Students at the College of Health Sciences and Technology in Jega, Kebbi State, erupted in protest, setting fire to the residence of the Provost, Alhaji Haruna Saidu-Sauwa, and vandalizing his vehicle over allegations of extortion.
The unrest stemmed from accusations that the college management had collected N23 million from 250 graduating students as part of an index registration fee.
The fee hike, tied to the introduction of a Public Health program, led to an alleged demand for an additional N65,000 from each student, on top of the N30,000 they had already paid.
In response, the angry students resorted to stoning vehicles and torching the provost’s house. College staff fled as tensions escalated, and security forces were later called in to restore order.
Provost Saidu-Sauwa denied the allegations, calling them “fictitious and baseless,” and refuted claims that the program was connected to any external body to extort students.
He stated that the institution follows a Single Treasury Account system, ensuring transparency in financial matters, and alleged that the protest was fueled by misinformation from unnamed sources with ulterior motives.
He further challenged the anonymous accuser to present evidence of the claims and urged patience until the true cause of the protest is revealed. Saidu-Sauwa expressed relief that no one was hurt in the incident and vowed to work with security personnel to investigate those responsible for the unrest.
Normalcy has since returned to the college following intervention from security agencies. The Kebbi State Police Command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Nafiu Abubakar, confirmed that more details would be shared after a report from the Divisional Police Officer in Jega.
