The menace that is sexual harassment

Last year the internet went wild over the release of the “Sex for grades” documentary and one would think this would curb the menace of sexual harassment in Nigerian universities. However, the reverse is the case as perpetrators have learned to be wiser and more discreet in their activities, such is the case of the KWASU lecturer who was arrested for inviting a female student to resit an examination in his bedroom after threatening to fail her.

Sexual harassment in Nigerian universities is a cankerworm that has eaten too deep in the university community such that it is no longer seen as a heinous crime among students. In a survey conducted by the World Bank Group’s Women, 70 per cent of female graduates from Nigerian universities have been sexually harassed and these numbers keep increasing every year. Although there are male victims their female counterparts are the ones that are mostly affected. Nowadays female students would gladly fail a course they know they had done well than call for their scripts out of fear of ridiculous sexual demands from lecturers.

A university is an institution of learning and lecturers serve as conduits through which knowledge is passed to the students but these days, a Nigerian student especially females would have so much fear and insecurities about a four-year course due to stories of sexual harassment of female graduates and friends. Female students have had to endure verbal, gestural, and physical harassment in their institutions of study and many are unable to speak about it. Many are unable to speak about the harassment out of fear of multiple failures from multiple lecturers. A lecturer can be friends with lecturers whose courses she may also take and refusal to comply with one of them could mean failure in multiple courses within the lecturer’s circle. Female students have had to take friends along with them just so that they don’t have to walk into a lecturer’s office alone. 

Sexual harassment in Nigerian universities has become so rampant as many untold stories have partly formed the basis of depression and insecurity in the society and this continues because the government keeps dilly-dallying on enforcing clear punishment measures for offenders. A report of 24 states in the country showed that 346 incidents of sexual violence were reported in March 2020, this shows that sexual harassment in tertiary institutions is serious that needs to be tackled with utmost seriousness.

Sexual harassment is a heinous crime and hence the government should treat it as one, clear policies and punishment of such offence should be enforced especially after the proper investigation has been done and all evidence shows that the accused is guilty. There should be a sexual harassment policy enshrined in the constitution with a section devoted to sexual harassment in tertiary institutions. These laws should be widely published and every university must be held accountable in the enforcement of the laws.

Secondly, a separate committee should be set aside in tertiary institutions where students can call for their scripts when they are not satisfied with the grades awarded them. This committee should be a non-partial body where students can submit a letter stating the course, lecturer, and why they want to call for their scripts. This would certainly help students who have been carrying over courses for years because they refuse to give in to the sexual demands or advances of the lecturer.

Last but not least, students should be allowed to fill in anonymous reports or complaints where they can point out lecturers who engage in such practices without fear. These reports would help the university council to ensure proper investigation of such party and if found guilty they should be made to face the full penalty for their crime. 

Sexual harassment in tertiary institutions has been treated with levity for far too long and many female students are left to suffer silently out of fear of failing. Hence creating clear policies and placing structures in place to curb this menace will go a long way in ensuring the safety of students in various universities across the country.

Oluwatofunmi Oladipupo-George is a Corporate Communications Executive at Worktainment Limited