By: Sonaike Peter

Some students of the University of Ibadan have expressed concerns over the inadequate and unequal distribution of electricity among the University halls of residence.

For students, the experience has been notably an inadequate distribution of electricity to some halls of residence as against others.

Students have argued that they deserve equal hours of power supply since they all pay the same amount of utility bill, despite being in a federal University.

Pelumi, a Biochemistry student from the Great Independence Hall of Residence noted that the concern brought inadequate water supply and difficulty in cooking and studying on his part.

“The unequal distribution has put us, who are at Indy and those at Zik, at a disadvantage especially during this period of exams,” he said.

“Due to lack of electricity, we cannot cook, study, and fetch water as of when we want to,” he added.

“Management should address this issue because power is available in other parts of the school, including Kuti Hall,” he concluded.

Another student from the Great Independence Hall of Residence who pleaded anonymity echoed similar sentiment, arguing that the continuing situation is unjustifiable.

He pointed out that the school should create a conducive environment for learning given the utility fees students had paid.

“I paid hostel accommodation of 60,000 naira and utility fees of 20,000 naira, yet I don’t have a conducive living and learning environment for what I paid for,” he lamented.

“The inadequate and unequal power supply is affecting us, the management needs to fix the problem” he requested.

Femi (not real name), another concerned Uite questioned the rationale behind the uneven power distribution.

“It does not make sense that the light is not equally distributed because we all paid utility fees,” he said.

In an interview with IndyPress, the Students’ Union House Secretary, Elemide Daniel noted that he was in discussion with the university stakeholders, including the Dean of Students, Professor Fakeye Abiona, and workers at the Department of Works and Maintenance to address the issue.

He acknowledged that a lack of electricity can negatively impact students’ performance.

“The issue with power supply on campus is major, especially when students are writing exams,” Elemide said.

“We have been having stormy weather nowadays, which is the major contributor to electrical fault we have had in the last two weeks or even more”.

“Notwithstanding, we have been in communication with engineers and the workers at the Department of Works and Maintenance to see how we could probably fix issues when they arise”.

“We also met with the Dean of Students to see how we can proffer a solution to the problem,” he concluded.