The University of Calabar’s Faculty of Law is now at the center of a storm as female students vociferously demand the immediate removal of its Dean, Professor Cyril Ndifon, over allegations of sexual harassment.
A viral video circulating on X, formerly known as Twitter, captures the intense protest led by predominantly female students dressed in the traditional white and black attire. These students took to the streets, bearing placards with powerful inscriptions such as “We are tired of sucking big ****,” “Professor Ndifon, let the girls with big breasts breathe. Stop suffocating us,” and “Enough of law school list manipulation.”
A Twitter user, @ThatNaijaGuy001, captioned the video with urgency, stating, “**** FOR GRADE. Unical female Law students have called out their Dean, Prof Cyril Ndifon. Right now they are being threatened and shushed by the establishment.”
Amid this contentious atmosphere, a civil society organization known as the Sacredhearts Gender Protective Initiative has resurfaced concerns surrounding the reinstatement and promotion of Dean Ndifon, who was previously accused of raping a female student in his office. In a letter addressed to the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Florence Obi, and obtained by BarristerNG, the organization called for action and emphasized that “Enough is Enough as same will not be business as usual.”
The letter, signed by the organization’s Executive Director, Rosemary Nwafor, PhD, conveyed the dissatisfaction with the lack of action taken by the university despite various agitations, including those from the victim’s parents. It read, “Madam Vice Chancellor, you will recall that on August 29, 2015, one Prof. Cyril Osim Ndifon, (who is currently the Dean of your Law Faculty) was accused of raping, in his office, a female law student of your University.”
The group noted that despite initial investigations and suspensions, the university reinstated Ndifon, raising questions about the institution’s ethical standards and impartiality.
As the controversy unfolds, the demand for accountability in addressing allegations of sexual harassment resonates as a crucial issue in academia.