Photo: Ms. Okoro Happiness presenting a speech at the Public Hearing on the Sexual Harassment in Tertiary Educational Institutions Prohibition Bill
The National Law Reform, the National Universities Commission, and US-based NGO, Dream Project for Africa have thrown their supports behind the Sexual Harassment in Tertiary Educational Institutions Prohibitions Bill by Senator Ovie Omo-Agege.
It aims to protect female students from the swelling horde of sex-predator educators on Nigerian campuses.
While addressing the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Human Rights, Ms. Okoro Happiness, the Director of Logistics pointed out that the Sexual Harassment Bill is the only hope for the over 2 million Nigerian students.
Those students are held ransom by an army of male lecturers who rape or sexually assault female students without fear of the law.
“Today, our educational system is held under siege by an army of sexual predators, and corrupt educators, who unrepentantly challenge our constitution and ridicule the might of our legal and security systems.
These educators subject our youths and students to the most horrendous duress you could imagine.
They have converted our schools – our universities, our polytechnics and our colleges of education into a home of torture for our sons, daughters, mothers and friends.”, Ms. Okoro noted.
Ms. Okoro also pointed out in her speech that sexual harassment inhibits the potentials of Nigeria’s educational system.
“The Sexual Harassment Bill will make our educational institutions much better positioned to produce astronauts that will one day set our flag on the moon, scientists that will one day help resolve our technological problems, political leaders that will help serve our nation better, and great leaders from all disciplines that will think this giant in comatose to rise and lead again.”, she declared.
The National Universities Commission, represented by the Head of Legal Units, Moses Awe, expressed the commission’s support for the bill.
He noted that sexual harassment in the nation’s colleges has taken a serious dimension and should be addressed by appropriate legislation.
Mr. Awe; however, suggested that the bill should be fortified for effectiveness and should incorporate existing regulations on sexual misconduct by universities.
“The law is too restrictive, because the issue at hand has wider dimensions.
“The code of conduct issued to lecturers should be encouraged and published in students handbooks to enable them to know the position of ASUU and their schools on such issues.
“There should be room for redress and expanded to include staff sexual harassment against fellow staff”, he said.
The National Law Reform said the Bill should cover the people that live on campus from sexual harassment and not only female students, including academic and non-academic staff.
It also suggested that the age limit of 18 should be removed from the Bill, since anybody can be sexually harassed irrespective of age.
It added that the standard of proof and punishment should be graduated to make lesser offenses attract lesser punishment and serious offenses require more distinct proof.
Adenike Fagbemi