“The AAUA students are the most irresponsible students I have ever seen in my life and you can go anywhere to quote me," she said. “The old age commands respect and just like the example I gave you, the confrontation I had with the AAUA Students, and some of them even wished me dead. Some of them said 'oh, we learnt she is a breast cancer survivor, she should have died.' Can you imagine that?"
Betty-Anyanwu Akeredolu, wife of the Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, has lampooned the students of Adekunle Ajasin University Akungba Akoko (AAUA) on their social media useage.
Mrs. Akeredolu said that the undergraduates of the state-owned university are the "most irresponsible students” she has ever come across in the use of the “WhatsApp and Facebook platforms" concerning issues in the state.
She spoke at the maiden edition of the Ondo State Social Media Day (OSMD) held at the T.I. Francis Auditorium of the Federal University of Technology Akure (FUTA) at the weekend.
The event, organised by a young business entrepreneur, Mr. Gbenga Adene, was in celebration of the Social Media Day, and was attended by some young social media business partners from the state.
Recounting her experience at the event, the Ondo Governor’s wife said the social media, which has no censorship, has now been a platform for the younger generation to throw all sorts of abuse at the elderly in the society.
She narrated how the AAUA students took to the social media during the protest against the hike in their school fees, to hurl abuses at her for justifying her husband’s action. Mrs. Akeredolu said the undergraduate students mocked her as a breast cancer survivor and also wished her dead for supporting the heavy increase in their school fees.
“The AAUA students are the most irresponsible students I have ever seen in my life and you can go anywhere to quote me," she said.
“They took to the social media mostly on the WhatsApp page to insult me because they were protesting over an increase in their school fees and I was talking about the breast cancer while also justifying the hike in the fee.
“The old age commands respect and just like the example I gave you, the confrontation I had with the AAUA Students, and some of them even wished me dead. Some of them said 'oh, we learnt she is a breast cancer survivor, she should have died.' Can you imagine that?
“Because you are protesting against increment of your school fees, you go to that extent, you went to wish somebody dead."
Sahara Reporters reported that the utterances of the first lady didn’t go down well with some students who were present at the event, as they angrily marched out of the venue in "slight protest".
The atmosphere also led to heated dispute between the security details attached to her and some of the protesting student leaders who demanded immediate apology for such statement.
Expressing displeasure with the first lady's utterances, one of the protesting students told Sahara Reporters: “The statement from the Governor’s wife is very reckless and also insulting to the entire students of Ondo state. I can’t imagine how an important public office holder will be describing the students of tertiary institution as irresponsible.
“If AAUA students were to be heavily present here today, you know this university and the entire town would have been set on fire with such useless statements from the wife a Governor who prides herself as digital mama on the Facebook.
“Honestly, the woman must apologize for this statement and we shall take it up if she refuses because she and her husband have gradually ruined our future with the evil increase they did on tertiary institutions in this state."