The Minister of Higher Education Omran Geeb has sparked anger in Libya after he called for the reinstallation of “April 7 gallows” in the universities, as a way to intimidate the teaching staff.
Geeb made his threats as he was speaking to a group of lecturers who were demanding their rights.
“There are 30 instructors in one department but they can’t supervise 150 students! I want to say a word and forgive me for this; we should reuse the short-drop hanging method which we used on April 7 but for a different reason.” He said.
Activists and social media users called for the accountability of the minister and demanded his resignation immediately.
Later, the minister apologized and claimed that his remarks were taken out of context.
Geeb is known for his bizarre statements. Last year he told local media that “Marriage is better than education in order to increase the population because young people in the age group from 16 to 22 are at risk of death because of their participation in wars."
On April 7, 1976, 1983, and 1984 slain Muammar Gaddafi erected gallows in the universities and hanged the students and the teaching staff opposing his regime.
