The death of a student at the Shehu Shagari College of Education (SSCOE) Sokoto, has been confirmed by the Sokoto State Government on Thursday, after which it ordered the closure of the institution indefinitely.
The student unrest was caused by an alleged blasphemy made by the deceased student against Islamic religion through a social media group.
Recall that a viral video of a Muslim mob stoning and burning the female student caused a stir on the internet earlier on Thursday, May 12, 2022.
The students, in mob outrage, traced the female student and killed her as well as burnt the corpse at the school security gate after overpowering the school securities.
Addressing a news conference, the state’s Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Isa Bajini-Galadunci, confirmed the student’s death and said the state government had ordered immediate closure of the school.
Bajini-Galadunci said Governor Aminu Tambuwal had directed the Ministry of Higher Education and other relevant agencies to commence investigation into the incident and report back to the state government.
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The Commissioner said Tambuwal urged citizens to remain calm and law-abiding, assuring them that appropriate action would be taken after the investigation.
The combined security operatives were deployed to the college as students were seen evacuating the campus.
Meanwhile, the Police Command in Sokoto State on Thursday said it has arrested two students of the Shehu Shagari College of Education (SSCOE), Sokoto, in connection with the killing of their female colleague.
The command, in a statement issued by its spokesperson, ASP Sanusi Abubakar, said a distress call on the incident was received by the police around 9.00 a.m.
“We received that students were rioting over one female student, named Deborah Samuel, a level two student, who was accused of making a social media post that blasphemed the holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW).
“Students forcefully removed the victim from the security room where she was hidden by the school authorities, killed her and burnt the building,” he said.
Abubakar added that upon receiving the information, the police-led team and all other operational commanders in the state moved into the school and brought the situation under control.
“Two students were arrested in connection with the crime. The school has been closed down by the school authority, and policemen deployed to give tight security coverage,” he said.
He assured that all the suspects in the viral video on Twitter would be nailed by the command as soon as possible.
