YOLA – The authorities of Moddibo Adama University of Technology, Yola, on Monday announced the indefinite closure of the university following a students’ riot.
The students had rioted on Sunday night over an alleged posting of blasphemous statement on Prophet Mohammad on group WhatsApp by a student of Chemical Engineering.
The Registrar of the university, Alhaji Ibrahim Ribadu, said in a statement that the decision to close the university indefinitely was taken at an emergency meeting of the university senate.
Ribadu advised all students to vacate the campus, latest by 2p.m.
Meanwhile, the Dean of Students’ Affairs, Dr Lawal Haruna, said there was no clash within the campus but that the rioters concentrated on the destruction of places of worship and lecture theatres.
“The level of destruction is minor; it was an attempted arson situation as they attempted to set fire to buildings and places of worship.”
Haruna said that later in the night outside the campus some students living off campus in Sangere area near the university engaged in a fight leading to injury of three students who were rushed to Yola Federal Medical Centre.
“One of the students sustained fatal injury and we lost him early in the morning,” Haruna said.
He said the deceased was a 200 level student of the Department Regional Planning.
Haruna said that similar blasphemous posting occurred two weeks ago and that the university was still investigating the person involved before the latest one on Sunday night.
