On 18 April 1978, a peaceful march led by Nigerian students to the gates of Dodan Barracks in Lagos turned violent when armed police blocked their path. The students, unarmed and protesting a 50-kobo increase in university hostel and meal fees, clashed with officers at the main gate, then in nearby streets and the Yaba area. The government-controlled media kept silent about the events that day, but word spread quickly.
Segun Okeowo, then 29 years old and president of the National Union of Nigerian Students (NUNS), had called for a nationwide lecture boycott starting 17 April. The fee hike, approved by the Nigerian Universities Commission, was small in amount but seen by students as another sign of a government disconnected from their struggles. Universities across Nigeria, including the University of Lagos, University of Ibadan, University of Ife, and Ahmadu Bello University, joined the boycott.
The day after the clash in Lagos, newspapers began reporting on the unrest. The protest, initially about fees, grew into a wider uprising against the military government. On 20 April, soldiers moved onto the campus of Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria, where no actual protest had occurred. Witnesses said the soldiers aimed to stop trouble before it began. The military opened fire, killing five students.
The deaths in Zaria and the clashes in Lagos spread unrest to other university towns. The chant "Ali Must Go" echoed through protests, targeting Colonel Ahmadu Ali, the Federal Commissioner for Education. Ali denied responsibility for the fee increase, attributing it to the Supreme Military Council. He had previously been a NUNS leader before becoming a soldier and government minister.
The military responded by shutting down universities nationwide and imposing curfews. NUNS was banned, and Okeowo was expelled from the University of Lagos. He was later arrested and detained for his role in the protests.
Despite the violence and crackdown, the fee hike was never reversed. Okeowo later stepped away from public life and worked quietly as an educationist until his death in January 2014.
The 1978 protests showed the ability of Nigerian students to organise across the country and challenge the military government. Historians link the “Ali Must Go” uprising to later youth movements, including the nationwide #EndSARS protests in 2020.
According to Pulse.ng.
