ACU Student’s Death: I wept for 2 days over our student’s death -VC
…says 12 persons in Police custody over the incident
Following the killing of Akor Alex, a 22-year-old, 200-level Mechanical Engineering student of the Ajayi Crowther University (ACU), Oyo, by his co-students over alleged phone theft, the management of the Institution, yesterday, declared a three-day mourning, as well as, fasting and prayers.
The deceased who hailed from Warri was beaten to death his colleagues on Friday.
Speaking on the incident, Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Timothy Adebayo, who disclosed the Management’s decision while addressing journalists at the Council Chamber of the school in company with other principal officers of the faith-based university, disclosed that the incident so devastated him that he wept for two days over the unfortunate incident.
Adebayo also disclosed that 12 persons are already in Police custody over the incident. “Twelve students are in the Police net over the student’s killing. 18 were initially apprehended. But, the Police screened them to 12, including a porter, who were all taken to Iyaganku Police Station, Ibadan.”
Prof. Adebayo said: “I sympathise with the family. We don’t pray for such to happen. We are sad over the development. The university has declared a three-day mourning, starting from Wednesday to Friday, with fasting and prayer every night against a recurrence of such a sad incident. Those days are lecture-free, to mourn the departed student.”
He said: “As a Vice Chancellor, I wept throughout Sunday and Monday. Even while conveying the message to the staff, I wept. I didn’t know I would be able to address this press conference,” he said, to which the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Muyiwa Popoola, also said: “We wept bitterly”.
He also reiterated the university’s stance against cultism and bullying, saying: “We have learnt our lessons in a hard way. We have zero tolerance for bullying and cultism. There is no cultism. We have worked in different schools, cultists need bushes to operate.
“There is no sign of cultism and bullying here. There are no bushes here. Cultists need bushes to operate. We always ask our students not to stay alone and in obscure places. We resuscitate anyone involved in bullying.”
The VC said security had been beefed up to guide against a recurrence of the incident, stressing that “We have a monitoring team that moves around. We have a security team. The Management moves round to check that things are in order to ensure that students comply with the mechanism put in place.
“We will increase the number of security operatives and porters. We will keep on beefing up security in our hostels. We will work on every other aspect of observed inadequacies. Ajayi Crowther University is safe. We raise students with Godly characters. We are telling the parents now that their children are in safe hands here,” he emphasised.
