Father of one of the students murdered by a mob at Aluu, River State,
Mr. Mike Toku, has described as a deliberate cover-up the continued
denial by members of the community that they had no hand in the killing
of his son, Lloyd.
Toku insisted that his son and three other students of the University
of Port Harcourt were tortured and killed by members of Omuokiri Aluu
community in Ikwerre Local Government Area.
Speaking with our correspondent on Sunday, Toku said it was
unfortunate that the community that murdered his son could deny being
involved in the act.
He explained that the incident took place in the presence of members
of the public and wondered why any Aluu indigene would want to deny the
obvious.
He said, “To say they are not involved in the killing of my son is a
big lie; it is a white lie and a cover-up for their wicked and
unacceptable act. The incident did not take place in one of the
community’s bush.
“They killed my son in a place that looked like a village square
belonging to the community. While the killers were hitting my son and
three other students, others stood and watched the incident.”
Toku, who insisted that his son was innocent of any crime he was
accused of before being murdered, urged the police to arrest the killers
of his son and those watching while the crime against the students was
being committed.
Explaining that the police have yet to communicate with him on the
matter, Toku said it was necessary that security agents did the right
for justice to prevail.
Also, the late Tekena Erikena’s sister, Ann, said though she could
not dictate to government what should be done; justice was all members
of the family were demanding.
Describing her brother as a humble person, who had respect for
people, Ann wondered why members of the community would brand him a
thief and kill him.
She said, “I cannot dictate to government on what they should do, but what we want is justice. My brother was never a thief.”
Meanwhile, President, Academic Staff Union of Universities, Dr. Nasir
Fagge, on Sunday described the killings of students in some parts of
the country as unfortunate and condemnable.
Fagge told the News Agency of Nigeria in a telephone interview in Lagos that the union was worried and sad by the development.
He said the union had directed affected institutions to investigate
the incidents and that it was waiting for the outcome before taking
appropriate steps.
He said, “We have asked our members in the affected institutions to
give us information but whatever it is, it is a condemnable act.
“This is part of what the union has been canvassing– that Federal
Government should fund universities adequately so that they can be in a
position to provide accommodation on campus for students.
“With adequate funding, we can make our environment more secure.”
Fagge noted that the requirement for every institution was that, at
least, 35 per cent of its students should be accommodated on campus.
He added that ASUU was pushing for at least 50 per cent of students to be accommodated on campus.
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