A 200-level student of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ajibola Ibitayo, has died by suicide. This was disclosed by the university’s spokesman, Abiodun Olanrewaju, on Thursday.

The school stated that the deceased from the Department of Dentistry, with the matriculation number DEN/2021/023, took his own life after his semester results showed that he would repeat an academic year.

“Ajibola Ibitayo (Matriculation Number: DEN/2021/023), committed suicide after learning that the results of the last semester examinations, released yesterday, would require him to repeat Part Two for another academic year,” a statement by the university said. “He had already been repeating Part Two during the last session.”

Mr Olanrewaju stated that the student, whose father is a medical doctor, reportedly injected himself at his parents’ home in Ejigbo, Osun.

Reacting to the incident, the institution’s vice-chancellor, Simeon Bamire, pleaded with parents and guardians to instill in their children the understanding that temporary setbacks in the pursuit of success are indispensable and not the end of life.

Extending sympathy to parents, family, and members of the university community, the vice-chancellor urged students to view failure as an opportunity to redirect their paths toward greater success.