Students tackle FUNAAB’s medical staff over death of a colleague

Academic activities were disrupted on Monday on
the campus of the Federal University of
Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, as hundreds
of students of the institution protested the death
of their colleague, Maria Atere.
The students, who were led by the Chairman of
National Association of Nigerian Students in
Ogun State, Dotun Opaleye, blocked the
entrance of the school, as early as 6am.
During the protest, which lasted for about two
hours, the students accused the medical
personnel of the institution of negligence, which
according to them, led to the death of the
student.
Our correspondent gathered that Maria, a 400-
Level student of Plant Physiology and Crop
Production, lost her life on Sunday while she was
heading for the campus on a commercial
motorcycle, popularly known as okada.
It was learnt that the motorcycle had a head-on
collision with a car some metres away from the
premises of Ogun-Oshun River Basin
Development Authority, Alabata in Odeda Local
Government area of the state.
Opaleye, while addressing journalists shortly
after the protest at Iwe Iroyin, Oke Ilewo area of
Abeokuta, said the accident occurred around
7pm.
He said the girl would have been saved if the
medical personnel had released the ambulance
to convey the injured student to the Federal
Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta.
Opaleye added that the late Atere had a fracture
on her skull and was immediately rushed to a
nearby private hospital while some students
went to the school to request for ambulance to
convey her to FMC.
He alleged that the request was turned down.
He added, “The President of Students Union
Government of the institution, Segun Dennis,
went to the health centre, located in the school
premises, to request for the ambulance but, he
was denied. They told him to bring the girl to
the school clinic.
“The lady was bleeding seriously and for two
hours, the medical personnel did not release the
ambulance and later we got a referral, and we
had to take her to the FMC with the union bus.
“On getting to the hospital, the doctor told us
that she had died and we became devastated.
That was the reason we embarked on the
protest.”