Students of Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State, have blamed alleged medical negligence at the institution’s health centre and its stop-and-search exercise at the main gate for the death of a 200-level Business Administration student, identified only as AJ.
The student reportedly died after falling off a moving campus shuttle bus on Tuesday, an incident that has sparked outrage among students and alumni, who have called on the university management to address concerns about student safety and healthcare.
PUNCH Metro gathered that some students, who took to social media to express their anger, alleged that the university’s practice of asking students to disembark from shuttle buses for security checks at the gate contributed to the circumstances surrounding AJ’s death.
They claimed that the exercise often delayed students, forcing them to scramble for available seats in departing buses after completing the checks.
According to them, AJ might not have lost his seat and resorted to hanging by the door of the moving shuttle bus if staff had not asked him to disembark at the gate.
The students also accused the university’s health centre of failing to provide immediate medical attention to the injured student, alleging that staff demanded his identification card before attending to him.
One social media user, @just_prinnie on TikTok, questioned why university medical personnel would insist students present ID cards before receiving emergency treatment.
“Why are university medicals still asking for student IDs before they treat them in this big 2026?” the user wrote.
One of the school’s alumni on TikTok, user @AKBAR/MOM+lifestyle, recalled an unpleasant experience at the university clinic, alleging that medical personnel had ignored students seeking treatment, including those in serious conditions.
The user wrote, “That’s exactly how they attend to students, even in emergency cases. I can vividly remember my experience years back when I was still in school.
“I was seriously ill and went to the school clinic for treatment, but all they did was ignore the students waiting outside while some staff sat inside eating or pressing their phones.
“When I eventually went in to meet a doctor, all she could tell me was that I was disturbing her. I was so disappointed. I even noticed her packing some hospital materials into her bag, which made me question the kind of care students were receiving.”
The user added that the experience had made them lose confidence in the clinic, prompting them to register with a private hospital.
Another TikToker, @Ponmilé, condemned the alleged insistence on medical identification cards during emergencies, saying students needed immediate attention rather than administrative demands.
“I couldn’t sleep all night. Nah mini campus I dey, and we saw his dead body when he was brought from the clinic. I wasn’t able to sleep. Rip AJ,” @Sofiyyah added.
Similarly, an X user, @Ola_is_back, also accused the university’s health centre of prioritising documentation over emergency treatment, claiming to have experienced similar treatment after an accident on campus.
“OOU failed that boy. Reading the union’s press statement broke my heart. A student was rushed to the University Health Centre in an emergency, and instead of treating him, staff asked for his medical ID card. A life was on the line, and they wanted paperwork.
“I know that feeling personally. When I had an accident on campus, I was bleeding from my head, arm and leg, and the nurses told me to log into my portal to prove I have completed medicals before they’d attend to me,” the user wrote.
Another student, @divellexx, who identified as a final-year student, said they would rather seek medical attention outside the university than visit its health centre.
The user alleged that students’ welfare and wellbeing were not being given adequate attention, adding that similar complaints had emerged repeatedly.
The Students’ Union, in a statement issued on Tuesday, also alleged that the university clinic demanded the presentation of the victim’s identification card before treatment could be administered, adding that “sadly, within minutes, the student passed away.”
The union described the circumstances surrounding the incident as disturbing, raising concerns about the driver’s conduct, the safety of campus transportation and the response of the university’s health facility.
Beyond the concerns about the clinic, students also called for a review of the stop-and-search exercise at the university’s main gate, describing it as poorly organised and a source of unnecessary delays.
An X user, @investor_jnr, called for an end to the practice of asking students to disembark from buses for security checks.
“The tradition of asking students to get down at the school gate for whatever searching should be abolished in OOU! It just doesn’t and will never make any sense!” the user wrote.
Another user, Jiggy Elumelu, said the incident should prompt the university management to reconsider how security checks were conducted.
The user said, “But this should also make the school authorities rethink the stop-and-search exercise at the main gate. What exactly is the purpose if students are still being delayed and left rushing to catch their buses?
“If security checks are necessary, let them be properly organised so every student can gain access without unnecessary delays. Security should protect students, not create additional pressure for them.”
Similarly, @IMOLEAYO_9 recalled experiencing delays caused by the exercise during their time at the institution in 2015, alleging that buses sometimes left students behind after the security checks.
Another user, @ridwanom8, also criticised the gate restrictions, alleging that students without medical identification cards were sometimes denied access to the university’s mini campus.
Expressing concern over the incident, @LokeTyg said the university had lost two students to vehicle-related accidents within 24 hours, calling for improved safety measures.
Recall that the university management, in a separate statement issued on Tuesday, announced the suspension of lectures and other academic activities for two days following the student’s death.
In the statement, signed by Wale Balogun on behalf of the Deputy Registrar, Corporate Affairs Division, the university said the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ayodeji Agboola, had expressed condolences to the family, friends, coursemates and lecturers of the deceased.
Meanwhile, efforts to reach the university’s public relations officer for comments on the concerns raised by the students proved abortive, as calls to his phone were unsuccessful.
A WhatsApp message sent to him had also not received a response as of the time of filing this report.
Source: punchng.com
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