Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, has approved the release of persons arrested in connection with the recent protests in Ekpoma, leading to the release of seven individuals.
The Edo State Commissioner for Education, Paddy Iyamu, who was on ground to facilitate the process, confirmed that only verified students were released following the governor’s directive.
Governor Okpebholo disclosed this after a meeting with the President of the Students’ Union Government (SUG) of Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma, on Tuesday, where he insisted that the unrest in the town was not organised by students of the institution.
According to the governor, the disturbance that occurred on Saturday was a criminal act carried out by non-students who loiter around the university environment to foment trouble and extort law-abiding students.
“I have met with the SUG President of AAU Ekpoma. We had a very lengthy discussion, and as I have consistently said, this was not a students’ protest. These are people who are no longer students but are just hanging around the school, causing trouble and extorting students. We will put an end to that,” Okpebholo said.
He assured the SUG leadership that any genuine students who may have been arrested during efforts to restore order would be identified and released without delay.
“For students who were probably arrested, we will look into it and get them released to the SUG President. That is a promise I made, and I will do it as quickly as possible. The protest was not theirs. In fact, it was not a protest at all; it was an avenue to loot,” the governor added.
Okpebholo also dismissed claims of kidnapping linked to the incident, describing the allegations as false and deliberately staged to mislead the public and stir ethnic tension.
“The kidnapping they are talking about is fake. It was stage-managed. They were arranging to kidnap and release themselves. They even went as far as killing someone, which is the most painful part,” he stated.
The governor condemned the burning of markets and destruction of property in Ekpoma, warning that anyone found sponsoring or deploying hoodlums to destabilise communities in Edo State would face the full weight of the law, regardless of political affiliation.
“I don’t care whether you are a politician or not. If you are using people to destroy our land and economy, we will go after you. We know ourselves, and we will bring those responsible to book to ensure justice for our people,” he said.
