By
Cynthia Ferdinand
(pix: nature) |
While these
repressive and degrading habits have abated following the introduction of
Western education, it is unfortunate that the inhuman practice has not only
crept into our citadels of learning but has continued to assume worrisome
proportions to the consternation of parents and education authorities in the
country alike. The effects of incessant sexual harassment of female students in
higher institutions cannot be over-emphasized as it has continued to militate
against the attainment of the educational vision and objectives of many a
female folk in the country.
There have been
overwhelming narratives on sexual harassment by victims such that researchers
of international repute have described Nigerian tertiary institutions as sex
colonies were rape and other forms of coerced copulation and sexual intimacy
are practiced without sanctions. To many young Nigerians, especially female
students in tertiary institutions, sexual harassment is something of a norm.
United Nations (UN)
reports state that “one out of
three women experience sexual harassment in their lifetime”. According to
the European Union Commission recommendation: “There
are also adverse consequences arising from sexual harassment for employers. In
general terms, sexual harassment is an obstacle to the proper integration of
women into the labour market.” It
is further regrettable that over the years, aside provisions against rape and
other untoward sexual behaviours in both the Criminal and Penal Codes, there
have been no clear cut and effective legislation aimed at checkmating or
eliminating this abhorrent practice from our institutions of higher learning.
As a consequence,
it is today difficult to explicitly articulate what constitutes sexual
harassment and what sanctions there are to deter male predators. Another factor
that has helped sustained this barbaric tendency, is the seeming societal
indifference to the plight of victims due to discrepancies in views as to what
actually constitute sexual harassment against the opposite sex.
Be that as it may,
no matter the view we want to give to the menace of sexual harassment, its
cumulative, demoralizing and harmful effect cannot be glossed over. It is
unarguable that many academic careers of female students have been disrupted
and frustrated and led inexorably to depression, ostracism, mental anguish and
loss of self esteem on the part of victims of sexual harassment.
Against this
backdrop, it is little wonder then that the move by the 8th Senate to put in
place appropriate legislation to both deter and punish perpetrators has
continued to excite female undergraduates across the country in no unmistakable
terms. For instance, the euphoria that greeted the Second Reading of the Bill
was recently given expression by members of the Nigerian Female Students
Association (NFSA) who stormed the National Assembly in solidarity when the
Sexual Harassment Bill scaled second reading on the floor of the Senate.
The Bill which
proposes a five-year jail term for lecturers found guilty of having sexually
harassed a female student, was sponsored by Senator representing Delta Central,
Sen. Ovie Omo-Agege (Labour Party) and co-sponsored by 57 other Senators.
Omo-Agege had while leading the debate on the landmark Bill, stated that “with this Bill we are refusing to
abdicate our roles as leaders in the face of repugnant threats to our shared
values. It is a warning to perpetrators that an end is near.”
The Bill when passed
into law would serve a consolation to victims of sexual harassment and hope to
the younger generation as it criminalizes the reprehensible act in a wider
scope by not limiting it to only school environments because sexual harassment
has no borders – it can take place in homes, public spaces, religious centres,
etc. It must be noted that adopting a holistic approach towards tackling the
menace of sexual harassment – with stiff penalties – will bring about a
positive paradigm shift from a society that hitherto paid no attention to
victims nor impose severe and deserved sanctions against perpetrators.
According to Section
15 of the Bill, “An
administrative head who is guilty under section 13 of this Act shall, upon
conviction, be sentenced to not less than two (2) years imprisonment or a fine
of not less than N2million, or both.” While
underscoring the timeliness and importance of the Bill, the Senate President,
Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, had remarked that the Bill once passed by the
National Assembly and assented to by Mr. President, will help stamp out all
forms of harassment to make our schools more conducive for our students.
“I can attest to the
fact that I have received anonymous emails and messages urging the Senate to
make sexual harassment in our universities a criminal offence. In this regard,
as we have taken this pivotal step to get this bill off the ground, I enjoin
members of the civil society and students across the country to join in the
process to make sure that this Bill is passed and signed,” Saraki
said.
This clear
effort by the 8th Senate to stamp out the incidence of sexual harassment in our
institutions of higher learning is not only a new dawn in efforts to protect
the dignity of female students but a sign that in due course, each act of
sexual harassment will be judged on its merit, fact, timing and credibility before
a competent court and stiff penalties meted out against the perpetrator when
found guilty to serve a deterrent to predatory lecturers who erroneously see
hapless female students as ready prey to satisfy their sexual fancy.
*Cynthia Ferdinand
wrote in from Abuja
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