Students of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State (FUNAAB) have resorted to conducting night patrols to stem the tide of incessant robbery attacks by suspected robbers.

It was learnt in an interview with the FUNAAB Student Union Government (SUG)President, Olamilekan Michael, that robbers, who were armed with guns, stormed the area twice last week and robbed students of their personal belongings.

He added that though the school was on holiday, a few students who were still at their hostels and some students who were on Industrial Training were victims of the attacks.

Michael said, “It is inevitable for now because some students are not on campus. We are on holiday presently, and then we only have students on IT and SIWES, and some other students who reside off-campus. The situation is inevitable, so we just have to do something to prevent it. That’s why we deployed the act of self-policing.

“They are robbing students who are even in their hostels; they are armed, they come with guns and cutlasses, so when they enter a room, they destroy the windows. They do not rob a hostel where there are no students inside the room; they only rob students who are still around, and then they go in with guns because they know that the students will not be able to fight back when they see a gun.

“They shoot guns just to let the students know that no, it is a real gun, then they ask for phones and even collect phone passwords from us. So, this is why we’ve deployed the act.”

Multiple press statements jointly signed by Michael and the Public Relations Officer of the union, Ayomide Oyekan, also chronicled the plights of the students.

One of the statements read, “We regret to inform you of a concerning robbery incident that occurred in the early hours of yesterday, July 9, at two off-campus hostels: Accord and Isolu. This unfortunate event has once again underscored the urgent need for heightened vigilance and collective responsibility, especially during the holiday.

“In swift response, we have reached out to the relevant security agencies to formally report the incident, escalate our concerns, and demand an increase in security presence in student-dominated areas outside the main campus.”

Barely 48 hours after the first statement was issued, the SUG disclosed in another update that another attack was recorded in some off-campus hostels.

The second statement read, “With rue in our hearts, we regret to inform you of yet another heartbreaking robbery incident that occurred overnight at the Zoo and Oluwo areas, affecting some of our fellow students residing in these locations.

“We are dejected and disturbed by the continuous recurrence of these criminal acts, especially during this critical period when many students are away from campus.

“Our thoughts are with every student affected mentally, physically, and materially. We recognise the trauma and disruption this has caused and extend our heartfelt solace to you all.”

Stressing the concerns in delayed security response, the SUG announced that the students would be resorting to self-policing to curb the attack.

The union leaders urged their colleagues to join a night patrol as part of efforts to curb the attack.

“In response to the increasing wave of robbery incidents in our off-campus communities, we are launching a Self-Policing Initiative aimed at reclaiming our neighbourhoods and safeguarding the lives and properties of students.

“As a student community, we must now rise in unity and take proactive steps toward our collective safety. We hereby call on all students to be security conscious, remain vigilant, and look out for one another.

“As part of this initiative, we will commence a nightly patrol starting from midnight, and we invite all concerned and courageous students to join us in this bold move. This is our chance to stand up for each other and take back our spaces.”

Speaking on the efforts of the police, Michael noted that a patrol team joined them in the patrol, but lamented that the police in the area were understaffed.

“We have a police station here. The first day the incident happened, they showed up around that time, but the robbers had escaped before they came. They’ve also been here for the past two days that we’ve deployed the act of self-policing.

The spokesperson for the Ogun State Police Command, Omolola Odutola, had yet to respond to an enquiry sent to her line as of the time of filing this report. (The PUNCH)