LASU Students Now Sleeping and Cooking AtFashola’s Office

Governor Babatunde Fashola should listen to the
words of wisdom and reduce the
outrageous school fees. It is for his own good
and that of his political party. Most parents can’t
afford the fees!
Students of Lagos State University, LASU, on
Thursday stormed the office of Governor
Babatunde Fashola at Alausa, Ikeja, and said
they would not return home until their school
fees were reduced and all their arrested
colleagues are released unconditionally.

The students, who arrived at the office at
about 3pm in over 10 buses, came along with
mats, mosquito nets and cooking pots,
among others.
To show their seriousness, the female students
quickly swung into action, setting up firewoods to
prepare beans near the entrance of the
Governor’s Office.
The students also defied a downpour that
threatened their demonstration, as they danced to
solidarity songs and held mid- day prayers to
seek divine intervention…
In a letter to Gov. Fashola, titled, ‘Save our
future’, the students alleged that the tuition
hike had taken education beyond their reach.
President of the LASU Student Union
Government, Mr. Yusuf Nurudeen, said the
students had resolved to fight their cause
until their demands were met by the
government.
He said, “Our school has been shut down.
Students are dropping out of the university
on a daily basis. We decided not to engage
the party leaders because the people in
government do not understand any
language. The only language they
understand is protest.
“We have resolved to fight this struggle by
ourselves. We are a pressure group in the
country. We can do this alone. We do not
want any person to fight for us. We elected
Governor Fashola. We elected all the
members of the House of Assembly. They
must listen to us.
“Fashola promised us a ‘Better Rewarding
Future’. How can we have a rewarding future
without education? He has denied us
education by the tuition hike. Section 3(1) of the
law that established LASU stated that the
university should be made available for all people
irrespective of their socio-economic background
and status. Now, the governor has made LASU
the university of the rich.
“We will not leave until we hear something
from the government. We have gone
everywhere and the police shot at us. That is why
we decided to come here today and tell the
governor what is on our minds. Also, our
colleagues arrested by the police must be
released unconditionally.
“If the governor refuses to come out, we will
remain here until he comes out. If the
governor can respond to issues that are less
important than this, he should come out and
respond to the students of the state he
governs.”
Anyway, the good news is that the
commissioners for Information and Strategy,
Aderemi Ibirogba, has said the government
may be able to reach a conclusion on the fees by June 9.