Disquiet in UniAbuja as male professor slaps female HoD

Ten days after one of the Heads of Department [HoDs] in the Faculty of Arts, University of Abuja, was violently assaulted in her office on January 15, 2024, by a male professor of the department, a gale of apprehension still pervades the department and the Faculty.

Students are gathering in small groups to wonder the fate of the male professor, who had also served as the Chief of Staff for 8 years with the Benue State Government, following the sad incident that happened at the office of the Head of the Department.

For the HoD, nothing steered her thoughts to the violence that was soon to assail her that afternoon, as she engaged in resolving issues around the graduating students’ final projects.

In fact, she had visitors waiting for her and some students standing in front of her when the professor stormed into her office and ordered the students and visitors out of her office.

“I did not say anything stopping him because I was confused by his action and pitch of voice” she told our correspondent two days after the incident.

What happened afterwards was even more unbelievable to her.

According to her, shouting at the top of his voice, the former Chief of Staff and Professor scolded her for supposedly disrespecting him.

“He yelled at me, “you do not respect me in this department. Everyone in the Faculty except you respect me.”

Still confused, she said “I still did not utter a word.”

Her demeanour notwithstanding, she said the professor was not done excoriating her.

This time in harsher tone and words.

“You had the effrontery to send a message back to me.”

The Head of Department recounts him bellowing at her.

When she tried to explain her action in the matter of a postgraduate student’s project, the professor slapped her across the face.

The force of the hit was severe, she said, noting that the hit knocked her off her seat and her reading glasses from her face.

The frame and the reading glasses shattered on the floor.

The said postgraduate student is the younger brother of the professor, and he is also the supervisor.

Fearing for her life, the HoD said she screamed for help, bringing students of the department and the visitors, that were waiting for her to attend to them, into her office.

By this time, she said the professor was a raging bull, threatening to further deal with her.

The issue in contention, according to the Head of Department, was the issue of following due process in the development and submission of the postgraduate student’s project. The Head of Department explained that though she is the Head of Department, post graduate issues are handled by the Post Graduate Coordinator in the department.

Procedurally, all academic issues by postgraduate students are vetted by the PG Coordinator, who thereafter forwards the same to her for further review.

In the student’s case, the said Professor, who is also the supervisor of his younger brother, sent the document to the HoD and insisted it must be handled by the HoD.

“I directed that the student goes through the PG Coordinator.

“it was in a bid to ensure the student goes through due process” that earned her the violent assault of January 15th.

She said she had formally reported the incident to the University authorities for redress.

The Professor, who is a former Chief of Staff to the Governor of Benue State, was also a member of the dissolved Council of the University.

He is known for throwing his weight around the Ivory Tower, often boasting of his contacts in government and breathing down on colleagues and fellow professors of the department at meetings and project defence activities.

Our correspondent was told of several incidents of psychological abuse of the head of department by him. “The professor openly humiliates the HoD even in the presence of both postgraduate and undergraduate students. A source told our correspondent on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal actions against him. “he humiliates the HoD always, everyone in the department and even the faculty is aware of how he talks ill of the HoD, even in the face of the several landmark achievements of the HoD in office” our source added.

So far, the University Management has yet to respond to her complaints formally. Our correspondent learnt from very competent sources at the University that the Vice Chancellor has zero tolerance on issues of this nature and had promised to set up a committee to investigate this incident. A source at the Senate Building of the University quoted him as saying “the rising incidents of gender violence and sexual harassment of students by lecturers is becoming terribly unacceptable and has caused irreparable damage to the reputation of the University and this incident is also unacceptable”.

This online newspaper will follow closely all developments concerning this sexual harassment and violent act by the ‘powerful Professor’.