NANS advises FUTA mgt. over the student’s death: “Punish your health personnel for negligence.”

The Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) administration has been given 72 hours by the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) to determine the reason of a final-year student’s death, failing which there will be widespread protests.

In a statement released on Friday night by Comrade Akinteye Afeez, National Vice President for External Affairs, the student body claimed that medical staff at the university’s health center had been negligent in Akeredolu Clinton Ayomide’s death.

“We are really disheartened as a body whose only goal is to ensure the welfare of Nigerian students. The death of a dear student of ours came as a terrible shock to us. We find it confusing and upsetting that this kind of unpleasant situation is not unique, and that neither the health care unit nor the administration of FUTA recognize the need of putting an end to the tragic deaths of our students.

“It is impossible to put into words how depressing, sad, and awful it is to lose a final-year student to a test in a matter of days. This is a loss that was preventable. We cannot remain silent while such a deplorable incident continues to occur within our institutions without taking action to stop it.

To our great dismay, after conducting a careful and comprehensive inspection, we have discovered that FUTA Health Care Center is not much to write home about, with subpar facilities that are unable to treat emergencies or save lives.

It is also documented that there was a power outage at the time the deceased was taken to the school’s health center, requiring the students to use their flashlights to activate the oxygen sets and injections. The health center of the institution, which is meant to operate around the clock, seven days a week, lacks a backup power supply. This is concerning since it further demonstrates the institution’s disregard for providing quality healthcare.

As a result, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) leadership is calling for a widespread protest against this heartless and immoral act in a show of solidarity. In order to prevent such incidents, we are requesting that the FUTA management either suspend or remove the healthcare director and that they outfit the university’s health center appropriately and successfully within the next 72 hours.

As a result, we call on the Ondo JCC and the NANS Zonal Structure (Southwest) to get ready for a large-scale protest on Tuesday, August 29, 2023, when we will ground FUTA North and South Gate if our demands are not satisfied by FUTA Management in a 72-hour period.