By: William Olaleye
The University of Ibadan Students’ Union has today, 15th of May, released a memo suspending the planned Congress following an alleged attack on members of the executive.
In the memo, the SU deemed it necessary to suspend the congress after an altercation with some students where the General Secretary of the Union reportedly sustained an injury to his arm.
According to the memo, the students had come to inquire as to why there had been no official call for Congress by the SU.
It went further to state that the students were welcomed and their questions were answered in good faith, however, the communication became aggressive as the officials made to leave the office.
“As the Union officials set to take their leave from the President’s Office, these students harassed and blocked the way for several minutes, preventing the Union officials from taking their leave to attend to other important engagements demanding their immediate attention” the memo read.
In light of these developments, the SU decided against holding a Congress, suspending it for the moment.
“Under these circumstances, we unfortunately cannot proceed with a congress at this time.”
“The safety and well-being of all students are our utmost priority, and we will not convene a gathering where there is a perceived risk of disruption” the memo declared.
The memo finally assured students that the SU would “continue to monitor the situation and will reconvene when assured of a safe and conducive environment for all members to participate without any fear of threat.
The UI’SRC had on the 10th of May moved the motion that a Congress be held on the 17th of May, 2025 however even after the resolution of the house, no official call for a Congress had been made by the union executive council.
If the Suspension of the Congress by the Union Executive Council is without approval from the UI’SRC then it is not without precedence as a session ago, during the Aweda-led administration, the UI’SU executive council had postponed a Congress without approval from the SRC and this was considered a breach of the constitution
As at press time, it is unconfirmed whether the suspension had the approval of the UI’SRC.
