The University of Calabar (UNICAL) law students, on Monday, besieged the office of the institution’s Vice Chancellor, Prof. Florence Obi, to protest against alleged sexual harassment, extortion, and absenteeism by lecturers.
The students particularly accused the Dean of Faculty of Law, Prof. Cyril Ndifon, of sexually harassing female students.
The students, who participated in the protest, were seen neatly dressed in black and white attire carrying placards as they urged the university authorities to rise up to the occasion and address their concerns.
The placards had various inscriptions like “Ndifon Must Go”, “We Are Tired of Buying Law Journals”, “We Are Tired of Lecturers Not Attending Classes”, and “We Are Sexually Harassed”.
Responding, the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Obi, assured the students of the University authorities’ willingness to get their concerns addressed even as she called for calm.
She said the university was ready to give a listening ear and was willing to resolve challenges being faced by the students.
However, a Law student, Miss Agatha Ayeni, expressed reservation about the protest organised against the Dean of the Faculty of Law, stressing that the president of Law Students Association of Nigeria (LAWSAN), UNICAL branch, Comrade Benedict Otu, took some students out for the protest against the wish of the leadership of the faculty because he didn’t meet up with the two-third major requirement before a protest is carried out.
Another student simply identified as Sylvester, who regretted participating in the protest, explained that he and other of his colleagues were cajoled to go for a meeting with the Vice Chancellor at her office, only to see placards bearing false accusation against the Dean, Prof. Cyril Ndifon.
“Also, we have heard of Law journal but we did not hear anything like sexual harrasment. I think this is a manipulation of gullible students to achieve self-serving interest,” he stated.
Also, Emmanuel Williams, who condemned the purported protest, said the allegations about the Law Journal and the issue of some lecturers not making themselves available for lectures might be true, stressing that the issue of sexual harrasment was a total blackmail to bring down the reputation of the Dean of the Law Faculty.
“The question is if Ndifon has been accused of sexual harrasment, who then is the victim?
“We are all Law students and taught how to seek for redress. Let any of the students who is said to have been sexually harassed by the Dean to come out to raise alarm, rather than remain in the dark to make false allegations,” Williams said.
Meanwhile, reacting to the development, the Dean of the Law Faculty, University of Calabar, Prof. Ndifon, denied any wrongdoing, stressing the allegations by the protesters were false and based on falsehood to pull him down.
“It’s the handiwork of some elements in the faculty who sponsored the LAWSAN President to bring me down.
“I won elections twice to assume the position of Dean and some big men who felt Ndifon is not supposed to emerge as Dean are on it again and decided to sponsor a protest against me.
“It won’t work. If they are accusing me of sexual harrasment without victims, I’m shocked that someone would go to this extent to satisfy his inaordinate ambition” Prof. Ndifon stated.
