By ARMSTRONG ALLAHMAGANI, Bauchi –
Un-uniformed soldiers on Monday night allegedly assaulted the Chairperson of the Academic Staff Union of University (ASUU), Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi Branch, Dr. Ibrahim Inuwa.
The incident was said to have occurred when the military men who were in a convoy of two vehicles drove into the campus but were stopped by the University’s security and prevented from going inside because their vehicles had tinted glasses.
They were said to have forced their way into the Campus and harassed the only security man at the gate at the time. The other security men were said to have gone to a nearby mosque to pray.
Speaking to journalists at the ATBU security office at about 10.30pm, the ASUU Chairperson, said that he was on his way home when he saw the soldiers harassing the security man on duty at the gate and he stopped to inquire what was happening.
“Just this (Monday) night, some few minutes after 8 O’clock, I was going out of the University and I saw a convoy of two vehicles, they were busy arguing and harassing the security man on duty. At that time, most of the security men were praying in a mosque by the gate. So I had to stop because it is my responsibility as the Chairman of the Union.
“And I asked our security man in Hausa what was happening. The next thing, these guys in these two vehicles started asking me arrogantly ‘who are you?’ And I told them ‘no, I want to know what happened’ One of them said, ‘you’re very stupid! Do you know who we are? You’re very stupid!’
“I told them that this is a university and we have our rules and the next thing, they started shoving me, then one of them went to the extreme and slapped me three consecutive times. I called their attention that what they have done is wrong and I told them they would regret it. You can even see the prints of the slaps on my face,” he said.
He narrated further that: “They said again that I was stupid because I was still talking, they were hitting me that I should keep quiet. It was at that point that the number of security men increased, so we instructed them to block the gate because we must know their identity.
“They are claiming that they are military guys but to give us their details is now a problem. They were on mufti and they forced their way into the university. Our union is now aware of the incident and we need their details to write to the Chief of Army Staff.
“Our Union’s National Officer is here and it is as good as the National Secretariat is aware of the assault on the Chairman of the Branch for trying to prevail on a crisis at the gate. They were harassing and molesting the security man at the gate and if I wasn’t there, they would have finished him and force their way out of the gate.
“We cannot crisscross into their procedures as military. Of course, some of their senior officers are here, they’re are pleading with us and trying to persuade us to allow them (the soldiers) go.
“We have our security protocols here and what we are insisting on is that we need to write statements of the details of what happened and we need the identity of all of military men, but their officers that came were just saying we should just hand them over to them, they’re going to deal with them. We cannot interfere in their procedure but they cannot breach our own procedure here.”
The National Internal Auditor of ASUU, Adamu Babayo, who was there and also spoke to our Correspondent, said he was at home when he was told that some soldiers came to the school and slapped the Union’s Chairperson.
“When I got to the entrance gate, I inquired about what was going on and the university has this rule that tinted vehicles should not be allowed to come into the university.
“So, while the security man there alone was trying to tell them that they cannot go in, they were forcing their way into the campus. Luckily, the ASUU Chairman was going out and he demanded to know what was going on. Then these military boys harrased the Chairman to the extend that they even slapped him.
“Our students came at the gate trying to lynch the military boys, so the Chairman said they should lock the gate, so that they don’t go out and the students will lynch them.
“They are here at the security office, we want to know them but their officers are protecting them and saying we should free them. We have our own rules just as hey have theirs in the military, so what we are telling them is that we are going to use our own rules to address this matter,” he said.
When our Correspondent visited the Campus at about 10.15pm, scores of students were seen shouting and insisting that the five soldiers who were taken to the institution’s security office be released to them so they can avenge what was done to the ASUU Chairperson.
The two major gates leading to the campus were closed down and blocked by the students as they denied cars access into the school while those going out had to also turn back.
Our Correspondent observed that the angry students started throwing stones and other objects at the two vehicles that were parked at the barricade of the exit gate.
They destroyed all the windscreens, glasses and tyres of the two cars – Toyota Camry and Corolla.
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