Taraba nursing students protest recurring hostel attacks as police plan security deployment
Students of the Taraba State College of Nursing Sciences in Jalingo have protested repeated attacks on accommodation used by students, demanding stronger protection after another hostel burglary triggered fresh concern.
The protest disrupted academic activities on Monday as students blocked the institution’s entrance and called on the police, college management and Taraba State Government to improve security around student accommodation.
Taraba police spokesperson Victor Mshelizah confirmed that hostels were burgled and mobile phones stolen.
He also said police had not confirmed an allegation that a female student was raped during the incident at the time he spoke to reporters.
That distinction is central to the case: the burglary is police-confirmed, while the reported sexual assault remains an allegation under investigation.
Students say insecurity is recurring
Students say the latest incident is part of a longer-running security problem around their accommodation.
Channels Television reported that similar complaints were raised in September 2025, when Governor Agbu Kefas directed police deployment to the area after students appealed for intervention.
The current protest reopens a key accountability question: what security measures were actually implemented after that intervention, and why do students say they remain exposed?
Reports also indicate that some students and staff live outside the institution’s main premises, increasing concern about security around hostel locations.
Police say deployment arrangements are in place
The Taraba State Police Command says arrangements have been concluded to deploy personnel around student hostels.
Police Commissioner Edwin Ogbeghagha also appealed for calm and said measures were being put in place to pursue those responsible and prevent further attacks.
College management separately said it was working with police and the state government to improve security.
Those statements amount to a planned response.
They do not yet establish that personnel are already physically deployed or that the security problem has been resolved.
Sexual-assault allegation remains unconfirmed
Reports surrounding the attack include an allegation of rape.
Police had not confirmed that allegation when contacted.
IDNN is therefore treating the sexual-assault claim as unverified and is withholding all identifying information that could expose the alleged survivor.
No medical detail, hostel-room information or identifying description is necessary to establish the public-interest issue.
The central issue is the safety of students living in accommodation that has reportedly experienced repeated attacks.
What authorities must now answer
The immediate test is whether the promised security response becomes visible and sustained around the hostels.
Authorities also need to establish the full facts of the latest attack, identify those responsible and clarify the status of the sexual-assault allegation without exposing the alleged survivor.
For students, the measure of progress will be whether security personnel are actually deployed, hostel areas become safer and the institution can demonstrate that students can live and study without repeated night-time attacks.
