Students and youths going through difficult situations have been encouraged to speak out and discuss their challenges with relevant individuals rather than resorting to suicide.
Respondents, while reacting to increasing rate of suicide incidents among students, also advised youths in tertiary institutions to be their brothers keepers.
The respondents described as worrisome, recent reports of suicide among students, with the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta feeling the heat when two of its students allegedly took poisonous chemical substance to commit suicide after they were advised to withdraw from the institution due to poor academic records.
One of the students reportedly died while the other was hospitalized causing the President of FUNAAB chapter of Nigeria Association of University Women, Prof. Comfort Onifade to organise a seminar to stop the suicide attempts among the students of the institution and to give them hope.
Addressing the gathering, a don, Professor Helen Bodunde
stated that it was part of the responsibilities of the university women as surrogate mothers on campus to educate the students on how to manage depression, which she noted could affect anyone.
The former Head of Department urged the students to speak out to their colleagues and their lecturers whenever they had issues to prevent them from taking wrong actions.
Professor Bodunde, who identified family background as one of the possible causes of students’ problems said there was no problem that could not be resolved including academic and relationship issues.
She also advised the students to be cautious of what they eat and stop the abuse of any substance that could make them depressed.
Some residents also expressed their support for the ‘No to Suicide’ campaign
The contributors to the no to suicide campaign were unanimous on the need for individuals to speak out when faced with challenges.
Wale Oluokun
In Ondo State, experts have identified financial constraint depression, dysfunctional relationship, hard drugs as major factors responsible for suicide high rate in the country.
The experts, who include medical doctors and anti- drug official, stated this in Akure while speaking with our staff reporter, Oluwatosin Ighoteguono on the occasion of 2019 World Suicide Prevention Day.
Her report
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