UNILORIN: Drug addiction, academic failure behind suicide of final year student

The University of Ilorin says the death of Adigun Emmanuel, a final year undergraduate, was caused by drug addiction.

Kunle Akogun, director of corporate affairs of the university, made this known to NAN on Friday.

The late Emmanuel was a student of the faculty of agriculture.

Akogun said he “resorted to the unsavory action to ventilate his frustration over his failure in his final year project”.

“Mr Adigun Emmanuel Adewale of the faculty of agriculture, committed suicide last Thursday, November 29, 2018,” he explained.

He said the university, after investigating the suicide, found that the late Adigun took his life as a result of his “drug addiction”.

The director said the student must have adopted drugs to address the prolonged depression he suffered as a result of personal challenges he could not bear.

“Some close friends of the late Mr. Adigun revealed that the obviously depressed student had unsuccessfully attempted suicide thrice, having publicly expressed profound regrets on many occasions,” he said.

Akogun said the student had complained that it was his younger sister that was sponsoring his education.

He said the late student had lamented that it would be too difficult for him to approach the same younger female sibling for the needed finances to complete his extended stay on campus.

The university spokesman added that the deceased has a cumulative grade point average (CGPA) of 2.72 and failed results in seven different courses.

He said the performance accounted for late Adigun’s non-graduation in the last academic session.

Akogun said the deceased was neither considered academically outstanding nor on the verge of completing any research project.

“He took his life while he was expected to complete registration formalities, a prerequisite for his retake of all the courses he had earlier failed,” he said.

According to him, a senior academic staff of the deceased’s department of agronomy got wind of Adigun’s psychological problem through their interactions.

Akogun said: “His alleged drug addiction, courtesy of peer group influence, frustrated all the rehabilitative assistances that were rendered to him to the awareness, admiration and appreciation of his family members.”

He explained that some of the measures taken by the university management to soothe the nerves of the deceased included a four-week intensive rehabilitation at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, (UITH).

“Other assistance includes the facilitation of hostel accommodation for him on campus through the recommendation of the dean of the faculty of agriculture, Prof. Gbadebo Olaoye, and a soft loan granted him,” he added.