BREAKING NEWS:Gwagwalada Area Council Launches Demolition on University Property Amidst Exams

In an alarming and unlawful development, officials of the Gwagwalada Local Government Area this morning commenced a demolition exercise targeting shops, cyber cafés, and students' structures stretching from the Aluta Gate to Lagos Gate of the University of Abuja Mini Campus in Gwagwalada.

Eyewitnesses confirmed that bulldozers, accompanied by political thugs and security operatives, began pulling down properties at dawn without prior notice or any formal communication to the University management or the Student Union Government (SUG). The timing — coinciding with students’ ongoing second-semester examinations — has left many shocked, displaced, and psychologically destabilized.

Worse still, the local government has not only demolished vital student-support infrastructure but has also illegally occupied the University's recreational sports field, converting parts of it into a beer parlor and commercial relaxation center, blatantly disregarding academic integrity, decorum, and lawful ownership.

According to the University of Abuja Act, 1988, all lands occupied by the institution were duly allocated by the Federal Government of Nigeria and are legally recognized as federal property under the administration of the university. Section 3(1) of the Act explicitly vests all rights to such property in the Governing Council of the University, not any local or state authority.

Further backing this, Section 43 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) guarantees individuals and corporate bodies — including federal institutions — the right to acquire and own immovable property anywhere in Nigeria. The Gwagwalada Local Government's actions not only violate this provision but also amount to trespass and willful destruction of federal assets.

Many now question the timing of this action. Why would a local council choose examination season — when students are at their most vulnerable — to embark on such an incursion? Is this an attempt to exploit the university’s silence and destabilize its academic calendar for ulterior motives?

Students and staff have expressed fear that if urgent action is not taken, more university properties could be seized or defaced under the guise of local authority.

As a responsible student, and member of the academic community, I hereby:

1. Call on the Student Union Government (SUG) to immediately convene a press conference and media briefing to address this brazen assault and inform the public on the next steps.
2. Urge the Acting Vice Chancellor, Prof. Patricia Manko Lar, the Pro-Chancellor, the University Senate, and Governing Council to rise to the occasion and take firm legal and diplomatic actions against this abuse of power.
3. Appeal to the Federal Government, through the Federal Ministry of Education and the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation, to call this illegal operation to an immediate halt and demand a public apology from the Gwagwalada Local Government Chairman for this gross violation of law and order.

This is not just an attack on buildings — it is an assault on the sanctity of education, on the dignity of the Nigerian student, and on the authority of a federal institution. Today it is the cyber cafés and sports fields.

Tomorrow, who knows what might be next?

This is a defining moment for the University of Abuja, for its students, and for everyone who believes in justice and the rule of law.

We will not be silent.

We will not surrender.

UNIBUJA belongs to us all.

#DefendUniAbuja

#StopIllegalDemolition

#FederalLandIsNotYours

#SUGMustSpeak