Stanley Uzoaru, Owerri

Students and management of the Federal University of Technology , Owerri (FUTO), have been gripped by fear following the invasion of the school by a large youths from the host communities who reportedly pulled down about 5 kilometres of the fence of the institution.

Most of the staff and students of the institution are said to have restrained themselves from going out of the school premises once its 6:30p.m. since the incident occurred.

One of the student, identified as Chika Amadi, who spoke to Daily Sun, said “This host communities are mean. If they can pull down a perimeter fence of the school of about 5 kilometres, then there is nothing that they cannot do to us.”

Also, Jude Obi, a second year Engineering department told our correspondent that the host communities have been exhibiting hostilities towards them since the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Francis Eze, waded into the encroachment of lands close to the school hostels.

“We cannot even sleep again with our two eyes closed, the host communities have started erecting their buildings beside our hostels, they attack us at no just cause, telling us to our face that they owned the land,” Ezenwa said.

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A staff of the institution, who do want his name mentioned, cried out to the level of intimidation meted to the school by the host communities. ”

How can they come into our school  to build factories and excavate our sand. The bridge we cross inside the school premises is at the verge of collapse as a result of the excavation of sand at the foot of the pillars holding the bridge,” he said.

Narrating the incident to our correspondent who visited the scene of the incident, the Public Relation of the School, Dr Chile Ezenwa said that the youths of the host communities invaded the school premises at about 7pm on Monday and pulled down their fence.

According to Ezenwa, “We were told that the host communities might have invaded the school at night, because the fence where still intact on Monday morning, we woke up to see the level of destruction by the host communities”

It would be recalled that the fence which was pull down was erected two weeks ago after the VC, lamented the spate of encroachment on FUTO lands.