UYO, Nigeria — Shock and anger pervade a student community in Uyo, where residents of a private hostel affiliated with the University of Uyo are decrying a late-night armed robbery and what they describe as a grave failure of the Police to provide protection.
The students allege that the Police failed to respond to distress calls as armed hoodlums invaded their 48-room hostel in Useh Offot, a nearby community, making off with cash, phones, laptops, and other valuable items worth millions of naira.
According to the shaken residents, eight robbers clad entirely in black and brandishing guns and cutlasses stormed the fortified property in the early hours of Saturday, July 8, 2023.
Using a potent chemical to weaken a section of the perimeter fence, the assailants tied up the security guards before breaking into individual rooms and terrorising the students.
The local community residents tried in vain to assist the students, but the Police allegedly did not arrive until after the robbery, which lasted more than half an hour.
A visit to the hostel revealed the extent of the destruction, with several doors visibly broken.
Students expressed their fear and frustration, speaking on the condition of anonymity due to concerns about potential reprisals.
Some revealed they were already making plans to move despite the hostel’s convenient proximity to the university.
“The experience was dehumanizing, more so, when you are in your comfort zone,” lamented one female student. “If this could happen here with all the security facilities, where then is safe?”
Another student recounted a harrowing encounter: “I ran into the toilet, they still came after me. As you can see, the door is pulled out. And it is so sad that the Police for reasons best known to them refused to come despite calls from the students.”
The hostel administrator, known as Kandies Ebenezer, expressed profound concern about the brazen act, despite the stringent security measures in place at the property.
However, Police Public Relations Officer, Macdon Odiko, denied the allegations of inaction.
“The Akwa Ibom State Police Command responds quickly to distress calls and has been greatly commended in that regard,” he said.
Odiko’s comments provide little comfort to the shaken students of the University of Uyo or to the residents of Useh Offot and Ekpri Nsukara, communities plagued by persistent robberies and cult-related violence.
With this most recent incident, the tide of fear continues to rise, and students have begun to evacuate the area to seek safer accommodation elsewhere.
