IBBUL Students Lament Unhygienic Hostel Conditions

Students of the Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai (IBBUL), have raised concerns over poor sanitation and an unhygienic environment in their hostels.

In interviews with our reporters, students residing at the university’s permanent site and those in Kobo campus lamented irregular water supply, dirty bathrooms, clogged drainage, and overgrown grass around the hostels. They said the situation poses serious health risks and fears of reptiles like snakes and scorpion bites.

Hajara Abdulsalam, a 200-level student from the Department of Biochemistry who resides at a hostel in the university permanent site, said students who dwell in the hostels struggle to get water due to erratic electricity on the campus. 

Ms Abdulsalam explained that electricity is used to pump water from boreholes, and the lack of electricity always means reduced access to water. 

She added that bathrooms and drainage are blocked, and complaints reported to the Hostel Students Representative have not yielded any response.  

“The cleaners do their best, but students also contribute to the poor hygienic condition of the hostel,” she noted.

Residents of Kobo Hostel also confirmed that water supply depends on electricity. 

Female students, however, said their major concern is the overgrown grasses around their hostel.  

“We have killed snakes on several occasions in the hostel,” one student, Lukman Yahaya, said.

A hostel cleaner said lack of water makes it difficult to maintain proper hygiene.  

“At times, due to lack of water, we only sweep the hostel environment without mopping it. “It won’t be as neat as when it is mopped,d and it is very stressful,” the cleaner said.  

The cleaner further emphasised that students contribute to the problem by dumping refuse indiscriminately and defecating outside the toilets.

The Hostel Students Representative Assembly, SRA, Faridah Olokon, suggested installing more solar systems as a solution to water supply challenges during power outages.

Both students and cleaners call on the university management to address these issues,ues such as the surrounding bushes, and fix drainage systems.

They also suggested that serious penalties should be implemented for students who deliberately litter the hostel environment to prevent health hazards.

This story was produced by students who participated in the Campus Clinic held at the IBBU, Lapai, in July 2026.

Authors: Bredan Beauty Mbastapwa, Faruq Abiodun Alabi, Nafisa Umoru, Halima Abubakar, Amina Muhammed Kolo, Fatima Sani Mohammed, Musa Abdulwasiu, Sa’adatu Khalil, Daniel Ibrahim, Umar Mohammed Yunusa, Khadijat Ali Sabo, Hauwa Umar Lapai, Hauwa’u Umar, and Jemimah Saba Nathaniel.