No fewer than seven suicide cases were recorded among university students in the country within the last six months.
According to newspaper reports reviewed by our correspondent within the period, the undergraduates, comprising men and women, took their own lives between January and June this year, reports Daily Trust.
The figure excluded other suicide cases that may not have been reported by the media.
A breakdown of the data collated by this paper showed that 34 persons committed suicide in the time under review.
Suicide, as common as it is, remains a criminal offence in Nigeria.
An attempt to kill self carries a penalty of up to one year in prison under Section 327 of the Criminal Code Act.
The section states clearly that: “Any person who attempts to kill himself is guilty of a misdemeanour and is liable to imprisonment for one year.”
According to the latest statistics from the World Health Organisation (WHO), more than 700,000 people die every year via suicide.
This means at least one person commits suicide between 40 and 50 seconds.
The International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) said suicide was the second leading cause of death among 15-29-year-olds globally in 2019.
It has also been estimated that every year, about 30,000 people die by suicide in the US, while 650,000 others receive emergency treatment after suicide attempts.
Suicide is a global phenomenon, with 78 per cent of cases occurring in low- and middle-income countries as of 2015, while 1.4 per cent of global deaths in 2017 were also attributed to the phenomenon.
The WHO Suicide Ranking, which has disclosed that there are 15.1 suicides per 100,000 population in a year, places Nigeria as the 30th most suicide-prone country (out of 183 countries in the world).
In Africa, Nigeria is ranked as the 10th African country with higher rates of suicide, leading countries like Togo (26th), Sierra Leone (11th), Angola (19th), Burkina Faso (22nd), Cote d’Ivoire (5th) and Equatorial Guinea (7th).
According to experts, some of the reasons for the reported suicides range from financial hardship, mental health such as depression among others.
Analysis by our correspondent for the period revealed that the South-west region topped the tally with a total of five suicide cases among students.
It showed that four of the seven students committed suicide by consuming the deadly insecticide called Sniper, while others either hung themselves or ingested other insecticides.
Suicide, a criminal offence – Lawyer
In a phone conversation with our correspondent, an Abuja-based lawyer and entrepreneur, Bello Tijjani, noted that under Nigeria’s customary law, anyone caught in the act while trying to take his/her life, will be punished like a criminal.
Tijjani said: “The Nigerian law states that attempting suicide is criminal. If a person successfully kills his or herself, nobody will be punished. But, if that person attempts suicide and gets caught in the process, he or she will be dealt with in accordance with the law.
“Apparently, despite the punishments attached, cases of suicide and attempted suicide are on the rise. Therefore, more awareness needs to be carried out. This will assist greatly in sensitising the public about the issues that could trigger a suicide mission.”
How I helped my son who was thinking of suicide – Parent
A parent in Abuja, who simply gave her name as Mrs Abigail, told our correspondent that her 25-year-old son once thought suicide was the best option.
She said: “It can be very upsetting when someone you know talks about taking their own life. My son was once in that shoe; it wasn’t easy convincing him to have a rethink. Initially, I didn’t know whether to take the talk seriously.
“You also may wonder whether you could make the situation worse by getting involved. Taking action is always the best choice. The first thing I did was to contact a very good psychiatrist, who put me through some steps on how to make my son have a rethink. The major thing was to find out if my son was in danger of acting on feelings about suicide.
“As his mother, asking him about thoughts or feelings about suicide really helped. As a matter of fact, giving him a chance to talk about his feelings reduced his risk of suicide. This happened in 2022. Since then, he has not thought of it.”
Clerics speak on rising suicide in Nigeria
According to an Abuja-based Islamic scholar, Sheikh Muhammad Nuru Khalid, ignorance on the implications of their actions is one of the factors aggravating the problem.
He said: “Islam clearly forbids anyone from committing suicide, not under any circumstance. One of the solutions is enlightenment, fear of Allah, and having firm faith in Him (Allah) to resolve all challenges that human beings can face.”
Similarly, Pastor Dele Faniyi, said to stem the increasing cases of suicide in the country, churches must educate youths on the sacredness of life.
Faniyi, who is pastor of Life Solution Gospel Church, Kubwa, Abuja, said the church must do away with messages of materialism and focus on salvation and the sacredness of life.
“The church should engage in people-oriented programmes; being compassionate and listening to people. They should train personnel to deal with psychological issues in the society,” he added.
The victims
On January 27, 2024, the body of Adaeze Doris Jaja, a 400-level female student at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State, was reported to have been found lying unconscious and foaming in the mouth with an empty bottle of Sniper beside her.
The police spokeswoman in the state, Omolola Odutola, said the 31-year-old died in a hotel room.
Odutola explained that the incident was reported to the police, Ago Iwoye Division, on January 27 at about 7:30am.
Similarly, On January 29, 2024, a young female student at the Federal Polytechnic Mubi, Adamawa State, Jamima Shetima Balami, reportedly took her own life.
The 24-year-old was a National Diploma II student of Mass Communication and was about to complete her Industrial Training (IT) at Adamawa Television (ATV) in Yola at the time of her death.
Balami, who hails from Garkida Gombi, was reportedly found dead at her residence in Vinikilang, also known as Hayin Gada, in Girei Local Government Area of the state.
It was believed that she ingested a substance suspected to be rat poison.
Also, Rashidat Shittu, a 400-level student at the Kwara State University (KWASU), Malete, reportedly killed herself over her academic status.
The incident, our reporter gathered, occurred when the 20-year-old final-year student of the Department of Accounting, reportedly drank a bottle of Sniper on February 10, 2024.
On May 22, the police command in Ebonyi, confirmed the death of a final-year student of the state university in Abakaliki. It was alleged that she took her life.
The student, identified as Miss Favour Ugwuka, allegedly committed suicide in her hostel room at the Ishieke campus of the university.
The deceased, who was in the English Department before her death, was said to have passed all her courses, but repeatedly failed a particular course.
The most recent case was reported on June 17.
The body of Modupe Ayandare, a final-year student of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko (AAUA) in Ondo State, was discovered hanging at the back of a church most of her off-campus hostel. She was dressed in white clothes.
A course mate, who wished to remain anonymous, stated that Ayandare left the hostel on Sunday for a church programme, but did not return.
“We were surprised when we heard she committed suicide early this morning (Monday) around 4am after the vigil,” the course mate said.
Why people die by suicide
In separate chats with our correspondent, mental health experts identified several factors responsible for suicide, with depression being the major cause. They called for interventions by the government to stem the growing tide.
Tayo Daramola, a mental health expert, lamented that suicide cases are on the increase, noting that anyone could be a victim of suicide if the situation is not properly managed.
Daramola explained that “Globally, suicide is at an alarming rate as a result of factors such as depression, anxiety and substance abuse.
“Anyone can have suicidal feelings, irrespective of age, gender or background, at any time. If you are feeling suicidal, it is likely that you have felt increasingly hopeless and worthless for some time,” he said.
Speaking on how to discourage people from committing suicide, she advised that, “delay is dangerous and victims of depression, frustration and hopelessness should talk to a psychologist, a psychiatrist, or any other professional on mental health, as quickly as possible.
“Government should intensify efforts at limiting access to methods of suicide and apart from this, the treatment of the mentally ill should be made free by the government, in order to make victims show up for treatment at the right time before it deteriorates.
A psychiatrist, Yusuf Abubakar, said the population of Nigeria is currently estimated to be over 200 million people, but the number of available medical professionals is inadequate to cater to the health needs of the nation.
The situation, he said, is worse for mental health, with one psychiatrist to every one million people in the country.
He noted that the psychiatrist-patient ratio in Nigeria is off the mark, thereby widening the mental health treatment gap.
He said, “In Nigeria, the prevalence of mental illness is 20 per cent. With a population of over 200 million, this translates to about 50 million Nigerians suffering from mental disorders with anxiety, depression, and drug abuse leading the chart.
“But this ratio can’t be majorly attributed to being the leading factor in the increase in the suicide rate. Some other factors responsible are economic issues, poverty, financial challenges, and insecurity among others.”
90% of suicide victims suffer a mental health condition – APN president
In an interview, the President, Association of Psychiatrists in Nigeria (APN), Prof. Taiwo Obindo, said 90 percemt of those who take their lives via suicide actually have one form of mental health condition or the other.
Obindo listed pressure and poverty as part of the reasons people take their lives through suicide.
He said: “Pressure is the major reason people think of suicide. We know that there is poverty in the country, and we know that poverty and mental health issues tend to be bi-directional. So people who are poor are more likely to have mental health conditions, and we know that suicide or suicide attempts are associated with mental health conditions.
“Ninety per cent of those who take their lives via suicide actually have one form of mental health condition or the other and 80% of those 90% are as a result of depression. So, mental health condition is one, the psycho-social factors around are another major factor. People don’t have money, school fees are not being paid, so quite a number of them get depressed,” he said.
Obindo, who is a professor of psychiatry at the University of Jos added that online betting is also a major factor.
“The other area is the issue of online betting. At Jos University Teaching Hospital, we have been able to find out that when students don’t have enough money they go into online betting and then while they are gambling they gamble with their school fees. They can’t move ahead or go home to collect money.
“Other psychosocial factors are disappointment, relationship problems and other problems. It is just that people don’t think through issues; they just feel like dying is the solution,” he said.
Solutions
On the way forward, he said: “One of the major solutions is to improve uptake; identifying those who have mental health conditions. If we say 90% die as a result of mental health conditions, we need to identify those who have mental health conditions and refer or treat them as soon as possible.
“At the Jos University Teaching Hospital, we have also been able to identify Facebook, Instagram and other platforms, people posting when they are about to take their lives. There are ways of flagging that.
“Close friends and family members should quickly reach out to them or their family members and then help them. Quite a number have been rescued this way. And you notice things like that; your friend sending you messages saying, ‘life is not worth living, I am better off dead’. Quickly take action,” he said.
Obindo emphasised the importance of individuals receiving treatment for mental disorders to remain consistent with their therapy.
A consultant psychiatrist, Motunrayo Oyelohunnu, said that to curb suicide cases, there should be increased awareness of mental health, especially among young people.
She said: “One of the ways is to first increase the awareness of mental health among young people, so that when they are dealing with difficulties, they have someone to open up to, they know how to seek help.
“Promoting resilience. Resilience means bouncing back from your adversity, because adversity and stress are part of life, but some people may find it more difficult, maybe because of the series of things they are going through or because of their own personality. So, we also need to build that capacity to improve people’s resilience,” she said.
Speaking further, she said schools should also create awareness, “There should be increased awareness in schools, whether secondary schools or tertiary institutions. There should be increased awareness even among staff to identify struggling students. People may be struggling for different reasons; it could be for economic reasons, academic reasons and social reasons. Students are also victims of bullying. This could subject them to thinking of ending their lives.
“Lecturers and teachers should identify students that may be struggling and then provide support for them and refer appropriately to a specialist when they need to be taken care of,” she advised.
