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18 arrested in Niger Delta varsity crackdown

Sunday May 27 2018
NigeriaPHYSEA
By MOHAMMED MOMOH

Nigerian authorities have reported the arrest of 18 people following violent protests at the Niger Delta University (NDU) that led to the death of at least 10 people.

Police commissioner Don Awunah said normalcy had been restored and several computers looted during the Saturday riot recovered.

“The labour unrest between non-academic staff and the authority of the Niger Delta University has been contained by a detachment of Anti-riot Policemen of Bayelsa State Command.

Ulterior motives

“Currently, peace and security have been restored in Amassoma and its environs after infiltration by hoodlums with ulterior motives into the peaceful engagement between the workers and the university authority," Mr Awunah said .

The NDU workers were protesting the sacking of 1,700 colleagues at Amassoma in southern Ijaw in the oil-rich Bayelsa State.

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Many others were reported injured when the workers clashed with armed security personnel deployed to reopen the university gates.

State Governor Seriake Dickson regretted the incident and gave the assurance that the state would foot the hospital bills of those injured.

At a meeting in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, Mr Dickson said that the government would also foot the burial expenses of victims and send a delegation to commiserate with the bereaved families.

The investments

The government, he said, would resolve the issues leading to detention of some people in connection with the crisis.

The governor said that Amassoma occupied a special place in his heart, which informed his administration’s decision to invest in its development and the establishment of its single biggest investment, the N80 billion Bayelsa International Airport in the community.

“The NDU remains a state-owned university, completely funded by the government of Bayelsa.

“With the investments, we have made and continue to make, it is very clear that our plans for the NDU are good,’’ the governor said.


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