Journalists were on Saturday barred from covering the 45th Convocation ceremony of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, following restrictions imposed by the institution’s Security Division.
Several media practitioners who arrived at the university campus to report the event were denied access to the convocation venue, despite identifying themselves and stating their professional purpose. The restriction reportedly affected journalists from both print and broadcast media organisations.
Sources within the campus indicated that the directive to limit media access was enforced by security personnel deployed for the ceremony, though no official explanation was provided at the time for the decision.
The development sparked concerns among journalists, who described the action as unusual for a major public academic event, especially one involving the conferment of degrees and the participation of high-profile guests.
As of the time of filing this report, the management of Ahmadu Bello University had not issued an official statement clarifying the reasons for barring the media from covering the convocation.
