The University of Ibadan Students’ Union has issued an ultimatum to the Federal Government of Nigeria, demanding immediate intervention to address the critical state of the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan.
In an open letter dated January 13, 2025, signed by the union’s president, Aweda Bolaji, and general secretary, Ogundijo Dolapo Japheth, the union decried the persistent power outages that have plunged the facility into a near standstill for over two months, affecting life-saving services and disrupting the education of medical students.
The Union decried how the blackout has left essential hospital departments in dire straits, endangering lives and undermining the hands-on training of medical students residing in Alexander Brown Hall.
These students deemed critical to the future of Nigeria’s healthcare system, cannot gain the necessary practical experience due to the hospital’s precarious conditions.
The union attributes the crisis to the power sector reforms introduced in April 2024, which significantly increased electricity costs while failing to ensure a reliable power supply.
According to the letter, this policy disproportionately affects vulnerable Nigerians and healthcare facilities like UCH, which are lifelines for millions.
This situation is fundamentally anti-people, the union stated, emphasizing the compounding impact on both healthcare delivery and medical education. The students’ body described the government’s neglect as a threat to the accessibility and affordability of healthcare for Nigerians.
The Students’ Union has given the Federal Government seven days to resolve the pressing issues or face organised protests.
Failure to act within this stipulated time will leave us with no option but to mobilize and protest against this continuous neglect by the government, the letter reads.
The union reiterated that access to healthcare should not be a privilege but a fundamental right. It called for immediate measures to restore power and improve conditions at UCH, stressing the need for affordable healthcare services for all Nigerians.
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