Occupants of Fajuyi Hall have been left confused and frustrated following the recent closure of the hall’s main gate, a move that locked out several registered occupants while allegedly allowing access to some unauthorised residents. The decision, described by the Porters as a security and Occupancy reduction strategy, has raised serious questions about uneven enforcement, delayed ID card processing, continued bed space allocation without identification, and allegations of unofficial hostel sales.
Findings show that the gate closure, enforced from morning until 4.00 pm, barred entry to any student without a hostel ID card. However, many students said the policy was implemented without adequate notice and at a time when ID card processing remains incomplete.
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A legal occupant of Block A, Room 105, described the action as ‘right in intention but wrong in execution.’ According to the student, while curbing illegal occupants is necessary, denying access to registered students because the official responsible for signing ID cards was unavailable amounted to collective punishment. ‘You cannot enforce ID when people cannot even get their ID processed,’ the student said. ‘That is where the problem is.’
Concerns deepened as a student from Block 4 questioned the logic behind the policy. He alleged that, despite entry being restricted due to a lack of ID cards, the Portal was still allowing some students to enter who had not been issued identification because they had sold it to them. ‘If students without balloting are being sold spaces without IDs and are allowed inside by the Porter, and then who exactly is this policy targeting?’ he asked.
More troubling were allegations of selective enforcement. An anonymous student accused portal staff of allowing some illegal occupants to enter the hall while legal residents were denied access. ‘Some people who bought the bedspace unofficially are allowed in, while we, the legal occupants, are outside under the sun because we forgot our ID cards while rushing to class,’ the student said. ‘It feels humiliating.’
Attempts to get immediate clarification from the Hall’s student leadership yielded little. The Hall Chairman, Awoniyi Opeyemi, said that he was unaware of the reason for the gate closure at the time of filing this report, noting that he had not been around since morning.
The number of occupants in the Hall has exceeded official capacity – Porter
In contrast, a Porter stationed at the gate defended the decision, citing severe overcrowding. According to the staff, the number of occupants in Fajuyi Hall has exceeded official capacity by nearly threefold. ‘There are many students here who are not meant to be here,’ he said. Some are staying for good reasons, others are not. With hall vacation approaching, we need to reduce the numbers to prevent theft and other security issues.’
The staff member explained that the gate would remain closed until 4.00 pm daily to limit daytime movement and prevent unauthorised access to rooms, adding that students without ID cards would have to ‘learn to be responsible and not be negligent.’ He further recounted an incident in which a student allegedly attempted to gain access by pretending to make a phone call, reinforcing, in his view, the need for strict control.
Despite these explanations, students insist the core issue is not security but coordination and transparency. Many argue that enforcing strict ID checks without first resolving ID issuance delays, addressing alleged unofficial allocations, and communicating clearly with residents has worsened an already tense situation.