Gulu University officials and security personnel have cautioned students against late-night outings, excessive alcohol consumption and lone night walks, warning that such behaviour exposes them to attacks. The warning follows the killing of John Bosco Ngire, a second-year student pursuing a Bachelor of Education in Humanities. Ngire was reportedly attacked by unknown assailants at about 4 a.m. on October 10 while returning to his hostel after a night out.
The assailants allegedly struck him with a stone before stealing his phone in the neighbourhood surrounding the university campus. Ngire’s murder, suspected to have been carried out by street youths, comes less than five months after another member of the university community, Christopher Nyeko, a laboratory technician, was attacked and killed in May.
Speaking at a security meeting convened by the university on Tuesday, Vice-Chancellor Professor George Ladaah Openjuru condemned the killings and urged security agencies to intensify patrols to protect students, staff and other members of the university community. The meeting brought together police and army officers, university staff, students and local leaders from Laroo-Pece Division.
Openjuru warned that the university could consider alternative measures to protect students if security agencies failed to address the recurring attacks. However, he cautioned against mob justice, saying the university did not want to encourage violence in society.
The Vice-Chancellor also expressed concern about what he described as increasing alcohol consumption and drug abuse among students, noting that growing demand for alcohol had attracted several drinking establishments to areas near the university campus.
He observed that some students go out to socialise but leave drinking establishments in the early hours of the morning, exposing themselves to attacks as they return to their hostels.
Openjuru advised students who go out at night to return to their hostels in groups of at least five. He added that the university would work with security agencies and entertainment venue operators to improve safety around popular nightlife spots. He also cautioned students against trusting strangers who impersonate fellow students, lecturers or other members of the university community to gain access to hostels and steal property.
Gulu Resident City Commissioner Ambrose Onoria urged students to prioritise their studies and exercise restraint in their consumption of alcohol and participation in late-night outings and sexual activity, warning that such behaviour could expose them to security risks and undermine their academic goals.
Onoria said investigations into crimes in Gulu City had repeatedly shown that many victims were attacked at night, particularly while returning home after watching football or drinking alcohol.
He described Ngire’s murder as unfortunate and pledged that security would be strengthened to protect students and the surrounding community. Onoria also announced that a police patrol pickup vehicle dedicated to the university was expected to be ready in November to strengthen security and improve student safety.
The university’s Guild President, Pius Onekgiu, acknowledged that students must take personal security precautions but insisted that security agencies should not overlook recurring attacks targeting members of the university community.
“Whereas there are personal measures and security is a personal responsibility, and as much as institutional measures exist, safety of students is a state responsibility, a fundamental responsibility that falls under you who represent the President,” Onekgiu told security representatives at the meeting.
He said student leaders wanted a safe environment in which students could attend lectures and return to their hostels without feeling threatened or living in fear. Onekgiu added that improved security would also reassure parents who were concerned about the safety of their children studying at the university.
Gulu University Secretary David Obol Otori criticised security agencies over what he described as delays in providing feedback on investigations into the killing of university laboratory technician Christopher Nyeko in May, saying the lack of timely updates had heightened concerns about security around the institution.
Otori said the university planned to engage hostel managers and owners to encourage them to install closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras and security lights to improve student safety. Gulu University has a student population of more than 10,000, the majority of whom live in hostels or rented accommodation within and outside the university premises-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
