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The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Zone B (South-South), has issued a seven-day ultimatum to the Bayelsa State Government, the Nigeria Police Force and the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) to identify, arrest and prosecute those responsible for the killing of former student leader, Comrade Stanley Okebaram.
The ultimatum was announced by the Zonal Coordinator of NANS Zone B, Comrade Victor Ogechukwu Anthony, following the gruesome murder of Okebaram, a serving corps member in Bayelsa State and former Students\' Union President of the Federal Polytechnic, Nekede, Owerri.
Okebaram was reportedly murdered while serving under the NYSC scheme in Bassambiri, Nembe Local Government Area of Bayelsa State. His lifeless body was later found abandoned near a river in the host community, sparking outrage among students and youth groups across the country.
Condemning the incident, Anthony described the killing as barbaric and unacceptable, stressing that no Nigerian serving under the national service programme should lose his life in such circumstances. He said the incident has heightened concerns over the safety and security of corps members posted to different parts of the country.
The student body extended condolences to the family of the deceased, students of the Federal Polytechnic, Nekede, and the wider Nigerian student community, while urging the Bayelsa State Government to deploy all available security and investigative resources to ensure those behind the crime are brought to justice.
NANS also called on the Nigeria Police Force to carry out a thorough, transparent and impartial investigation, while urging the NYSC management to work closely with security agencies in facilitating justice. It insisted that tangible and verifiable progress must be made within seven days or it would mobilise students across the South-South and other parts of the country for peaceful and lawful protests.
The association further appealed to residents of Nembe, members of the host community, fellow corps members and other Nigerians with useful information to assist security agencies with investigations, maintaining that the killers of Stanley Okebaram must be identified and prosecuted without delay.
