The Edo State Government has announced that 38 students of Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, arrested during unrest in the area last weekend, will be released.
The Commissioner for Education, Paddy Iyamu, told Channels Television on The Morning Brief on Wednesday that while some students were freed on Tuesday, others would regain their freedom later on Wednesday.
Iyamu said the unrest was orchestrated by individuals living outside Edo State, who “fomented trouble, leading to the destruction of properties.”
He added that “some items were stolen from the palace of the monarch in the area.”He further noted that following the return of normalcy, the government has approved the resumption of academic activities at the university.
the arrests followed a protest on Saturday, initially aimed at highlighting insecurity in Ekpoma, which later turned violent after suspected hoodlums hijacked the demonstration, attacked traders, and set tyres on the roads to block vehicular movement.
Several activists and politicians, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, condemned the arrests, describing them as a suppression of democratic expression.
However, the Edo State Government dismissed reports describing the unrest as a student protest, insisting that the incident was a “coordinated riot aimed at destabilising the state.” The government also rejected claims that the arrested individuals were AAU students or that arrests were made within student hostels.
