UNILAG Medicine Students Protest Electricity Disconnection Over Unpaid Bills

Students from the College of Medicine, University of Lagos, protested. They were upset about the electricity disconnection by Eko Electricity Distribution Plc (EKEDC). The disconnection was because the university management had unpaid bills. This action by EKEDC disrupted activities at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH). The students are demanding that the debt be paid right away. [Source needed]

EKEDC Disconnects Power Over Unpaid Bills

EKEDC cut off power to Lagos University Teaching Hospital last Thursday. This was due to unpaid bills. The university management said they paid N80 million on Thursday. They also paid another N50 million on Friday. Even with this N130 million payment, N145 million was still owed.

The students said EKEDC disconnected power. They believe it was because the university did not pay its May bill. The management stated they paid N80 million on Thursday and N50 million on Friday.

Students Demand Payment; LUTH’s Outstanding Debt

The teaching hospital, LUTH, is responsible for the outstanding N145 million. It is not the College of Medicine’s debt. This pushes the total bill to over N250 million. [Source needed] The students paid their share. However, LUTH has not paid its part of the bill. This situation shows the money problems faced by the university and its teaching hospital.

Videos shared by SaharaReporters showed students chanting, “Give us our light, we want light.” At the University of Benin, similar protests happened because of long power outages. This led to the suspension of school activities last Thursday. Dr. Benedicta Ehanire, the school’s Public Relations Officer, announced the decision to close the school. She said students refused to compromise on their demands. This shows a growing trend of student unrest. The unrest relates to infrastructure problems in Nigerian universities. For example, LASUCOM students recently protested a power outage. They demanded payment of electricity bills (Guardian.ng).

Reports also say LASUCOM students protested the electricity disconnection. It was due to unpaid bills. This caused problems with school activities (Tribuneonlineng.com). Another report from Independent.ng says LASUCOM students protested the power outage. The outage was caused by unpaid electricity bills. This disrupted school activities and made life hard.

Broader Implications for Nigerian Universities

The situation at the College of Medicine, University of Lagos, shows a growing worry. This worry is about infrastructure and funding at Nigerian universities. Frequent power outages disrupt school activities, research, and healthcare services at teaching hospitals. Using generators as backup power is expensive. It is also not sustainable. This adds to the money problems of these schools. The disconnect between the university management, the teaching hospital, and the electricity company shows the need for better communication and financial planning. This can help prevent these problems.

The students’ protest shows a bigger frustration. This frustration is with the state of infrastructure and funding within Nigerian universities. Many schools struggle with not having enough money. They cannot maintain important services. This leads to frequent problems with school activities. It also causes a decline in the quality of education. [Source needed] The incident at the University of Lagos reminds us to invest in infrastructure. We need to make sure universities have the resources they need. This will provide a good learning environment for students. [Source needed]