Stakeholders comprising community leaders, students’ union members and members of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday protested in Suleja, Niger State, over an alleged plan to convert land allocated to Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) University to a market
The protesters, led by members of the Suleja Development Association (SUDA), converged on the site of the university’s Suleja campus, carrying placards and calling on the state governor, Umar Mohammed Bago, to reverse the alleged decision
Reading a statement on behalf of the protesters, Prof Sulaiman Dangana Abdul said the entire Suleja Emirate was opposed to the alleged plan by the state government to hand over the Field Base land for the construction of a market reportedly owned by Nigerian Army Properties Limited.
Abuja Metro reports that the Field Base, which was formerly used as an operational base during the construction of Abuja as the new Federal Capital Territory (FCT), was handed over to the Niger State Government in 2007 as an appreciation to the Suleja community for ceding a vast portion of its territory for the development of the FCT
Abdul said following the handover, the property was allocated to IBB University, Lapai, for the establishment of a campus in the emirate
“The establishment of a university campus at the site was warmly welcomed by the people of Suleja, as it expanded educational opportunities for the community and aligned with the expectations of the people regarding the property’s intended use,” he said
Also speaking, a stakeholder and town planner, TP Umar Shuaibu, said the Suleja Emirate already had several markets, some of which, he alleged, were grossly underutilised
He listed the Suleja International Market at Rafin-Sanyi, Muhammad Auwal Ibrahim Market near Maje and another modern market under construction around Madalla
Shuaibu urged the state government to focus on providing the university with the basic infrastructure it required instead of allegedly allocating its land to a private market developer
“Suleja Emirate is the only urban centre in Niger State that is lacking any single tertiary institution,” he said, adding that the university had already commenced the offering of some courses and programmes
During the protest, the stakeholders said they had made several attempts to secure an audience with the governor for constructive engagement but were unsuccessful
They said they were therefore shocked by a statement reportedly released by the state government indicating that a memorandum of understanding (MoU) had been signed for the handover of the property to a private organisation for market development
At the end of the protest, the stakeholders issued the state government a two-week ultimatum to reverse the alleged decision, threatening to seek legal redress if their