Bloody ballot: Inside deadly battles for SUG leadership in varsities

In Nigeria’s tertiary institutions, where intellectual discourse and democratic grooming should flourish, Students’ Union Government elections have become war zones. Once envisioned as leadership training grounds, SUGs are now tainted with a chilling trend: killings, kidnappings, shootings, arson, cult-linked reprisals, and voter intimidation, writes GODFREY GEORGE

“It was like war. There were gunshots everywhere. I thought I was going to die,” said Mirabel, a 300-level student in the School of Management Science at Auchi Polytechnic.

What should have been a routine exercise in student democracy descended into chaos on Saturday (July 5, 2025), as the Students’ Union Government election at Auchi Polytechnic, Edo State, spiralled into bloody mayhem.

By sundown, the air was thick with tear gas, rumour, and fear. Several students were reported injured.

Mirabel, her voice trembling, continued, “I was on the field that day when it happened. I was walking back home. I had just finished studying because it was a lecture-free day, when I heard gunshots.

“I didn’t wait to find out what was going on. I ran straight outside the school gate and headed home to Benin. I live off campus, so it was easy for me to pack and disappear.”

What followed was a night of terror that gripped not only the campus community but also the nation.

A disturbing video seen by Saturday PUNCHshowed dozens of students scaling the institution’s perimeter fence in a frantic bid to escape, while loud bursts of gunfire echoed in the background.

Smoke drifted through the air near the voting venue, lending credence to suspicions that tear gas had been deployed.

Multiple sources who spoke to our correspondent reported seeing boys with sticks and other weapons storming the voting area on that day, intensifying the panic.

The violence, according to them, was triggered by desperation. Supporters of a candidate known on campus as only ‘Voice’, believed to be from the Akpekpe area of Auchi, allegedly became violent when it became clear their candidate was losing.

“The election was peaceful at first,” said Adaeze, a fellow student in the School of Sciences. “But when it became obvious that Voice was trailing another candidate named ‘Verify’, his main opponent, tension started rising.

“Verify had massive support across departments. That didn’t sit well with Voice and his camp.”

What began as murmurs of discontent quickly degenerated into anarchy. According to Adaeze, loyalists of Voice allegedly began raising alarms and calling in reinforcements. “Armed youths stormed the venue.

“They snatched ballot boxes, and I heard gunshots. What I cannot confirm to you is if it was from the boys or from the armed security men who were around the area.  In a split second, things degenerated. It became a full-blown stampede. Students were screaming and running in all directions. I escaped by the whiskers,” she said.

Multiple reports from student eyewitnesses had suggested that at least two students may have lost their lives during the incident, though school authorities have so far denied any fatalities.

Social media was awash with videos showing bloodstains on the ground, terrified students weeping, and what appeared to be lifeless bodies being carried away.

The emotional trauma of the night still lingers. Several days after the incident, the campus remains tense.

Many students have reportedly fled, fearing further violence or reprisals.

“There were bodies on the ground,” said a student who requested anonymity. “I saw boys lying motionless after the tear gas. Others were bleeding. It was terrible. I’ve never seen anything like that in my life.”

The Edo State Police Command’s Public Relations Officer, Moses Yamu, when contacted on the day of the attack, said he had not received any formal report on the matter. Meanwhile, the school’s official stance has only deepened the controversy.

“For the avoidance of doubt, no student was shot or killed during the election, which was declared inconclusive due to observed irregularities,” said Dr Angela Egele, Director of the Polytechnic’s Public Relations Division. She added that many of the videos circulating on social media were “doctored”, though she admitted that security operatives were deployed on the day of the election to “ensure the safety of lives and property.”

But eyewitness videos, some verified by Saturday PUNCH, show uniformed men firing sporadically into the air and aiming tear gas at students, who were seen fleeing for cover.

The events at Auchi are not isolated. Across Nigerian universities and polytechnics, the spectre of violence increasingly shadows SUG elections.

What was once viewed as a training ground for future leaders is rapidly turning into a battlefield. Observers say Nigeria’s toxic political culture, marked by desperation, vote-buying, ballot snatching, and brute force, is trickling down into campuses.

“These boys are simply mimicking the behaviour of our politicians: thuggery, ballot snatching, and the use of violence to win elections,” said a Benin-based political analyst, Kelvin Omodamwen. “It’s not just sad. It’s a national emergency.”

On social media, outrage was swift. “This shows how backward Nigeria is in terms of politics. If students can’t conduct a peaceful SUG election, how do we expect them to lead this country tomorrow?” wrote @Candour_Lemuel on X (formerly Twitter).

Several students and faculty insiders believe the problem is layered. Beyond the influence of local politics, cult groups, and ethnic loyalties, there’s also a failure of institutional control and student political education.

“SUG elections have become a dirty scramble for power,” said a senior academic staff member who asked not to be named. “These elections are supposed to be about representation and responsibility, but they’ve become a breeding ground for gang recruitment and underground influence.”

Some say the school management’s insistence on denial is itself a problem. “If we can’t be honest about what happened,” a final-year student said, “how are we supposed to fix it?”

There is growing sentiment that student leadership structures must be urgently reformed. Comparisons have been drawn with more peaceful student elections in universities like the University of Ilorin, where campus politics is tightly regulated, and candidates are subject to a rigorous code of conduct.

“Just a 10-month tenure election and there is this much violence?” asked another student from the University of Lagos. “It’s heartbreaking. I cannot believe this. It’s pure madness.”

As it stands, no arrests have been confirmed. The management has promised to investigate, but many students remain sceptical. For them, the trust in the system, academic or political, has already been broken.