By: Odeh Favour Adiya
A female student of Osun State University (UNIOSUN), identified simply as Ademola, has shared a harrowing account of how she was assaulted when soldiers from the Army Depot, Osogbo, invaded the students’ halls of residence.
The incident, which has sparked widespread outrage, occurred on Monday evening when the military personnel reportedly stormed the off-campus hostels. During the raid, the rampaging soldiers assaulted several students and carted away more than 60 mobile phones and other electronic gadgets.
Compounding the gravity of the situation, some female students were reportedly stripped naked and forced to dance unclad by the soldiers, who were said to be among the personnel that participated in the Army Depot’s passing-out parade held last Saturday.
Recounting her ordeal in a video shared by OsunDefenderNG, Ademola explained that she was completely alone in her room preparing a meal when the chaos began. She noted that she had initially noticed the presence of soldiers around the area earlier, but believed the situation had calmed down before the officers unexpectedly returned.
“My name is Ademola…, a student of Osun State University. I was in my hostel room cooking when I noticed they (soldiers) were around. After a while everything died down. However, later, we started hearing noise again,” she narrated.
She explained that the situation took a terrifying turn when the personnel targeted her room specifically. “They started pointing their touch to my room and asked who was there and what were they doing this for. The next thing, they asked me to open my door and I opened the door.
So, one of them asked how many of us was inside the room and I told him two. I also told him my roommate wasn’t around,” she said.
While her emotions betrayed her, Ademola alleged that one of the soldiers immediately became physically aggressive towards her.
“Then, he pinned me to my bathroom door, told me I would like it. He also told me not to shout. So, I begged him,” she said, visibly shaken while recalling the assault.
Determined to escape, Ademola tried to break free from his grip. “I had to look for a way to get out of his hold and moved to the door. On moving to the door, I told him to move out. He asked if I wanted him to move out,” she added.
She further alleged that another soldier entered the room, but rather than helping her, he attempted to restrain her as well.
She narrated, “While on that, his colleague came in and also told me to calm down, that I would love it and that I shouldn’t shout. So, when they started moving, I shouted and screamed. After shouting, they both moved out and I had to use force to close the door.”
Following the commotion, one of her hostel mates came to check on her well-being. “After closing the door, one of my hostel mates that was there came to knock on my door to check up on me and he left,” she said.
The incident has triggered massive tension within the university community. In response to the invasion, the Vice Chancellor of UNIOSUN and the student body have launched protests against the military’s actions.
Following the public outcry, the Depot Nigerian Army, Osogbo, announced on Tuesday that it had commenced a full investigation into allegations of misconduct involving some of its personnel. The military authorities confirmed that the intervention followed a formal complaint received from the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Southwest Zone D.
The Army stated that the investigation was intended to establish the facts surrounding the incident, assuring the public that anyone found culpable would be brought to justice.
