Enough Of Sexual Harassment On Campuses

For the past two weeks, the media, both conventional and social, have been awash with yet another ugly episode of sex-for-marks in Nigeria’s tertiary institutions. The latest of this infamy involves two senior lecturers in the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Dr Boniface Igbeneghu of the Faculty of Arts and Samuel Oladipo of the Department of Economics. Both were entrapped in a sting operation by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) titled “Sex-for-Grades,” allegedly seducing an ‘admission seeker’.
In a video that has since gone viral, Dr Igbeneghu who is also a pastor in a popular Pentecostal church, (Foursquare Gospel Church) was seen soliciting sex from a BBC undercover female reporter, Kiki Mordi, who posed as a 17-year old admission seeker.
The trending video was part of BBC’s expose’ of unethical sexual harassment practices of randy lecturers in West African universities, including UNILAG.
Although the menace of sexual harassment of female undergraduates in Nigeria’s tertiary institutions is not totally new, its prevalence in recent times has, however, assumed an alarming notoriety. It is fast becoming a norm, even culture, on campuses, with no clear sign of abating anytime soon.
One of such disturbing instances was last year’s escapade involving a senior lecturer at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Professor Richard Akindele. The errant lecturer who has been dismissed by the university authority is currently serving a two-year jail term for demanding five sex sessions from his student, Monica Osagie in exchange for good grade.
Yet again in 2018, an Associate Professor of Economics at the Lagos State University (LASU) was caught with the help of an NGO, demanding sexual favour from a female student. Another bizarre episode occurred at the Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti, where an accounting lecturer was caught by students, literally gasping for breath in a bid to harass a female student.
We also recall that in October 2011, five lecturers were suspended by the Ebonyi State College of Education, Ikwo for extortion and sexual harassment of students.
In another development, a dean at the University of Abuja was also exposed in a sting operation soliciting sex in exchange for marks from yet another female undergraduate. Similar repulsive incident was recorded at the University of Ilorin where a former Head of the English Department allegedly resigned after being caught in a video, harassing a 200-level female student. These are some of the sordid revelations that hint at the prevalence of sexual molestation of female undergraduates in our tertiary institutions.
The Tide considers it diminishing and callous for university lecturers who are supposed to be good role models and old enough to be the parents of these students to be involved in such a shameful, immoral act. Besides shame and loss of self-esteem associated with sexual harassment on campuses, the menace has the potential of further degrading and de-marketing the nation’s university education which is already in an appalling state.
Although the latest culprits of this opprobrium, Igbeneghu and Oladipo have been suspended by the UNILAG authorities pending the outcome of investigations, the measure is not enough to deter other randy lecturers from their lecherous activities.
We believe that sexual assault is a criminal offence that should attract stiffer penalty than suspension or dismissal of culprit. It requires more radical approach to put an end to the menace.
With the increasing rate of sex-for-marks in our tertiary institutions, it is imperative that all universities, polytechnics and colleges of education put in place necessary measures that discourage all forms of sexual depravity on campuses.
One of such measures is for the school authorities to enact code of conduct regulating the relationship between female students and their lecturers.
In concrete terms, all tertiary institutions should encourage students to report any form of sexual abuse to the school authorities without fear of being molested or victimised. In doing so, we advise the school authorities to remove all unnecessary bureaucratic bottlenecks that inhibit students from making such complaints. It will not be out of place for schools to create a hotline number to call or a public complaints unit where cases of sexual molestation are lodged.
It is also incumbent on the students union governments in various schools to rise up in defence of their members who are victims of sexual harassment. It is their responsibility to protect students from any form of assault, harassment or victimisation.
Meanwhile, we call on the National Assembly and various state houses of assembly in the country to enact laws that will not only prohibit sexual harassment but will make the menace extremely difficult to thrive in schools. Where such laws are already in place, stiffer penalties should be meted out to culprits.
We are, however, not unaware that many female students seduce lecturers and even go as far as soliciting good grades in exchange for sex. Where this is firmly established, such student(s) should be visited with sanctions, either to repeat a whole session or even outright expulsion from the school.
The Nigerian media also have the social responsibility to launch an investigation into sex scandals in our tertiary institutions. Rather than dishing out spin-offs of what has been uncovered by foreign media like the BBC or CNN, the Nigerian Press should take the lead in unravelling scandals and identifying other prolific sexual predators on our campuses.
Nigeria’s education has suffered enough degradation, courtesy of the triple evil of examination malpractices, sorting and cultism. Adding another medal to its list of ugly laurels will be too disastrous to contemplate.