LAUTECH Faces Backlash Over Distance Learning Programme After Six Nursing Students Died In Crash
The students were reportedly on their way to Ogbomosho when the crash occurred, killing them on the spot and plunging families, colleagues, and the wider academic community into mourning.
Widespread outrage has followed the tragic death of six distance learning students of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Oyo State, who lost their lives in a fatal road accident while traveling to sit for their examinations.
The students were reportedly on their way to Ogbomosho when the crash occurred, killing them on the spot and plunging families, colleagues, and the wider academic community into mourning.
In the aftermath of the incident, students, civil society advocates, and concerned Nigerians have openly criticized the university’s Open and Distance Learning (ODL) structure, describing the tragedy as avoidable and long overdue for institutional reform.
“This is heartbreaking and unacceptable,” a student leader said. “How many more lives must be lost before something changes?”
Critics argue that LAUTECH’s ODL program requires students to travel long distances across states to write examinations, a practice they say exposes them to unnecessary risks. Many insist that recurring accidents involving students en route to exams point to systemic failures.
“Education should not become a death sentence,” a concerned parent said. “Our children struggle for years, make sacrifices, endure sleepless nights—only to die on the highway because they are trying to write exams.”
Several commentators have drawn comparisons with Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), whose distance learning program operates multiple centers across the country. They note that although LAUTECH’s program was established earlier, it has yet to expand its examination centers nationwide.
“LAUTECH Distance Learning has existed long before ABU’s, yet ABU has centers across the country. Why are LAUTECH students still compelled to travel across states repeatedly?” an anonymous concerned source queried.
Nursing students under the program have reportedly been among the most affected, as they travel each semester to designated locations for examinations. Stakeholders say the pattern has become disturbing.
“Every semester, students travel. Every semester, there are reports of accidents. This cannot continue,” another critic stated.
Social media platforms have also been flooded with expressions of anger and grief, with many calling for accountability from the university’s management. Some alumni described the incident as “a painful reminder of administrative neglect,” urging immediate decentralization of examination centers.
Advocacy groups have called on the management of LAUTECH to urgently review its operational framework and prioritize student safety. “The university must act now. Establish examination centers in every state. Reduce the risks. Protect your students,” one statement read.
Beyond the accident, some students have also raised broader concerns about the administration of the ODL Nursing program.
An anonymous source expressed frustration and emotional distress over what was described as repeated resit examinations, missing scripts, and alleged financial exploitation.
“I am not in my right frame of mind. LAUTECH wants to kill us”” a student who expressed frustration stated.
The writer recounted travelling “all the way from the east to Ogbomoso, from 200L till we finished 500L,” stating that the program, which began in 2021 and ended in January 2025, had taken a significant toll."
“There was a time they said we had to resit a paper in 400L because of a case of missing paper."
The source noted that to write the examination, the institution collected more money, despite the fact that it was within the institution that the paper went missing.
"LAUTECH is just extorting us,” the source said.
The student, also narrating ugly experiences, added, “I became hypertensive when I started the LAUTECH ODL Nursing program. Despite all the money, stress, and risks, LAUTECH has been biased with the issue of results and the graduation list. A lot of us are now depressed. I just need this certificate for a promotion at my place of work. If we complain, they threaten us.”
In a further allegation, the writer claimed: “The resit exams we have written before, they said we should come and rewrite again because they can't find it.” LAUTECH is just using ODL Nursing students to cash out; this is unfair.”
The letter concluded with a plea for intervention, urging concerned stakeholders and the media to draw attention to the situation.
As condolences continue to pour in for the bereaved families, the tragedy has intensified demands for structural reforms within the university’s distance learning program.
As of the time of filing this report, the management of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology had not issued a detailed public response addressing the growing criticism. However, stakeholders insist that beyond sympathy, concrete action is now required to prevent further loss of life.
