CAPPA Condemns NSUK’s Crackdown on Student Activism, Demands Reinstatement of Rusticated Students
Princess-Ekwi Ajide
Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has strongly condemned the rustication of over 25 students by Nasarawa State University, Keffi (NSUK), over a planned peaceful protest.
The advocacy group is demanding their immediate reinstatement, describing the university’s actions as a blatant attack on free speech and student activism.
The students were suspended for a year on allegations of “criminal conspiracy” and “inciting public disturbance” after creating a WhatsApp group to mobilise against the university’s controversial third semester policy and additional fees of ₦20,000 per course for resitting exams.
CAPPA revealed that university authorities used security operatives to infiltrate the group, monitor discussions, and target students, who were later arrested, detained, and handed rustication letters in December 2024.
“This is a gross violation of students’ constitutional rights to free speech and peaceful assembly,” CAPPA stated, adding that NSUK’s nullification of a recent student union election further highlights a growing culture of repression in Nigerian universities.
The organisation warns that such crackdowns are part of a larger trend aimed at silencing student resistance against the rising cost of education.
It called on civil society groups and educational stakeholders to take action and ensure that universities remain spaces for intellectual freedom, not suppression.
CAPPA reiterated its demand for the reinstatement of all affected students and an end to the criminalisation of student organising, vowing to resist what it described as “a creeping dictatorship in Nigerian universities.”
