Mapoly students groan over high house rental fees

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NIGERIA: STUDENTS of Moshood Abiola Polytechnic (MAPOLY), Abeokuta in Ogun State are now facing hard times over astronomical rise in house rents recently introduced by landlords in the areas close to the polytechnic community.
GatewayMail investigations revealed that the landlords under the guise of renovating their buildings have started giving quit notices to the students, apparently to pave way for new students who are being asked to pay new higher rents.

Further findings also showed that the houses earlier rented out at N40,000 per annum are now going for between N60,000 and N80,000 per annum.
Most affected areas, according to GatewayMail investigations, included Ojere, Oloke, Oluwo and Sodubi among other well-known students’ populated communities.
In view of this development, a number of students who spoke with our reporter passionately appealed to the state government and school authority to expedite action on the proposed school hostel, which was said to have been in the pipeline.
“Many of the landlords have turned themselves into shylocks, all in the name of making life difficult for us,” Wale Opebiyi, a student lamented.  “They hide under the pretence of trying to renovate their buildings and give quit notices to the tenants (students) in order to increase rent to pave way for new students in the areas who are being asked to pay higher rents.”
He added: “I know I am speaking the minds of many of my colleagues, therefore, we want to appeal to these landlords to consider our plights and not add to our sufferings.

“They are also parents, and they know how parents struggle to make life meaningful for their children.”
“I want to also beg the state government and the polytechnic management to expedite action on the construction of the proposed school hostels, said to have been in the pipeline even before many of us were born. We have many of us whose parents attended this polytechnic, without hostels, and I don’t expect the situation to still remain same till date,” Opebiyi added.

*Story by Abiodun Olawunmi