Ekpoma Unrest: Okpebholo Orders Immediate Release Of Innocent AAU Students Arrested By Police

By Idahosa Musa

Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, has ordered the immediate identification and release of all innocent students of Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma, who may have been arrested by the police in the aftermath of the recent unrest in the university town.

The Governor gave the directive on Tuesday during a meeting with the President of the Ambrose Alli University Students’ Union Government (SUG), where he reaffirmed that AAU students neither organised nor participated in the disturbance that rocked Ekpoma.

Governor Okpebholo insisted that the incident was criminal in nature, carried out by non-students who loiter around the university environment under the guise of activism, with the sole aim of fomenting trouble, extorting students and looting property.

“I have met with the SUG President of AAU, Ekpoma, and we had a very lengthy discussion. As I have consistently maintained, this was not a students’ protest.

“These are individuals who are no longer students but hang around the school environment causing trouble and extorting law-abiding students. We will put an end to that”, the Governor said.

He assured the student leadership that his administration would not allow genuine students to suffer for crimes they did not commit, stressing that any AAU student wrongly arrested during police operations would be released without delay.

“For any students that were probably arrested, we will look into it immediately and ensure they are released through the SUG President. That is a promise, and it will be carried out as quickly as possible.

“The protest was not organised by students. In fact, it was not a protest at all. It was simply an avenue to loot”, Governor Okpebholo maintained

The Governor also dismissed reports linking the unrest to kidnapping, describing such claims as false, stage-managed and designed to mislead the public and inflame tensions.

“The kidnapping they are talking about is fake. It was stage-managed. They were arranging to kidnap and release themselves. The most painful part is that someone was even killed,” he said.

Governor Okpebholo strongly condemned the burning of markets and destruction of property in Ekpoma, warning that anyone found sponsoring or using hoodlums to destabilise communities in Edo State would be decisively dealt with, regardless of status or political affiliation.

“I don’t care whether you are a politician or not. If you are using people to destroy our land and economy, we will go after you. Those responsible will be brought to book so justice can be served,” he warned.

Reaffirming the students’ position, AAU SUG President, Comrade Osadebamen Ehizogie Michael, thanked the Governor for his intervention and described attempts to link the unrest to students as unfortunate and misleading.

“It is pitiable that some people want to associate what happened with students. We are here to clearly state that students did not organise any protest.

Also speaking, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration), Prof. Andrew Eromonsele, confirmed that no arrests took place within the university campus, further distancing the institution from the violence.