Angry students from the University of Ibadan (UI), Oyo State, have staged a peaceful protest against an 82-day power outage at the University College Hospital (UCH).
UCH, the teaching hospital where UI medical students undergo training, has been without power since last year due to debts owed to the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC).
Speaking to journalists, the President of the UI Student Union Government, Comrade Bolaji Aweda, decried the prolonged blackout, describing it as persistent and disruptive to academic activities at both the hospital and the university.
Aweda highlighted that the outage has persisted for over 82 days, severely impacting students’ ability to study effectively. He attributed the situation to a standoff between the IBEDC and UCH authorities.
“The blackout has lingered for over 82 days now and for over two months, there has been no light at the University College Hospital which has affected the livelihood of our students,” he said.
“The lack of electricity is why we are out on the street today. We have reached out to the school management severally. It is a kind of powerplay between the University College management and the University of Ibadan management.”
Among other things, the SUG President said the demands of the protesting students were “the immediate restoration of light to the University College Hospital and all hospitals in Nigerians who are currently facing the same blackout.”
He urged the implementation of the 50% tariff discount announced by the Federal Ministry of Power in 2024 and called for the revitalization of the nation’s healthcare sector.
Student Leader Sunday Tobilola emphasized that the peaceful protests would be accompanied by a series of engagements with stakeholders to resolve the issue. He warned that failure to address the power challenges would lead to escalated action to press home their demands.
The protesters later marched from UCH to the Governor’s Office at the Secretariat in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
At the Secretariat, they were received by Sunday Odukoya, the Executive Assistant on Security to Governor Seyi Makinde. Odukoya assured the protesters that the state government would engage with the Federal Government to find a resolution to the crisis.