Female students of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi, on Monday staged a peaceful protest over an armed robbery attack on their hostel, raising concerns about their safety and calling for enhanced security measures on campus.
The demonstrators marched to the university’s Senate Building to present their complaints after suspected robbers allegedly stormed the female hostel in the early hours of Sunday, making away with valuables, including mobile phones.
One of the victims, Fauziyya Abdullahi, said the attack had left many students traumatised and worried that a similar incident could happen again.
“Our main fear is if they come in here and march us out. We do not want to be another Chibok girls,” she said.
She added, “We do not want to be used for campaigns. We do not want people to say she had a bright future. We want to stay here and live our bright future.
“So please, we cannot wait 45 minutes for security to drive from town to this place. One security woman here is not enough to protect all of us.”
Another student affected by the incident, Rejoice Duke, said the attackers gained access to the hostel at about 2 a.m., forced their way into several rooms and threatened occupants before fleeing with their belongings.
“Some guys came into the hostel and broke into different rooms. They were asking for your life or your phone. They were able to cart away valuables, including mobile phones,” she said.
Following the incident, the university’s Vice-Chancellor, accompanied by members of the management team, visited the hostel and described the robbery as unfortunate.
Addressing the students on behalf of the university management, the Head of the Directorate of Information, Zailani Bappah, assured them that efforts were underway to strengthen security across the campus.
“The management will now sit and use the information at hand to further improve security surveillance,” he said.
The Bauchi State Police Command also confirmed that an investigation had begun into the attack. The command’s Public Relations Officer, Nafiu Habib, said detectives were working to identify, arrest and prosecute those responsible as part of efforts to sustain the Safe School Initiative.
“We discovered that about eight rooms in the female hostel were burgled and about 20 mobile phones of different types were stolen,” the police spokesperson said.
