The Save Public Education Campaign (SPEC) has strongly condemned the arrest and ongoing detention of 52 Ambrose Alli University (AAU) students in Ekpoma, Edo State, calling the action unlawful, repressive, and a violation of constitutional rights.

In a statement jointly signed by SPEC convener Comrade Vivian Bello and co-convener Comrade Dimeji Macaulay, the group said the students were peacefully protesting rising insecurity and kidnappings in the Ekpoma community when security forces moved against them.

“These students, exercising their democratic rights to organize, speak out, and assemble, were met with gross violence for demanding functional and adequate security,” SPEC said. The group also alleged that the students were denied access to legal representation, violating constitutional provisions and international human rights standards.

SPEC warned that the incident reflects a dangerous trend toward the militarisation of educational spaces in Nigeria, describing the clampdown as authoritarian and unacceptable. The organization held Edo State Police Commissioner Monday Agbonika and Commander of the 4 Mechanized Brigade, Brigadier General Ahmed Olatunboju Balogun, responsible for the safety of the detained students.

The group referenced a widely circulated video showing soldiers allegedly firing on unarmed protesters and emphasized that public universities should not be treated as military zones.

SPEC outlined five key demands:

1. Immediate and unconditional release of all detained students.
2. Independent investigation into the roles of police, military, and university authorities.
3. An end to harassment and profiling of student activists nationwide.
4. Full respect for academic freedom.
5. Urgent reforms to address insecurity, poor funding, welfare, and infrastructural decay in public universities.

“We stand in solidarity with the affected students and their families,” SPEC said, adding, “A nation that criminalizes its youth has declared war on its own future.”