Oromoni: NANS Faults Lagos CP's Comment on Association's Jurisdiction

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has faulted a comment credited to the Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, Hakeem Odumosu, that the group’s jurisdiction is limited to tertiary institutions in the country.

In a statement signed by its President, Comrade Sunday Asefon, NANS quoted the commissioner as stating this after the group demanded justice to be done in the case of Sylvester Oromoni.

Oromoni, a student of Dowen College, Lekki, Lagos, died in December 2021 under controversial circumstances.

The student’s father alleged that the 12-year-old was beaten and fed a liquid chemical that eventually led to his death, but the school management dismissed the allegation.

Five students were charged with the murder of Oromoni but were subsequently granted bail by a Lagos magistrate court.

A housemaster and four other staff of the school arrested were also freed after a court order to detain them elapsed, the Lagos Police Command said.

Quoting the outcome of a police investigation and result of an autopsy conducted on the remains of the deceased, Odumosu said during a press conference last Friday that the student died a “natural death”.

According to the CP, Oromoni died from Septicaemia following infections of the lungs and kidneys arising from an ankle wound.

However, NANS said that Nigerian students were dumbfounded by the claim that the student died of an “infection”.

Chairman of an investigative committee set up by the student body, Oladimeji Uthman, said at a press conference in Abeokuta that the committee was perplexed that the police made no mention of bullying in their reports, noting that “we know that Sylvester was bullied but why are state actors trying not to comment on it? We are dumbfounded hearing that Sylvester Oromoni Jr died of those infections.”

The student group charged Dowen College and Sylvester’s family to make public his medical records/history so as to know if there were any ailments he was battling with before his death.

“Nigerian students are seeking answers and we will not allow injustice to thrive,” the committee chairman noted.

Meanwhile, the Lagos CP said NANS has no business being concerned by activities of students and pupils in both primary and secondary schools.

In a counter-reaction, the NANS President described the CP's position as “erroneous”.

“My attention has been drawn to the remark of the Lagos State Commissioner of Police Mr Hakeem Odumosu on the jurisdiction of NANS.

“Mr Odumosu had errorneously claimed that NANS is not concerned by activities of students and pupils in both primary and secondary schools. Hence, NANS have no business demanding justice on the death of Sylvester Ororomi. .

“Naturally knowing the kind of negative attention the Commissioner has drawn recently, especially on what many Nigerians regarded as abuse of officially privileges, we would have spared him our response.

“However, it is imperative to educate unsuspecting public who might ignorantly take the comment of the Commissioner serious.

“It is also important to state that being a Police Commissioner is not enough to assume jurisdiction over issues that you hitherto lack authority on or assume the place of the law, interpreter of the law and enforcer of same,” Tuesday’s statement read in part.

Asefon reminded the Lagos police boss that “NANS is the National Association of Nigerian Students and not National

Association of Tertiary Institution Students”.

“For the avoidance of doubt, NANS jurisdiction covers elementary schools and secondary schools, however, students in those schools are not financial members but NANS considers their welfare and agitate for same when the need arises,” he said.

“To avoid scrutiny on the very questionable handling of Sylvester's death, rather than answering the questions and concern raised by NANS, the Commissioner decided to look for a cheap way out by assuming authority and declaring that Secondary and Primary School is not under the jurisdiction of NANS.

“Our funding fathers knew exactly what they were doing when they named the organisation National Association of Nigerian Students and not National Association of Tertiary Institution Students.

“Assuming but not conceding the commissioner is right, isn't social justice, fairness, advocacy for rule of law, constitutionality and democracy part of the constitutional advocacy of NANS?” Asefon queried.

The NANS President advised the commissioner to focus on policing Lagos and be ready to take responsibility when the public, NANS inclusive, demand a better bargain from the police and not only show the weight of his power when he feels like his authority is being questioned by less powerful men.