THE ICONS ORGANIZATION — a frontline platform for accurate, timely, and unbiased news coverage.

                  Sofiat Yusuf Damilola was settling down into her room in Moremi hall on Monday night, when she received a text that her goods had arrived in Ile-ife and were ready for pick-up.  Almost immediately, she got another notification stating that the students have declared a peaceful protest over the transportation crises.  Her thoughts  immediately were the mode of how OAU students are known to protest by blocking all cars, buses and bikes from going in and out of the campus gate, with all academic activities suspended.  ‎‎Ordinarily, Damilola would have gone to get her goods the next day, but that couldn't as a result of the protest, hence, she postponed the trip to Wednesday.  However, on Tuesday afternoon after a few hours of protests, the university management announced a 3-week mid semester break effective immediately, in which the Dean, Division Student Affairs (DSA) released a memo instr...

          John Alabi & God's Gift Akowe In the recent times, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) have constantly grappled with transportation crises, with numerous disputes and disagreement between the GreatIfe Students Union Transportation Management Committee (GreatIfe TMC), and by extension the university management and Town-Gboro bus drivers, which sometimes result to fare hikes, service interruptions, and, at times, indefinite strikes. Whenever these conflicts arise, students are often at the receiving end, bearing the consequences. Due to these long-standing issues, transportation on campus has always depended on a fragile balance, a balance built on compromise rather than a sustainable system that truly prioritizes students’ welfare and safe mobility. That balance shifted again on January 29, when Nigeria's First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, commissioned 50 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses and 30 tricycles for the university. The initiative was in...

             Damissah Ogiegie  Vendors around the academics area had again been plagued with tough restrictions from displaying and selling of their products within the academics area of the university. Recall that the ICONS Organization, in April 2025, reported that vendors of a variety of products, excluding those who print documents within faculty premises, have been directed by the university management, to procure a stand/space for themselves at the OAU New Market, as all business transactions must not exceed the central market. Meanwhile, weeks after the directives, vendors begin to return to the spot they were previously banned, with many assumptions that the management has directed them to return. However, in the last two weeks, goods were spotted being taken away from vendors around the amphitheatre by the university officials. In an interview with one of the traders who sells plantain, she shared experience on how she...

          Israel Bakare Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) has long been celebrated for its excellent academic reputation. The institution, over the years, accommodates students of diverse backgrounds, exposure, and financial status.  As the semester unfolds and academic pressure becomes intense, several students become financially restrained, subtly tagged “Sapa” by the students, this simply is a term for financial constraints. Sapa hits differently on OAU campus, ranging from financial constraints to food items, transportation fare, amongst others. For an average OAU student, right from the mid-semester, particularly mid-December, essential food items including Garri, Beans and Rice becomes almost exhausted with little or no funds for sustainability. Some students may even be restrained to procure vital study materials, workbooks, or contribute to a project or assignment as a result of this. According to Oguntula Victor, a student of Mass Commun...

              Israel Bakare  At Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, campus life begins early—and often on a spiritual note. By 7 a.m. on Sundays, streams of students file out of hostels toward the religious ground, while others gather quietly in corners to pray and meditate. Across Awo and Fajuyi halls, early-morning Qur’anic recitations echo softly, reflecting a campus where faith thrives alongside academic rigor. OAU students are widely known for their academic excellence, but beyond lecture halls and libraries, many also hold firmly to their religious convictions. For them, spirituality is not a distraction from campus life—it is a stabilizing force. “ Faith helps me stay focused,” said Oluwaseyi Emmanuel, an Aerospace Engineering student. “ It wasn’t easy attending church programmes and still keeping up with my academics, but I learned to read whenever I had free time and never missed tutorials.” Like Emmanuel, many students...

              John Alabi Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) has long been celebrated for its academic excellence, a reputation built on decades of rigorous academics and a meticulous grading system. Across faculties, students are constantly reminded that much is expected of them. The pursuit of high grades and competitive GPAs has created an atmosphere where academic pressure is both intense and unavoidable. As the semester unfolds and examinations draw near, many students adopt different study techniques and survival strategies to cope with long reading hours and sleepless nights. Among these strategies is the widespread consumption of energy drinks—particularly Fearless, a brand that has become almost synonymous with night reading on campus. On OAU campus, Fearless is a familiar sight. Students can be seen clutching bottles in lecture theatres and reading rooms, relying on the drink to fight drowsiness and extend study hours. For many, it h...

          Deborah Adeyemi  In many higher institutions today, a growing concern is whether students genuinely have passion for the courses they are studying, or otherwise. While some students were admitted into the university with a clear love for their chosen fields, several others find themselves pursuing courses they have little or no interest in, often due to parental pressure, limited admission options, lack of proper career guidance or for not meeting up with the benchmarks. This lack of connection between students and their course of study often leads to low motivation, lack of commitment to their studies, as they even begin to question their academic and sometimes career path. In an interview with the Icons reporters, Praise, a 400level student of Mass Communication described the deep connection she has with her discipline.  "I love speaking and engaging with people in an intellectual discourse. I am fascinated about all that mass c...