Students at Federal University Oye-Ekiti are protesting alleged manipulation of the May 24 Student Union Government elections, claiming school authorities rigged results to favor preferred candidates.
Multiple students told the PUNCH irregularities marred the election. Ajayi, a student, said voting started three hours late due to “technical issues” and saw unexplained extensions when their presidential candidate led.
“The portal showed ‘Error 504’ when we tried monitoring results. Even with illegal extensions, voting should’ve ended by 6pm,” Ajayi claimed.
Another student, Ola, accused the ICT team and management of colluding to rig multiple positions: “They removed OTP verification when we were winning. We demand a rerun following proper guidelines.”
Remi from Basic Medical Sciences faculty alleged marginalization, saying: “At 5:55pm, our candidate led by 13 votes. After portal failure, they announced his opponent won by 19 votes mysteriously.”
However, Dean of Student Affairs Prof. Wasiu Oyedoku-Ali dismissed the claims, stating Acting VC Prof. Olubunmi Shittu ensured election integrity with additional safeguards.
“Technical glitches occurred due to high voter traffic. We consulted stakeholders before suspending OTP – 26 of 29 attendees agreed,” Oyedoku-Ali explained, adding that ASUU monitored the process.
The controversy continues as students demand transparency while university officials maintain the election was credible.
