are protesting because they shot our president and the school is not taking a drastic action towards that. They said that they shot our president outside the school campus.

“We want the school management to take care of his treatment and security because he is not in a secured place. They are not giving him full attention too,” he said

Faga said the issue was a security one and needed to be treated with all seriousness, adding that BSUTH lacked proper security to guarantee Tyonor’s safety in the hospital.

“This is a security issue and the place where he is admitted is not secured because people are trooping there in and out.

“Again, we don’t know the actual person that shot him and we demanded that the culprit be fished out and made to face the wrath of the law.

“Actually, we don’t know the people that shot him, but we know that he is not a cultist, so it might be the people that sponsored thugs to come and kill him because he is not a cultist and they may come back, realising that he was not dead.

“He is a leader and he has people who are opposing him. Actually, we don’t have specific suspects now, but NUBESS has factions now, the other one which is not formally elected, led by one Pascal Gbile who has also been parading himself as NUBESS president.”

Reacting to the protest, Mr Tser Vanger, the university’s Information Officer, told NAN on the phone that the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academics), Prof Edward Omudu, had already addressed the protesting students.

Vanger said that the university had transferred the student leader to a more secured hospital in Abuja.

Prof Terlumun Swende, the Chief Medical Director, Benue State Teaching University (BSUTH), also told NAN on the phone that the shot student had requested for a referral to another hospital and it was granted.

Swende said that the patient was responding to treatment and met all the conditions for a referral.

NAN reports that Tyonor is a final year Psychology student of Benue State University.