Senate Passes Bill that Proposes a 5-year Jail Term for Randy Lecturers for 2nd Reading

The Senate has passed a bill for second reading that prescribes five year jail term for randy lecturers. The bill also proposed a two year jail term for vice chancellors of universities, rectors of polytechnics and other chief executives of institutions of higher learning if they fail to act within a week on complaints of sexual harassment made by students. Read more about the bill here

The bill sponsored by Senator Ovie Omo-Agege (Delta-Central) and 57 others received support from most of the members of the Red Chamber.

But Senator Yahaya Abdullahi (APC Kebbi North) cautioned that targeting a section of the society to make a law would be counter productive. Abdullahi said that people were only talking about sexual harassment in tertiary institutions because the institutions are open society.

According to Daily Post, Senator Dino Melaye (APC, Kogi West), however differed, saying that students also harass their lecturers by offering to sleep with them, having dressed provocatively.

“Mr President of the Senate, Distinguished Colleagues, we should also take cognizance of the fact that female students dress offensively, thereby tempting lecturers who could not resist themselves,” he said.

The Senate President, Bukola Saraki, reacting to the passing of the bill for second reading, enjoined members of the civil society and students across the country to join in the process to make sure that the bill is passed and signed.

Today at the Nigerian Senate, we passed a Bill to Criminalize Sexual Harassment in Nigerian Universities for its Second Reading.

Many young Nigerian boys and girls suffer at the hands of lecturers, fellow students and those in administrative positions of power when they seek to further their education in our universities.

This bill, once passed and signed into law, 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, so that students can receive the protection and backing of the law as they pursue their education.