Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, students have requested an apology from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in response to the Wednesday morning arrest of 69 of their fellow students during a dawn raid outside the university’s residence halls.
According to the university’s Students’ Union, those who were arrested were also students there.
The detained pupils were subsequently transported from Ile-Ife to the commission’s Zonal Office in Ibadan, the state capital of Oyo State, according to a report published in Platinum Times.
58 students were freed after an uprising by the students that stormed the anti-graft agency’s zonal headquarters in Iyaganku, Ibadan on Wednesday, and the university’s management intervened.
Platinum Times had reported that the arrested students were later conveyed from Ile-Ife to the commission’s Zonal Office in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
Following a protest by the students who stormed the zonal office of the anti-graft agency at Iyaganku, Ibadan on Wednesday and the intervention of the management of the university, 58 of the students were released.
The OAU Spokesperson, Abiodun Olanrewaju, also confirmed the students’ release.
“Fifty-eight of the students were released to us. The remaining 11 of them have cases to answer.”
However, in a statement jointly signed by the union’s president, Abbas Ojo; Secretary General, Akinboni Opeyemi and PRO, Omisore Elijah, on Thursday, they demanded that the EFCC clear the names of their members.
The student unionists also said efforts were on to seek the release of the remaining 11 students.
“Also, with the demand for the release of our students, the leadership of the union is making concerted efforts with legal practitioners to guarantee the protection of Great Ife students within and off campus against the decadent actions of these misguided law enforcement agencies.
“We also demand that the EFCC tenders a public release clearing the names of the unlawfully incarcerated (students) of the unfounded allegations published on their media handles and broadcast to the whole country in which the earlier published posts had already been pulled down across all their social media platforms.”
Speaking further, the union’s PRO, Omisore, said, “We want the EFCC to apologise and clear the names of the students.”