Protest rocks FULafia over insecurity, ‘abduction of seven students’

Students at the Federal University Lafia (FULafia) in Nassarawa have taken to the streets of the state capital in protest after gunmen stormed an off-campus community.

Sources claim the gunmen stormed a student community close to the institution and possibly abducted some FU Lafia undergraduates.

The incident, it is understood, occurred at around 11 pm on Wednesday within the Gandu community in Lafia.

The state police command, when contacted, declined TheCable’s enquiry on the matter.

BBC, however, reports that as many as seven students of the institution are feared abducted.

Ibrahim Ismaila, president of FULafia’s student union, was quoted as saying abductions have become a regular occurrence in and around the university’s host community.

He said word came that some thugs were harassing and robbing students around Confidence Lodge in Gandu, prompting concerned individuals to invite security operatives.

“We went with security officials from the university and also invited soldiers who stormed the vicinity with their vehicles. But before we got there, the attackers had escaped,” Ismaila said.

“At night, we would get a call that gunmen had entered Gandu. They took about seven students from there. Two students who survived the attack had to hide in the ceiling.

“Things like this happen regularly in the university so that our state governor had to visit some weeks ago to discuss precautionary measures for insecurity.

“He spoke well but nothing has changed since. We’re still experiencing attacks. FU’s security crisis is now beyond the vice chancellor. Even he has done his best.”