“Don't Allow Any Police Officers To Search Your Phone and we’re saying this due to the abuse and extortive tendencies of some of our officers. No police officer have the right to search your phone”
- FCT Commissioner Of Police Charge Nigeria Youths
NELFund, EFCC Probe 34 Institutions: "... Whoever is doing his best to starve NELFund of money, to frustrate NELFund and make sure it does not succeed, there is no way Go will not punish such a person..." - Babajide Otitoju
I was on NTA Network News last night to speak on the successful rescue of the Oriire abduction victims.
I noted that our security agencies took great care to ensure that the rescue did not jeopardise the safety of the victims. Once this was guaranteed, the rescue plan was decisively implemented, with the approval of Mr. President.
This was a very carefully coordinated and intelligence-led operation, and we are very happy that they are back home safely.
The Federal Government will work closely with the Oyo State Government to attend to their welfare and wellbeing.
-Hon Minister for Information.
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIAN STUDENTS (NANS)
10 July 2026
PRESS RELEASE
JULY 10: HONOURING THE FALLEN HEROES OF THE NIGERIAN STUDENT MOVEMENT
Each country, individual, and organization has its own dates, dates it did not choose but must live with forever. For us as Nigerian students, one such date is July 10 in the history of the Nigerian student movement. This is no mere entry on the calendar; it is a scar that history gently reminds us to reopen because we should never forget how it came to be. For on this date in 1999, five of the most promising students were lost to the Nigerian university system through cult violence, comrades who did nothing more than stand tall and speak out against the belief that cultism should prevail over knowledge.
As the President of the National Association of Nigerian Students, today is not only a day to grieve but also to celebrate. I celebrate the life of George Iwilade (Afrika), who was the Students' Union General Secretary of the Great Ife Students' Union, whose voice rang strong and clear throughout the movement but could no longer be heard because of an attempt to silence us all, an attempt that ultimately failed. I celebrate the life of Eviano Ekelemu, a young man training to heal others, whose life ended because of the very violence he and his colleagues were trying to fight. I celebrate the life of Yemi Ajiteru, who spent an extra year in his studies not because of indecisiveness but in pursuit of something bigger and more important. I celebrate the life of Babatunde Oke, a first year, 100 level student whose university experience was only just beginning when he was called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice. And I celebrate the life of Efe Ekede, also known as Godfrey Ekpede, who fought through his injuries until the struggle eventually claimed his life, a clear reminder that sometimes sacrifices do not end when the attacks stop.
These five names are not statistics; they are pillars. These five names are the building blocks of the safe lecture halls, peaceful hostel nights, and cult free convocations we experience in Nigeria today. Their sacrifice was not made in vain; rather, their blood nurtured a spirit, and it is up to us, as the custodians of that spirit, to ensure that the harvest is worthy of the seed.
We have to ask ourselves whether we have become too comfortable with the peace on our campuses to the extent that we have forgotten how dearly it was bought. The legacy of this generation of student leaders will not be determined by our mourning on July 10; it will be determined by how well we protect, throughout the year, the very ideals that Afrika and his friends died for. Their memories deserve more than moments of silence in their honour.
Indeed, we have emerged from those dark ages of rampant cult activities on our campuses, but the promised land where our university system is completely safe, secure, and righteous is not yet within sight. Our struggle continues, and it continues only because of the sacrifices Afrika, Eviano, Yemi, Babatunde, and Efe made so that our journey could go on.
To every student reading this piece who has never witnessed the kind of fate that Afrika, Eviano, Yemi, Babatunde, and Efe faced in their lifetime, know this: your peace was paid for, not given. To every Students' Union in this country, and to NANS in general, may this day signify much more than mere remembrance. May it represent a renewed commitment to protect our student leaders and to wage an uncompromising war against the menace of cultism.
We honour them. We remember them. We continue the struggle, and even in death, they can be assured that we have not compromised. We remain true to the ideals for which they stood, and onward we march, carrying with us the pain of their sacrifice, knowing that the struggle continues.
Aluta Continua! Victoria Ascerta!
Signed:
Dist. Comr. Akinteye Babatunde Afeez, GCNS
President, National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS)
God my mighty defender may I come out stronger You have given me this heavy cross like you carried but by the power of your resurrection let me be brought to Life