“Light Is the Least We Are Asking For”: FUNAAB Students Take Power Protest to IBEDC

The Students’ Union Government (SUG) of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), on Wednesday, November 4, led students and other student stakeholders in a peaceful demonstration at the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) Ogun Regional Office in Ijeun, Leme, Abeokuta, over the prolonged power outage affecting the university community.

According to an account released by the SUG, the demonstration followed a pre-notice issued on Tuesday, November 3, with students converging at the FUNAAB Gate before departing for the IBEDC office shortly after 9:00 a.m.

The delegation reportedly travelled in a convoy comprising police vehicles and Students’ Union buses, with police escort arranged to ensure the demonstration remained peaceful and orderly.

Upon arrival, the protesters met security personnel from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), the police, SWAT and anti-terrorism units stationed at the IBEDC premises.

Led by the SUG President, Union executives and the President of the Postgraduate Students’ Association, the students proceeded into the premises, where they expressed their dissatisfaction with the prolonged electricity disruption through chants and vocal demands for intervention.

During an engagement with the protesters, the IBEDC Business Manager reportedly attributed the persistent outage to factors including low electricity allocation and broader international developments. The explanations, however, did not satisfy the demonstrators, who maintained that repeated explanations had yet to address the hardship caused by the blackout.

The Union subsequently presented a formal letter titled *“Urgent Demands and Observations Regarding Persistent Power Outage,”* outlining two major demands:

1. Immediate restoration of electricity:IBEDC is to restore power to the affected FUNAAB community within 24 hours of the demonstration. 2. Permanent resolution: The company is to implement a lasting and stable technical solution to the recurring electricity problem within one week.

Following the presentation of the demands, the SUG President and other student leaders addressed the gathering, reiterating the need for continued engagement with relevant authorities over the situation.

The demonstration ended at approximately 11:37 a.m., with the protesters departing the IBEDC premises.

Although the Union has formally communicated its demands, the demonstration does not indicate that an agreement was reached or that electricity has been restored to the university community.

Attention now turns to IBEDC's response to the demands and whether the company will meet the timelines stipulated by the students.