The Senate on Wednesday revisited the Sexual Harassment Bill which was sponsored by Senator Ovie Omo-Agege (APC, Delta Central) and passed by the eighth Senate.
The Bill which was introduced by the eighth Senate in October 2016 seeks a five-year jail term and five million naira fine for lecturers convicted for sexually harassing male or female students.
This was revealed in a statement signed by Ezrel Tabiowo, Special Assistant on Press to President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan.
According to the Sexual Harassment Bill, an educator will be “guilty of committing an offence of sexual harassment against a student if he/she has sexual intercourse with a student who is less than 18 years of age; has sexual intercourse with a student or demands sex from a student or a prospective student as a condition to study in an institution, or as a condition to the giving of a passing grade or the granting of honour and scholarships.”
The bill prescribes that “Any person who commits any of the acts specified in Section 4 of this Act is guilty of an offence and shall, on conviction, be sentenced to imprisonment of up to five years, but not less than two years without any option of a fine.”
The bill, however, suffered a major setback as it was not given presidential assent after its passage by the eighth Senate.
Some lawmakers, who were against its passage, had argued that it should be more inclusive and not discriminatory or targeted only at university lecturers.
The reintroduced bill is sponsored by the same Omo-Agege, who is now the Deputy Senate President.