Protests
over the demolition of 16 official quarters of the employees of University of
Benin by the Edo State Government continued on Wednesday with the destruction
of a government-owned transit bus by persons suspected to be students of the
university.
The
protesters were said to have set the ‘Comrade Bus’ ablaze, which they then used
to barricade the Benin-Lagos Expressway, leaving motorists stranded for several
hours.
It was gathered
that another bus was vandalised by the protesters.
It was,
however, learnt that the protesters were dispersed by security personnel at the
main entrance of the university.
The Police
Public Relations Officer, DSP Joseph Edoigiawerie, said although no arrest had
been made, efforts were ongoing to apprehend those responsible for the action.
Edoigiawerie
said, “Some lecturers and students of UNIBEN were protesting the demolition of
the house of a former Vice Chancellor, Prof. Oshodin, and some other lecturers
by the state government.
“They
blocked the Lagos exchange route and a Comrade Bus with registration number, ED
129 B28, was burnt and one bus with the inscription, ‘ECTS,’ was also seized by
the protesters.
“No arrest
has been made but investigation is ongoing.”
However,
the UNIBEN chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities has called on
the state government to toe the path of the rule of law and allow court
processes to be concluded before taking the law into its hand.
The
chapter Chairman, Prof. Tony Monye-Emina, who made the statement, also told our
correspondent on the telephone that ASUU was not aware of the violent
demonstration by suspected students of the university.
Meanwhile,
the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice of the state, Mr. Henry
Idahagbon, has vowed to resign his appointment and resort to farming if the
university management could prove that it had secured a stay of execution from
the court prior to the demolition.
According
to a statement on Wednesday, the commissioner said none of the four respondents
in the legal matter had been served any notice of the court order.
Idahagbon
said, “I also want to state categorically that if the University of Benin and
their counsel are able to show proof of service of any application for stay of
execution of judgment on any of the four respondents, I, Henry Idahagbon, will
resign as Attorney-General of Edo State and go back to my village to farm.
“They may
have filed, that I am not aware because after filing, they have to serve. It is
the service of the court processes that invokes the jurisdiction of court.
“Until a
party is served, the party is unknown before court and since the 16th of
December when judgment was given, the case at the High Court effectively
ended.”
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