Kwara Poly students condemn police brutality,call for relocation of NYSC activities from campus
The Students’ Union Government (SUG) of Kwara State Polytechnic has condemned police brutality which occurred during their peaceful demonstration over the use of the institution’s campus as a temporary site of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) orientation camp in Kwara State.
Speaking at a press conference on Thursday in Ilorin, the President of the SUG, Comrade Maruf Ibrahim disclosed that despite their peaceful conduct, the Police teargassed the students and open fire on them leading to many sustaining degrees of injury.
It would be recalled that some students of the institution held a peaceful protest on Monday following the directive of the school management for the students to proceed on a three-week break to facilitate the conduct of the NYSC Batch A stream 1 course.
According to the union President, efforts to prevent and resolve the issue from degenerating to chaos through dialogue were ignored by the authorities, hence the need for a peaceful demonstration.
He condemned what it described as the use of excessive force against unarmed students, stressing that their actions were aimed at dialogue and peaceful engagement, not violence.
Displaying copies of the letter written to the school management and other relevant agencies, Comrade Maruf stated they received no response to some of their demands before the turn of event.
He recalled that the union on 8th December 2025, formally wrote to the Polytechnic management on the matter and also held a meeting with the polytechnic management, NYSC officials, and the ministry of youth development on 18th January 2026 on the same issue-only for students to be eventually told to vacate the campus.
The students leader noted that the NYSC camping activities has not only caused disruption of the academic activities but with students also paying the ultimate price of displacement with no alternatives.
“While we recognize the importance of the NYSC scheme as a national program, its continued operation within our campus has come at a painful cost to students,” he said.
He added, “Hostels paid for by students were taken over. Academic activities were disrupted. Sports and campus life were halted. Many students were suddenly left without shelter without clear alternatives.”
Comrade Maruf argued that the campus is a place of learning and demand the relocation of the NYSC camp from the campus.
He said, “We therefore firmly demand the immediate and permanent discontinuation of the use of Kwara State Polytechnic as an NYSC orientation camp.
“Our campus is a place of learning. It is not designed, funded, or equipped to function as a permanent substitute for a purpose-built orientation facility—especially at the expense of students,” he added.
He however called for urgent intervention from the federal ministry of youth development, the Director-General of NYSC, the Inspector-General of Police, the Department of State Services (DSS), the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), the National Association of Polytechnic Students (NAPS), and the Polytechnic management to prevent further escalation.
“Governor orders probe, ‘suspends’ Poly Rector”
The Informant247 earlier reported that Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq on Wednesday ordered a probe into the issue and set up a three-person panel to investigate the remote and immediate causes of the protest by the students.
The Governor also directed the Rector of the Polytechnic, Engr. Dr. Abdul Jimoh Mohammed, to immediately step aside from his role until further notice, while the most senior Deputy Rector acts in his place in the interim.
The committee is headed by the State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice Bar. Senior Ibrahim Sulyman. Other members are the Commissioner for Environment Hon. Nafisat Buge and the Permanent Secretary, Service Welfare, Dr. Mrs Mercy Olufunke Shittu.
The statement added that the committee has two weeks to submit its report to the Governor, while their terms of reference are: (1) to look at the remote and immediate causes of the protest and handling of same; (2) recommend ways to prevent such things in the future; (3) make further recommendations on the growth of the school.
The Informant247 reports that the NYSC permanent orientation camp was relocated from its permanent site in Yipkata ,Edu local government area of Kwara State due to rising insecurity, including banditry and kidnappings that has affected socio-economic activities of larger part of the Northern and southern part of the State.
Some of the students union leaders at the press conference includes Comrade Adewoyin Sophiat Pelumi, Kwara Poly SUG General Secretary; Yusuf Abdullahi Maimasa, Speaker of the Students Representative Council; Senator Ahmad Ishowo Abdulkabir, NAKS President, Kwara Polytechnic Chapter and Comrade Ahmed Ridwan Ayinde,Vice Chairman Academic, NANC.
