The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has officially elected Akinteye Babatunde of the Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology (OAUSTECH) as its new national president.
Akinteye, a former NANS Senate President, emerged victorious following the successful conclusion of the association’s 2026 national convention held at the Old Parade Ground in Abuja.
He officially succeeds the outgoing NANS President, Olushola Oladoja, after a keenly contested election that featured five presidential candidates representing various tertiary institutions across the country.
The highly anticipated convention was conducted under tight security, with a heavy presence of police officers and operatives from the Department of State Services (DSS).
Despite the high stakes, participants and observers described the exercise as one of the most peaceful and orderly in the history of the apex student body.
According to Omotayo Samuel, Chairman of the Independent Convention Planning Committee, over 300 delegates—including Student Union Government (SUG) presidents, Senate presidents, and other student leaders—participated in the accreditation and voting process, which commenced on Sunday night at the Kapital Club in Asokoro.
In his acceptance speech on Monday, the newly elected president expressed immense gratitude to the delegates and commended the remarkably peaceful atmosphere of the convention.
Akinteye noted that the absence of violence, disputes, or disruptions signaled a new dawn of unity for the association, revealing that his opponents had already extended their congratulations. “In the history of NANS, this is one of the best conventions we have witnessed. There was no crisis, no gunshot, no fight,” Akinteye stated, pledging to run an active administration dedicated to student welfare and repositioning NANS across campuses nationwide.
Reacting to the transition, the outgoing president, Olushola Oladoja, described the successful and transparent conduct of the election as one of the happiest moments of his tenure.
Oladoja expressed deep satisfaction with the democratic process and voiced strong confidence in his successor’s capacity to build upon his administration’s legacy.
He prayed for God to grant the new leader the wisdom and strength required to navigate the responsibilities of the office and pilot the affairs of Nigerian students successfully.
The presidential race was a fiercely contested affair that brought together top student leaders from across the southwestern region.
Alongside the victorious Akinteye Babatunde Afeez of OAUSTECH, the ballot featured Aminu Haruna Maipampo of the Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), Awoyinpa Opeoluwa Elijah of the Federal University of Technology Akure (FUTA), Olumide Odumosu Josiah of Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU), and Opaleye Samuel Oladutun of the Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta (FUNAAB).
With the election concluded, the new executive executive is expected to hit the ground running on campus advocacy and welfare reforms.
