How education institutions respond to sexual harassment
Many cases of sexual harassment and violence have been reported in secondary schools and higher institutions with many of the incidents perpetrated or initiated by male students and lecturers in the educational institutions.
A university professor was recently jailed for sexual abuse of a female student while the Federal Ministry of Education has established a committee to probe sexual assault case in a secondary school. Quite a lot of the cases have gone unreported and undisclosed.
Many higher institutions have, however taken measures to deal with sexual bullying by making rules and setting limits to guide student behavior. The rules are supposed to be widely circulated.
The Deputy Director, Information, Federal Ministry of Education, Ben Bem Goong, said the ministry wades into reported matters of sexual abuse in secondary schools based on the ‘magnitude of cases,’ by setting up investigative panels to look into them.
He said “higher institutions have certain level of autonomy; we allow them to deal with gross misconduct.”
However, it has been found that many higher institutions in Plateau State do not have clear laws on sexual harassment as they say such offences are embedded into what they referred to as ‘general misconduct.’
Checks at the University of Jos (Unijos), Plateau State Polytechnic (Plapoly) and Plateau State University (PLASU) Bokkos, revealed that many of the students were not aware of the existence of rules against sexual abuse.
However, the Deputy Vice Chancellor of PLASU, Associate Professor John Barnabas, told our correspondent that where a case of sexual harassment is established against any student, the student would be handed over to the police since it is a criminal offence.
“And if the person is convicted by the court, it would automatically be dismissal from the university.
“On the part of staff, he/she passes through several committees and upon establishment that such crime was actually committed, the staff would also be dismissed and then handed over to the police for further prosecution,” he said.
Barnabas said though not explicitly stated, offences of sexual harassment are contained in the student’s handbook and the staff condition of service. The DVC explained that the institution has put in place frameworks to check the menace especially with the guidance and counseling unit where students and staff were encouraged to report harassments anonymously.
At Unijos, the Principal Assistant Registrar, Information and Publications, Abdullahi Abdullahi, said there is a staff council disciplinary committee that dealt with issues of misconduct while the senate student disciplinary committee handled illegal behavior by students.
He said sexual harassment was considered a bad behavior which often attracts stringent measures.
Abdullahi said the regulations on sexual abuse were contained in the student handbook. He said upon gaining admission into the university, a student would be given the handbook which he/she was expected to read and be guided by. He said a case of sexual harassment had once led to dismissal of a staff.
However, a 100 level student of Religion and Philosophy in the university said she was never given a handbook at the point of entry and was therefore not conversant with what to do in case of sexual harassment.
The situation is almost similar at that at the NTA College, Jos, where the student handbook perused by our reporter did not specifically mention acts that could be regarded as sexual abuse. However an offence of insult or assault may lead to expulsion and prosecution as contained in the 2014/2015 Student Handbook.
The Dean Student Affairs of Plateau State Polytechnic, Noel Dawan, on his part told our correspondent that the school ‘takes time to explain matters of sexual harassment and punishments to the students during matriculation.
In Federal University Gusau, Zamfara State, sexual harassment is regarded as serious misconduct that could lead to dismissal, according to the approved ‘Regulations Governing the Terms and Conditions of Service of Staff’.
The spokesman of the university, Malam Umar, said the governing council had the power to dismiss any employee without notice and without pay in lieu of notice for an act of gross misconduct.
In the same vein, The Federal Polytechnic, Kaura Namoda, has categorized sexual harassment under gross misconduct that could lead to expulsion.
The acting registrar of the institution, Alhassan Garba Kauru, said if a sexual harassment case was established against any student or employee and was backed by watertight evidence, the affected person would be out rightly dismissed.
Also, the management of Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma in Edo State, said it was ready to take action on sexual harassment of one of its student, Itohan Okhihie, by an academic staff.
The action of the lecturer in question was said to have prevented the student from graduating according to the stipulated academic calendar of the varsity.
The spokesman of the university, Mr. Edward Aihevba (deputy registrar) who disclosed this to journalists, said preliminary investigation after the student cried out revealed that the embattled lecturer deliberately withheld the student’s answers’ script for seven years.
He said: “The student reported the lecturer to the university management in 2011 during which investigation was launched. The now suspended lecturer had denied knowledge of the student’s script, but it was however found in his office after diligent search and was thereafter used to compute the results of the young woman. Sexual harassment is unacceptable in our university system.”
He said the matter was before the Senior Staff Disciplinary Committee for appropriate recommendations.
The lecturer denied the allegation claiming that it was an attempt to cow him and the academic union.