Two years after, UI lifts ban on students’ union activities

THE Senate of the University of Ibadan has lifted the ban placed on Students’ Union activities two years after it was proscribed.

The decision to lift the ban was reached at the Senate meeting held on Friday, 30 August, 2019 during which the dean of students, Professor I.A Abiona, made a passionate appeal to lift the ban to allow for the conduct of elections for the students’ body during the 2018/2019 session.

The Senate of the premier university had on 30 May, 2017 suspended students’ union activities indefinitely following a protest over the delay in the issuance of the digitised identity cards.

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In the proposal to lift the suspension of University of Ibadan’s Students’ Union by the dean of students, Professor Abiona, it was gathered that 140 persons were tried in connection with the protest by the students disciplinary committee with some receiving sanctions, while others were acquitted.

According to him, “the Students’ Affairs Division will ensure that a purposeful leadership of students emerges by raising the bar of eligibility, organisation of pre-election workshop and post-election leadership retreat for winners.”

Abiona noted also that most of the former union leaders fingered in the protest had shown enough remorse and had indicated the desire to uphold the rules and regulations and cooperate with the university’s administration