FUOYE Students, Advocacy Group Rally Behind VC Over Sexual Harassment Claims
On Wednesday, students of the Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, Ekiti State, held a protest to express their opposition to what they called an attempt to destabilise the university through unverified allegations directed at the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Abayomi Fasina.
In the same vein, a rights advocacy group known as Campaign for Justice and Fair Play accused the National Women’s Committee of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities of leading a well-financed plot aimed at removing the vice-chancellor.
The Vice President of the Student Union, Olaniyan Eniola, led the demonstration, cautioning the SSANU Women’s Committee against making inflammatory remarks capable of disturbing the peace and stability of the school.
The controversy originated from a recent call made by the SSANU Women’s Committee during a meeting held in Otuoke, Bayelsa State, where they demanded the suspension of Prof. Fasina over an alleged case of sexual harassment involving a senior staff member, Mrs. Folasade Adebayo.
However, the students who protested, while holding placards bearing different messages, rejected the allegation, labelling it as groundless and politically driven.
They accused the SSANU Women’s Committee of trying to derail the university’s ongoing development.
Joined by the Chief Justice of the Student Union Judicial Council, Victor Olaseni, along with a representative of the Senate President, Idowu Odunayo, Eniola denounced what he termed as deliberate media blackmail and the spread of false information.
“We are appalled by the actions of the SSANU National Women’s Committee, led by Mrs. Ijeoma Kalu, which is demanding the suspension of our highly respected VC over a completely unfounded allegation,” he said.
“We were shocked to read how they publicly disgraced themselves by calling for the removal of our beloved VC without any factual basis.”
The students further claimed that Mrs. Adebayo had never at any point officially accused Prof. Fasina of sexual harassment.
“The VC has already clarified that Mrs. Adebayo, in her official petition to the governing council, never mentioned sexual harassment,” Eniola stated.
“Even in her statements before the Nigerian Police, which investigated the matter, there was no mention of sexual harassment. So where did the SSANU Women’s Committee fabricate this claim from? On what basis are they demanding his suspension? This is clearly a politically motivated smear campaign, which is doomed to fail.”
In a related statement, the Chairman of CJFP, Calistus Jemade, in a release issued on Wednesday in Ado Ekiti, accused the SSANU Women’s Committee of spearheading an organised campaign to undermine the leadership of the vice-chancellor.
“The sponsors of this campaign are not seeking justice but are actively working to destabilise the university,” Jemade said.
“This is a calculated political attack designed to discredit a leader who has worked tirelessly to improve FUOYE. These individuals, motivated by self-interest, are determined to take control of the university’s leadership at any cost.”
The CJFP called on the FUOYE Senate, alumni, staff, and students to unite in support of the vice-chancellor and reject any effort to sow division within the university.
The group further appealed to the chairman of the governing council to fast-track the ongoing investigation to prevent the spread of further false information.
