The management of Obafemi Awolowo University, OAU, Ile Ife has assured the public that it would not shield a lecturer, Professor Joseph Ayo Opefeyitimi who was accused of a sex scandal.
A female student of the university at the Department of Linguistics and African Languages, Boluwatife Hannah Bababunmi, had reported the alleged sexual assault case against the lecturer who is a Professor of Yoruba Incantations and Stylistics at the same department.
Boluwatife reported to the authorities that the lecturer sexually assaulted her on the 18th of March, in his office.
The departmental committee that sat on the matter found the professor liable and established a prima facie case against him, after a thorough investigation.
At the faculty level, the Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Professor Niyi Okunoye referred the matter to the Anti-sexual Harassment Committee of the university.
The Anti-sexual Harassment Committee also sat and clinically deliberated on the matter, and recommended appropriate disciplinary actions against the professor.
The Public Relations Officer of the University, Abiodun Olarewaju, on Thursday, said the Governing Council of the University would soon take a final decision on the recommendations, and determine the fate of the lecturer.
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Olarewaju said the OAU Management has never shielded any staff or student, found to have committed any sexual misdemeanour.
He maintained that as a mark of its zero-tolerance for sexual harassment, the present university management had summarily dismissed three lecturers who had committed similar sexual offences.
The first lecturer to be dismissed was from the Department of Management and Accounting, while the second one was from the Department of English Language.
The third one, who was given a letter of dismissal last month, was teaching in the Department of International Relations.
(Editor: Ifeanyi Mark)
