[OP-ED]| How soon will Sex for Grade be curbed?

Aminat Fatoyinbo and Fatimah Balogun

For ages, sex has been used as a tool to influence outcomes, decisions, or gain undue favour or advantage over others in high and low places. Aminat Fatoyinbo and Fatimah Balogun write on how sex for a grade can be addressed in the Nigerian higher institutions.

Both men and women can use sex as a bait, to get what they desire or to achieve personal aggrandizement. They may get away with it, depending on the value of society.

Sex was used in the Bible by Delilah to seduce Samson to reveal the secret of his strength, while King David was lured by the beauty of Bathsheba and he committed the unthinkable.

However, in Nigeria’s higher institutions, the phenomenon of sex for grades has been on for decades as part of the “usual’’ on campuses.

In recent years, the menace assumed an alarming dimension and a big dent in the image of the country in the international community. The popular case at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) exposed the dastardly acts going on in the nation’s higher institutions perpetrated by randy lecturers.

The lecturer, Richard Akindele, who was at the center of the first major scandal, served two years jail term for sexual harassment of a female student, Monica Osagie. The case opened the pandora box of the menace going on in the nation’s higher institutions.

However, stakeholders decried the menace and stressed that higher institutions should not in any way tolerate sex for grades. They also said that it has contributed in no small way to the falling standard of education in the country.

According to Dr. Olaitan Alloh, an Agribusiness Consultant, school authorities must show zero tolerance for a ‘sex for marks’ relationship.

He suggested that students on entry into the school should also be made to understand that they should face their studies rather than looking for easy ways to pass their examinations.

“Don’t forget that many students are coming into the universities from the larger society. Many of them have been exposed to thinking that sexual relationship in whatever form is a normal way of life and a tool to progress in life. The females think it’s a compensation to offer, while the males think it’s a compensation to receive,’’ he said.

According to him, generally, this menace is part of the fallouts of the decadence in our society at large.

Head of Department, Mass Communication of Lagos State Polytechnic, Mrs. Olayinka Idowu explained that sex for grade means students who are in tertiary institutions trade their body either to male or female gender to get good grades or marks.

“I have never had any personal involvement in such cases and I also do not know anybody involved. It sounds too good to be true that a woman or lady will sleep with men to get grades.

“A woman that respects herself will never be involved in such an act. If you are offering 14 courses, how many lecturers do you want to sleep with?” Olayinka asked.

Some educationists have blamed weak students, who will always throw themselves on lecturers with the hope of passing their examinations. For others, it is the lecturers that should take the blame as they are expected to be disciplined and with high moral ethics.

Prof. Peter Okebukola, the former Executive Secretary of, National Universities Commission, recently sparked controversy by asserting that academically weak students are to blame for the sex-for-grades incidents in Nigerian universities.

Meanwhile, some experts faulted Okebukola’s assertion, saying that lecturers should not take advantage of weak students and indulge in unethical and immoral conduct.

Dr. Kabiru Danladi, of the Department of Mass Communication, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Kaduna State, said the menace of sex for grade “is not different from the general societal decay we see everywhere.”

Danladi agreed that academically weak students were likely to fall victim to sexual harassment.

“Mind you, I didn’t say they lure lecturers, but they are vulnerable. They go for free marks, promising `to do anything to get their carryovers cleared.

“Anyone doing this is putting himself or herself in a very disadvantaged position. I am aware of the problem. I was shocked by media reports recently on what is happening, especially regarding the relationship between lecturers and their students.

“The problem of this sex for a grade, you only read it in social media or conventional media. University authorities cannot act based on hearsay or claim unless a formal complaint is lodged. Those affected should be courageous enough to complain about evidence,” Danladi said.

Despite punishments meted out to perpetrators of sex for grades, the menace continued to be on the increase, an indication that enough measures are not put in place to curb it.

Mr. Louis Eriomala, the former Acting Executive Secretary, Nigerian Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO), echoed that higher institutions are not doing enough to tackle the problem.

“No, they are not doing enough. They can and should do more than they are doing. And it’s a matter of demand and supply. The randy lecturer and the willing lazy female student, both are guilty.

“However, there are situations where the lazy female student lures an unwilling lecturer. There are also cases where a randy lecturer lures an unwilling lazy female student. In these cases, the person making the offer is guilty,’’ he said.

Eriomala said the issue of sex for marks could be attributed to randy lecturers and lazy female students, both willing to trade sex for marks. According to him, this has become prevalent because Nigeria places more emphasis on certificates rather than what you know!

“When employment is based on an individual’s ability, all these will stop!”

He agrees that weak female students lure lecturers because they are weak academically, saying: “it’s true in some cases, but there are cases where lecturers demand sex directly or indirectly from students as a condition for passing them, ”Eriomala stressed.

Are there solutions?

According to Alloh, addressing sex for a grade is difficult because of human nature, but the first thing to do is to strengthen disciplinary institutions in our universities, where both students and lecturers will feel protected.

“Also recruitment process has to be reviewed to employ competent and highly morally upright people. This will encourage professional conduct in discharging their duties,’’ Alloh said.

For Olayinka, she says if a lecturer asks for such a thing, it is better you report to appropriate authorities like the student affairs, the HODs, guidance and counseling personnel, and many others.

“Do not ever indulge in such activities because once you do, it will become a trend you have to follow. It is also applicable to men too.

“Talk to people that are older than you because the consequences of such action are never good and it’s severe enough to tarnish the image of such person,” she added.

For Danladi, he says ABU does not tolerate indiscipline of whatever kind.

“And the university has a system in place from the departmental level up to central administration to address issues of professional misconduct.

“Whoever is accused of misconduct will face disciplinary committee and if found guilty, appropriate disciplinary measures are taken against him.”

He also added that very close lecturers/ students relationships should be discouraged to curb the menace of sex for grades cases in Nigeria’s tertiary institutions.

Stakeholders suggest that to effectively tackle the scourge, a strong monitoring team should be put in place in the country’s higher institutions for continuous monitoring of the activities of both students and lecturers.

Fatoyinbo Aminat Adebola is a student of Mass Communication at Lagos State Polytechnic (LASPOTECH). She’s a Reporter at The Elites Watch with areas of interest – Education, Entertainment, Business, and other matters of general interest and importance. She currently writes for The Nation Newspaper under the CampusLife section of the Media House.

BALOGUN, Fatimah Omotoyosi is a student of Mass Communication at Lagos State Polytechnic (LASPOTECH). She’s a Reporter at The Elites Watch. Her major works have featured on credible Magazines, Newspapers among other print mediums, with major interests in Education, Social Justice, and other matters of general interest.