The Felele campus of the Federal University Lokoja (FUL), in Kogi State, has assumed a new economic status for Keke Napep operators as they have shifted to the venue in search of fortune.
North Central Trust observed that the commercial operators in conjunction with ‘okada’ riders have taken advantage of the distance from the town to the school to make brisk business.
However, many students told our correspondent that the operators are cashing on the situation to charge them high for a trip to and from the campus.
An operator, Danlami Badegi, said that it is an opportunity to grasp something from the students even though “we are not happy”.
Our correspondent reports that the operators charge as much as N100 for the one kilometre trip that used to cost N50.00.
Similarly, they charge as much as N200 for trips to some destinations.
The permanent site of the fledging university at Felele is located on Okene-Lokoja-Abuja road about two kilometres away from the host community.
The operators are taking advantage of the fact that most of the students live off campus because of lack of accommodation within the campus.
Some of the students have resorted to trekking the long distance to the school because they do not have the money to pay for the transportation.
Mojishola, a student of Physics, told our correspondent that the university authorities should fast track efforts to provide accommodation for students.
