By Aliyu Usman, Birnin Kebbi
A yet-to-be medically diagnosed disease has so far killed five students of Kebbi State University of Science and Technology, Aliero (KSUSTA).
Some students of the university told our correspondent—on condition of anonymity since the university is yet to make an official announcement—that last week, four students of the university died mysteriously, and today, another student who fell sick at night passed away.
The source explained that officials of the World Health Organization (WHO) visited their university last week and held an awareness campaign on the dangers of meningitis but did not confirm whether the two students who died before the campaign were killed by meningitis.
However, when contacted on the issue, the Registrar of the University, Maimaru Alhaji Tilli, confirmed the death of four students according to the university’s records.
“Yes, four students died in our own records, but we don’t know the cause. However, we do know there is a need to decongest students’ accommodation.”
He said he had officially written to the Ministry for Higher Education, particularly to the Commissioner, Alhaji Isah Abubakar Tunga, seeking advice on what to do to prevent further deaths.
“We requested in the letter to allow the university to be closed, but we didn’t get any response. As for the disease, we don’t know yet,” he said.
Another student who confirmed the deaths stated that even the Students’ Union Government (SUG) had written to the university, requesting its closure due to the strange disease that is claiming students’ lives.
