A 200-level student of physics at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun state, simply identified as Gift was harassed and assaulted by a university lecturer, Dr K.F. Ariyo.
A viral video caught the lecturer punching and assaulting the student while battling to ensure the student switched off his phone as instructed.
According to the maker of the video, the only thing Gift did was to mistake the class for one of his lectures and he decided to leave immediately after he realised he was in the wrong class.
But the lecturer reportedly “called him back and held him hostage with the help of a security officer without explaining what his offence was”.
Giving more details on what transpired between the duo, the Alliance of Nigerian Students Against Neo-Liberal Attacks (ANSA) in a statement dated November 8, 2023, described the lecturer as a serial abuser, who had assaulted many students.
The statement therefore urged the university students’ union government to intervene and probe what happened between Gift and Dr K.F. Ariyo.
The statement said such an investigation was necessary to avoid students employing illegal means to secure protection over the “persistent inhuman treatments” they were subjected to in the hands of the lecturers in recent times.
The statement reads: “The physical attack on Gift, a part 2 Physics student by one Dr K.F. Ariyo is shocking but not surprising as cases of physical assault is fast becoming a norm on the campus. Gift walked into Dr Ariyo’s class by accident while looking for the venue of his own lecture between the hours of 8-9am this morning was accosted in the most belligerent form by the lecturer.
“It is important to note that this was one of the Electrical and Electronics Engineering classes taken place at White House in Physics department where the he belonged. After entering the class he was prevented from leaving by the lecturer who by this time had levelled a barrage of accusations against him.
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