FUNAAB students protest incessant abductions by bandits in Ogun State

Students of Federal University of Agriculture (FUNAAB), Abeokuta are currently protesting the incessant abduction of people by armed bandits in Ogun State.

One of the students was among the latest victims of violent abductions by armed bandits who seem to have made Ogun State forests their home.

At least four persons, including Toyinbo Nathaniel Olayinka, a 400-Level student of FUNNAB, were kidnapped in separate operations in Ogun State between Wednesday and Saturday.

The first abduction, which occurred within Ijebu-Ode, Thursday night, involved Mrs B. L. Abimbola, Deputy Director, Information Communication Technology of Tai Solarin University of Education, TASUED, Ijagun, Ijebu-Ode.

Olayinka was abducted on a farm located at Abule Itoko village in Odeda Local Government Area of the state. Abducted with him on Saturday were the farm owner, Dominic, and a 17-year-old female Togolese. They were all working on the farm at the time.

While the abductors of Mrs Abimbola of TASUED are yet to contact her family, those who abducted Olayinka and others on the farm in Odeda have contacted the wife of the farm owner, demanding N150 million ransom for the of all three of the captives in their custody.

MSN gathered that Olayinka had been working on that same farm in the last three years to fund his education before the incident. He is from a humble background.

He is a 400-Level student of Aquaculture and Fisheries Management.

The university through the Head, Directorate of Public Relations, Kola Adepoju, in a statement, yesterday, said Toyinbo was abducted around 8 a.m on Saturday at Abule-Itoko, Odeda-Ibadan road about 25 minutes drive from the university permanent site at Alabata Road, Abeokuta.

He stated: “The management of the university has reported the abduction at Ogun State Police Command headquarters, Eleweran and it is working earnestly with the command to ensure the safety and release of the kidnapped student.”

This morning, his colleagues, bearing different placards, poured out into the streets to protest the unending kidnappings.

Many of them have also taken to Twitter to register their grievances.

@tilapia_inc tweeted:  “If education is the best legacy, why are we to exchange our lives for it?! If education is the best legacy, why is our government opening us to threats?! Nathaniel Olayinka is a 400L student of the department of AQFM, FUNAAB. #freeourstudents  #freenathanielolayinka”

FUNAAB Students’ Union tweeted: “Shey it is until they kidnap all of us before something is done? #freeourSTUDENTS  #freenathanielolayinka  #freeFUNAABite”

Funaab Juice said “The peaceful protest is to demand for the immediate freedom of Nathaniel, a 400 level Funaabite who was recently kidnapped by bandits.  A 50m naira ransom was demanded by the bandits.”

See below scenes from the protest: