On 11/1/19, I wrote on ‘Sexually Transmitted Degrees: WE are ALL guilty!’ I had also written on ‘Educational Crises: Sorting, Sexual Harassment & Allied Matters (9/7/13)’ and ‘Sex for Grades, Sorting, and Allied Matters (Guardian, 30/10/19).’ My thesis in these interventions has been that i) it is not only the lecturers who initiate this business; there are many female students who desire Sexually Transmitted Degrees. ii) Male students are also subject to sexual harassment, and in this man-to-man marriage era, it is even more complicated. iii) It is not limited to universities; it takes place at the NASS, churches, mosques, markets, barracks, and EVERYWHERE! Consequently, focusing on universities alone will not solve the problem. I also advised my fellow men to develop self-discipline and be able to help our female compatriots without ending up at their holy of holies. Even if they offer, must we accept’?
Whenever it pertains to sexual harassment (SH), male lecturers are always presumed GUILTY until proved innocent. And that was why the NASS passed a law on how to deal with these lecherous lecturers. Well, today, the come has come! One beautiful lady legislator, Natasha Uduaghan, has accused the Senate President of crossing the red line by making unholy advances at her. However, Mrs. Akpabio, the lovely and loving wife, rather “sainted” her husband while Chief Uduaghan regretted publicly that his ‘friend,’ Akpabio, did not respect their ‘agreement.’ Jackson Ude, however, described Akpabio as an unrepentant ‘nackademus,’ named his pimping consultant, and dared Mrs. Akpabio to swear to the contrary. We were then reminded of a former female CEO of NDDC, who slapped Akpbio in 2020 for crossing this same red line. I also remember that Akpabio had once apologised to this same woman. Saraki had advised Akpabio to resign for an impartial investigation while Eseme Eyibo, an SA to Akpabio declared that the senate could not probe Akpabio because there was no petition… a petition that will be presented to the same Akpabio making him a judge in his own case! And then Reverend Fr. Uzondu of St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Onitsha, suggested that both of them should receive 10 strokes of the cane apiece for wasting our resources on inanities. Anyway, the matter is in court, and I don’t want to cross the legal red line.
Read also: Akpabio punishing me for rejecting his sexual advances – Natasha Akpoti alleges
However, one intriguing thing on this messy matter is that women are lining up behind Akpabio, turning their backs on the beautiful one. Senator Ireti Kingibe declared that Natasha has been MOST favoured amongst female senators. Maybe a strategy of watering the ground for easy ploughing. Senator Olujimi declared Akpabio had been one of them and that they ‘never had anything like this’! And then,’ ‘Akwa Ibom Women’ demonstrated against Natasha, threatening to send a spiritual cane against her!
The story is still developing, but for now, I will yield the rest of the space to Dr. I. M. Lawal of ABU, Zaria, who just wrote on ‘The Senate President, Sexual Harassment, and the Hypocrisy Against Lecturers.’
‘In recent years, Nigerian lecturers have been vilified and subjected to intense scrutiny under the guise of moral purification. The NASS went as far as passing a law prescribing severe punishment for any lecturer accused of harassment… this legislative aggression makes it seem as though no other sector in Nigeria had issues with abuse of power or exploitation. Yet, today, the very same NASS is entangled in a sexual harassment scandal of the highest order. Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan made damning allegations that the Senate President harassed her.
What moral standing do Akpabio and the Senate as an institution have to legislate on morality when its own leader is facing accusations of sexual misconduct? If a lecturer is presumed guilty and subjected to severe punishment based on mere allegations, why should different standards apply to the Senate President? Shouldn’t Akpabio, in line with the principles of fairness and accountability, immediately step aside for an independent investigation and potential prosecution?
Continues on www.businessday.ng
Ik Muo, PhD, Dept. of Business Admin, OOU, Ago-Iwoye
