THE University of Calabar (UNICAL) has reappointed Prof. Cyril Ndifon, who was accused of sexual assault, as Dean of its Law Faculty.
Civil-Society group, SacredHearts Gender Protection Initiative, raised this alarm in a letter to the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Florence Obi.
Ndifon was on August 29, 2015, accused of sexually assaulting a 20-year-old 400-level student (name withheld) in his faculty after ordering her to his office.
Following the development, authorities of UNICAL suspended the dean from office. The suspension was to last until he was completely exonerated from the allegations.
Not satisfied, the embattled professor dragged the university to court in suit no. NICN/CA/01/2016, claiming, amongst others, that the institution had no power to suspend him beyond the statutory three months under the University of Calabar Act, LFN, 2004.
But in a judgment delivered on September 21, 2016, the National Industrial Court, presided over by Justice Eunice Agbakoba, dismissed the suit.
Agbakoba said, “The suspension of Ndifon beyond three months was not in any way invalidated under Section 16(2) of the University of Calabar Act.”
A Federal High Court sitting in Calabar also ruled that the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has the right to investigate Ndifon.
Justice I. E. Ekwo held that the police report which exonerated Ndifon had no bearing on the Commission’s investigation of an allegation of abuse of office against him.
In a letter dated November 30th and signed by its Executive Director, Dr Rosemary Nwafor, the SacredHearts Gender Protection Initiative expressed disbelief over UNICAL’s decision to reinstate Ndifon and even reappoint him as dean.
Nwafor, therefore, vowed that the CSO will lead a protest march to international agencies and foreign embassies in Abuja.
