APPRAISING THE WAR AGAINST CULTISM IN NIGERIAN UNIVERSITIES: Abia Varsity Example -By Comr. Ahamefula Israel

Comr. Ahamefule and colleague

As we all know, wars are fought against enemies, sometimes against obstacles that are preventing progress. This is generally practice all over the world. However, when war is declared against a disturbing issue with full backup and follow-up, the end to such crime is near.

One of the challenges facing our institutions today is the negative effect of Cultism. This situation today has become so gangrenous that our higher institutions have become breeding grounds for murderers and other kinds of criminals who hide under the banner of one cult group or the other to perpetuate heinous crimes against fellow students who are either innocent or also belong to another cult group.
In virtually all the higher institutions and even some secondary schools in the country, we have at one time or the other recorded one cult related crisis or the other. Investigation further showed that quite a number of politicians, academics, professionals and different sets of people belong to one cult group or the other.
Since the encounter of March 11th 2016, where two Undergraduates of Abia State University got beheaded by a rival cult group in a private hostel outside the school environment, the Professor Uchenna Eleazer Ikonne’s led Administration has intensified the war against Cultism and other related offences in the institution.
As a way of curbing this ungodly act, The Vice-Chancellor through the help of the State Governor Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu.
1. Deployed the Nigeria Police, The D.S.S, The Military and other security personals to help reduce the fear and risk of further act.

2. Approved a special office for students and staff to alert the authorities on cult activities.

3. Held a special security meeting with the owners and operators of Private hostels located outside ABSU Campus where measures were put in place to assure the safety of Students, who preferred to live off campus lodges. They are:

To build a security post in each of their hostel with security guards, who will keep records of people coming into the hostel and the time such people leaves.
To profile their tenants and make such data available to the management of the university,this is to help ascertain the credibility of the persons in their custody.
To have a curfew period each day when nobody comes in or leaves the hostel.

4. Form ABSU Anti-cult Vanguard in partnership with the Man`O War paramilitary group and the Joint Campus Christian Fellowship charged with the responsibility of sensitizing fresh students on the dangers of cultism.

5. Held a day anti-cultism rally during the week long activity leading to the 24th convocation ceremony of the university, where cult members were urged to denounce their membership.

6. Organized a special rededication service of the institution to God, in which concerned students were advice to make a fresh start by renouncing their membership of any cult group they may belong to.

These and many others measures have been put in place to bring to an end this ugly act in Abia State University.
The Vice Chancellor of the institution and the State Government has announced that Tuesday 31st may 2016 remains the deadline for all those involved to openly denounce their membership and surrender their costumes as names of all students belonging to different cult groups have been made available to the management and state government for further actions.
You cannot escape the security dragnets being setup as consequences attached will not be palatable.
To before warned is to before armed!!!