—Govt on top of situation – Health commissioner
By Dayo Johnson , Akure
Students of the Ondo State-owned College of Health Technology in Akure, have protested against alleged extortion by the institution management and the poor state of infrastructure within the institution.
The students, barricaded the main gate of the institution with a bonfire while chanting solidarity songs to express their displeasure.
Armed with placards with various inscriptions, the protesting students vowed that no lecture or examination would be allowed to take place until their demands were met by the management addressed.
The inscriptions displayed reads ” We Are Tired of This Wickedness,” “Health Tech With Poor Environment,” and “Stop Extortion Now, No Solution, No Exams, ” “We cannot continue like this, the environment is not fit for learning” “Until they fix these problems, there will be no exams, no lectures.”
They lamented the years of neglect, exploitation at the institution, deteriorating conditions of classrooms, hostels, laboratories, and lack of a reliable water supply on campus.
The student accused the school management of imposing “unjustifiable charges” despite the poor state of the facilities.
Speaking with Vanguard, one of the protesters, Ayo Adeyeye said that repeated appeals to management on their plights have been ignored.
Adeyeye said that the nonchalant attitude of the Management was responsible for their protest.
Spesking on the protest, the Provost of the College, Emoruwa Oluwole Oluwambe, denied the allegations levelled against the management.
Oluwambe, however, said the state government had intervened by calling for a meeting.
Also, the Health Commissioner, Dr Banji Awolowo Ajaka, visited the institution alongside the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr Adeniran Ikuomola, to assess the situation.
Dr Ajaka, during a meeting with the school management and the Students’ Union leadership, assured them of the state government commitment to improving the health sector in the state.
The commissioner also assured the students of a conducive learning environment.
He appealed to the students to embrace dialogue rather than protest, just as he assured them that their concerns would be looked into and addressed by the state government.
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