UI CHRONICLES " THE SHOOTING STAR SAGA (PEACE COMMITTEE VS SUG

Dateline was September, 2003 and I was in my second semester when this particular incident occurred in the University of Ibadan. I was just settling down as a Jambito. More so, I had started gaining some little popularity in Mellanby Hall because of my constant presence in the Common Room and the fact that I play football regularly in the hall (I made it to the Hall’s football team alongside Muhammed Alabi in my first year) and my group of friends’ AROISM in the hall, especially when the light goes off in the hall.

I have made many friends (and enemies too) in the hall at this time. One of them is Olufemi Oderinde aka Laliga (now known as Odezzle and he is with Brilla FM,Abuja) who loves playing football in a “slow motion style” but we were closer when he approached me one day that I should lend him my African China’s Crises audio cassette(Men, I like African China).

The School Authority led by the then Vice Chancellor, Professor Ayodele and (we called him Fallacy) and the Student Union Government led by Akeem Lawal aka Aluta had been having problems over the election conducted long before I gained admission. Infact,, there was a case in court between the parties and a certain pronouncement by the High Court in Ibadan which both parties interpreted to their advantage led to this particular crisis.

The SUG guys claimed the court had ruled that they can now be recognized as the authentic representatives of the student but the School Authority disagreed with them saying that the court ruled that both parties should maintain the “status quo” .This led to the School Authority issuing different Bulletins and the SUG guys countered them by issuing theirs. There was fear in the mind of many students especially the finalists that the academic calendar might be disrupted.

This crisis led to the formation of the Peace Committee (it was rumoured that they were sponsored by the School Authority) that was led by some post graduate students in Balewa and New Hall (now Abdulsalami Abubakar Hall) claiming they are out to settle the imbroglio so that there would not be disruption of the school’s academic calendar. But to our surprise, we started hearing stories about how the peace committee members were going round the campus with guns and cutlasses to intimidate the leaders of the SUG and their sympathizers. There was a story that the Peace Committee with their weapons attacked Zik Hall (the Political Heartbeat of UI) and had wounded many students. Also, the Peace Committee attacked innocent students with dangerous weapons in the Student Union Building and told their captors that they are for peace (does weapon and Peace go have anything in common?).

The case reached climax when the Muslim Students Society of Nigeria(MSSN) had a peaceful protest around the campus to show their displeasure over the activities of the Peace Committee.

That same day, the Peace Committee (about 7 of them) attacked the convoy of the SUG who were returning from the office of the Governor, Senator Rasidi Ladoja. I was calmly eating my hot Eba and Egusi soup with my assorted ‘oku eko’ fish (specially prepared by me) that afternoon when I heard gunshots around the school area (Queens Hall). I rushed down from my room to see what was happening and I saw for the first time in my life, guys carrying guns and shooting at students. Some students revolted and were stoning the Peace Committee guys. That was how the hunter became the hunted and they (Peace Committee) started running towards the Faculty of Arts and the MSSN guys came out to stop them from escaping. Some escaped to Ibadan Poly while another three were apprehended and were taken to NTA Ibadan and BCOS before they were handed over to the police at Iyaganku.

Many students pack their bags and baggages that day and left for town for fear of a reprisal attack by the Peace Committee.

My room mate, Mobutu had already switched off the light and when I switched it on ,he shouted at me saying “o boy, switch off the light abi you want make them come attack us?”

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NOTE: THIS WRITER DOES NOT INTEND TO RIDICULE ANYBODY.