By NewsBits
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has said sexual harassment constitutes a corrupt practice that attracts imprisonment of not less than seven years.
The commission’s Secretary, Mr. Clifford Oparaodu, announced this yesterday in Abuja at a one-day sensitisation workshop on: Sexual Harassment in Tertiary Institutions. Oparaodu said ICPC regarded sexual harassment as a corrupt practice; hence, there was a need for victims to know their rights and how to seek justice.
The ICPC scribe expressed concern that sexual gratification has become a form of “illegal tender” in many institutions. “Sexual harassment is a form of corruption,” he stressed.
Oparaodu said it is a deviation from the norm for an official to use his/her office or position to demand, receive, obtain, or attempt to obtain any form of sexual gratification for him to perform his duties.
“Ideally, official duties ought to be carried out with integrity, good conscience and diligence, without the expectation of any unlawful benefit,” he said.
According to him, Section 2 (f) of the ICPC Act states that gratification includes any service or favour of any description.
“Section 8 of the ICPC Act states: ‘Any person who corruptly asks for, receives, or obtains any property or benefit of any kind for himself or any other person, is guilty of an offence of official corruption and is liable to imprisonment for seven years.’
“It is pertinent to note that unlawful benefits are not always pecuniary, and it is disheartening that sexual gratification has become a form of ‘illegal tender’ in many institutions.
“Staff members have been found to use their office to demand and receive sexual benefits from other staff and students in exchange for good grades or other favours,” Oparaodu said.
The ICPC scribe regretted that due to the fear of stigmatisation or further victimisation, many targets of such demands are forced to succumb.
“This is in order to avoid dire consequences and denial of benefits to which they may ordinarily even be entitled.
“The culture of silence has allowed sexual harassment to thrive, but ICPC is working relentlessly to ensure that with sensitisation and appropriate policy implementation, this culture would gradually change,” he said.
Oparaodu said the ICPC was determined to end the ugly practice as it had established a Sexual Harassment Unit with focus on prevention of sexual harassment in tertiary and secondary institutions.
The ICPC chief said the commission’s move would help the country to address the issue of sexual gratification and abuse of office and power by officials. He explained that the purpose of the workshop was to educate students about how to easily contact the ICPC, report harassment, and gather evidence in a way that would aid the commission’s investigations.
In a paper, titled: Sexual Harassment, An Offence Against the Individual/A Crime Against Society, the Deputy Director of Proceed of Crime Department at the ICPC, Mr. Adenekan Shogunle, urged participants to regard the fight as a collective one.
Shogunle urged youths not to accept sexual harassment, saying the menace must be stopped to ensure the safety of educational institutions for learning.
“What is essentially a social disorder has become normal in many tertiary institutions. The absence of effective grievance remedial mechanisms and prevalent culture of silence, social tolerance has left many female students at the mercy of rabid predators. In a bid for justice, survivors are taking matters into their own hands; naming perpetrators and sharing experiences on social media,” he said.
In a paper, Assistant Director of Legal Unit at ICPC in a paper, Mrs. Peace Aroch, said sexual harassment has psychological implications which is connected with the mental or emotional state of the survivor. Mrs. Aroch said sexually harassed persons commonly experience stress, anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
She said sexual harassment was still being under-reported in spite of its social media posts. The director noted that sexual harassment was still being under-reported because of issues of trust, security, fear and poor financial standing of survivors.
Aroch called on the private and public sectors to establish their workplaces sexual harassment policies. She said that they could make recourse to ICPC’s sexual harassment policy to prepare their own.
In her paper, the Policy Lead Gender for Mobile Initiative, Sarah Egbo, urged institution leaders to demonstrate a strong commitment to addressing sexual harassment. She also called for the involvement of institutions in policy development and implementation, ensure transparency in reporting, investigation and decision making.
