Tension at FUTMINNA as Niger State Government Claims Campus

Tensions have escalated at the Federal University of Technology Minna (FUTMINNA) Bosso Campus as students and staff oppose the Niger State Government's attempt to take control of the campus amid ongoing examinations. The state government claims ownership based on a 30-year lease that expired in 2015, intending to reallocate the campus to the Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai.

However, the university community, led by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and represented by Prof. Luqman Kunl Oyewobi, argues that the campus is federally owned since 1983 and warns that the takeover would disrupt academic progress and student services.

Governor Moham Umar Bago defended the state's position in a televised interview, while the student union issued a three-week ultimatum for the government to suspend its takeover plans. The situation has caused significant anxiety among students, with concerns over access to essential academic resources and the potential for mass protests.