Students Body Threatens Campus Shutdown as Election Violence Grips Osun

Rising insecurity linked to Osun State's governorship election has pushed the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) Southwest Zone D to threaten a total shutdown of tertiary institutions across the state, in one of the strongest student-led interventions ahead of the polls.

According to a statement from the zone, students have reported gunfire near their host communities, and no formal security arrangement has been announced to protect them. The body said it would rather suspend academic work than "issue condolence statements after preventable harm."

NANS further accused unnamed political actors of mobilising students for voter registration drives without adequate regard for their safety or privacy, warning students not to board unmarked vehicles or hand over personal data to unidentified agents.

The organisation said the shutdown, whose exact date will be communicated through official NANS and SUG channels, is not aligned with any political party. It urged the Osun State government and security agencies to act "before it is too late," warning that campuses "will not become killing fields."

The statement was jointly signed by NANS Southwest Zone D Coordinator Adeyemo Josiah Kayode, Secretary General Ojetola Babatunde Yussuf, and PRO Tope Olugbemi.