Students Observation In Universities

What exactly is going on in our universities and colleges? There's a rape culture in our schools and no one is talking. A rape victim (Illustration) The average Nigerian student entering tertiary institution whether University or College, is most likely going to be between 15 and 19 years old. Their self-esteem will most likely be shaky. Their world views and philosophies unshaped. They want to feel valued and accepted. It is also at this age that sexual curiosity spikes. Combine all of these, and vulnerability rears its head. People in this bracket are perhaps the most likely to get raped, especially women. Let’s start with Tola. Tola is a smart young lady. Settling into University life wasn’t as difficult as she thought, classes are coming and going. She’s making new friends, interesting friends. There’s one she likes. Like really really likes. He wears really nice shirts, and speaks really well. Most of all, he listens. He listens to all her stories. Wonder who made it easy for Tola to navigate the Jambite registration process? Him. His name is Steve. So one day, she’s bored, and asks him if he’s downloaded any new movies. Of course he has. Of course he has the newest episodes of the best shows. So empty USB flash in hand, she heads to his house. Finding his tiny student-size apartment is not so hard, not like it’s her first time going to collect movies, or charge her phone. Today, Steve doesn’t look so well. He’s cuddled up under his blanket. He tells her he has a fever. By the time he says this, she doesn’t even care about the movies she came to get. Today, she’s going to care for her friend. He shows her where he kept some painkillers. It’s at the bottom of a shelf. When she turns around, Steve is no longer on the bed. He’s now standing in front of her, at just a breath away. Bare chested. “I really like you,” he says. She’s shocked. And confused. “What are you doing?” she asks. He draws closer. She says stop. She says it again. But he’s all over her like a beast on prey. 10 minutes later, he’s panting. She’s crying. “Why” she asks, “why did you do this to me?” “What? I thought you liked it.” This is what rape looks like in Nigerian student communities (and outside), and Tola is not alone. In a survey of 349 women, 1 in 8 of them said they were raped while in school (University/Polytechnic/College of Education). The numbers are probably higher, considering that many victims themselves don’t have a clear understanding of what is rape and what isn’t. This begs the question; What is rape? Rape is a form of sexual assault where a person has forced sexual intercourse with a victim without their consent. According to the Violence against Persons' Prohibition (VAPP) Act, the definition of rape has expanded to: "Rape is non-consensual penetration of a person's vagina, anus, mouth or body parts with an object or penis or other body part". Also worthy of note is that the legal definition differs from state to state. But what about sexual assault? While rape is a form of sexual assault, it is much broader. Sexual assault in the simplest terms, is the non-consensual contact that does not include penetration. Examples of sexual assault are: attempted rape, unwanted kissing, unwanted fondling, and unwanted touching of the genitalia, buttocks and breasts. So whether it is Yaba Market boys pulling the hands of passing girls, and touching them, in the name of getting them to buy whatever cloth it is they are selling. Whether it is a lecturer groping a girl in his office. Whether it is fondling her without her consent. Whether it is a guy pressing groping a girl in a concert. This is sexual assault. Why is rape common in tertiary schools? Let’s go back to Steve. Steve is a regular guy. But the guys tease Steve for being soft. The other day, one of his guys teased that he liked boys. Why? Because Steve has no body count — number of girls he’s slept with. The guys also know about Tola. They believe he’s slacking because he hasn’t even kissed her. He likes her, they know this, and they assume she has to like him too. So when they ask him how far, and he says he’s finally slept with her, he’s the man. When he even says she wasn’t interested at first, and that he finally got her to have sex anyway, they say he’s the chairman. Perhaps, the biggest cause of rape in Nigerian schools stems from the attitude of men towards rape and the disregard for consent. It is the sense of entitlement that makes a man feel he deserves it, and he’ll get what he deserves by any means necessary. “What was she wearing?” Another major contributing factor to rape is the tendency for society to blame the victim, instead of seeking justice, and punishing the rapist. A society that blames a rape victim, for any reason at all, gives the next rapist an excuse and even motivation to commit the irreversible crime. How can we change this? Back to Tola. Never in her life has she felt more alone. She blames herself for ending up in that situation. She hates that she can’t tell anyone about it. She tells her friend about what happened, and her friend is not only surprised, she’s confused. The first thing she asks throws Tola off balance completely; “But didn’t you say you liked him?” We need to understand that this is a matter of control. There’s a stark difference between giving, and being taken from without consent. This is what rape is a about, taking without consent. Now, Tola hates that she told her friend. She fears telling her parents even worse. They’d probably call her a disgrace or a disappointment. So she swallows all the pain, and drowns in her own grief. You know the worst part? She’s in the same faculty with Steve. So she sees him every other day, and he acts like everything is fine. Rape is a crime, like armed robbery and murder. And until we treat it like a crime where the criminal is held responsible without putting the victim on trial, it’s not going anywhere. Oluwaseun Ayodeji Osowobi, Founder of S.T.E.R (Stand To End Rape), also recommends that we as people push further for the implementation of the Sexual Harassment in Educational Institutions Prohibition Act, 2016

Low Standard Of Graduates In Universities

Nigeria produces half-baked graduates because of lecturers' indiscipline - Ex- VC Professor Kelvin Etta says Nigerian lecturers are responsible for the falling standard of education. NUC releases list of approved varsities for post-graduate studies in Nigeria University of Ibadan The former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Calabar, Professor Kelvin Etta has attributed the falling standard of education and production of half-baked graduates in Nigeria to lecturers' indiscipline. Etta said lecturers desperation for money is also responsible for the falling standard of education in Nigeria. While speaking during a programme organised by Leaders of Tomorrow in Cross River, Etta said the desire to make more money among academic and non-academic staff in Nigerian Universities has contributed to the production of unproductive graduates in Nigerian Universities. Etta who is the pioneer Vice Chancellor of the University of the Cross-River University of Technology, CRUTECH, therefore called for a holistic reform of the Nigerian education sector. During his tenure as a Vice-Chancellor, Etta is said to have brought reforms to both the University of Calabar and Cross River University of Technology.

Challenges In Babcock University

Narrating the challenges he encountered while studying in Babcock, the Ogun state native says he almost dropped out of school because he was unable to pay his tuition fee.

t is a twist of fate for Micheal Agbojo, a former school drop out who eventually became the overall best graduating student a Babcock University.

A stormy road to success at last for the Christian Religion Studies (CRS) graduate with a GPA of 4.97 despite the challenges he encountered.

In a recent interview with Punch, Agbojo narrates what it felt like to graduate with such a high grade.

Graduating with a GPA of 4.97

According to him "It is a humbling experience. I really can’t believe what God has done in my life".

When asked on how he was able to achieve a GPA of 4.97 he said, " The truth is that it was not easy for me to get this far. Like most other Nigerian youths, I had some challenges while in school. But God came to my rescue and helped me to overcome them".

Narrating the challenges he encountered while studying in Babcock, the Ogun state native says he almost dropped out of school because he was unable to pay his tuition fee.

With the intervention of some well-meaning personalities which he gives credit to he was able to further his studies.

"First, let me thank God for seeing me through the crucible of my academic life. More or less, I was sponsoring my education myself. My parents were incapacitated financially because of some business partnership that went wrong in 2010. At a point, I was on sponsorship, but it was later withdrawn" he revealed.

Becoming a dropout

Prior to graduating from Babcock, Agbojo had initially studied computer/electronic engineering at Lead City University in Ibadan, Oyo State.

Sadly things didn't work out. He explains why:"I was first a Computer/Electronic student in Lead City University. I had to drop out of school in 200 level because of my parents’ business partnership that went wrong. So they could not afford to pay my tuition fees anymore".

He resorted to rap music. He tried to keep his lyrics clean for a while but eventually gave into demands of music promoters to use vulgar words.

From Rapper to Christian then Babcock

Agbojo's life changed when he decided to pay his parent a visit in his home in Ijebu Ode.

 In his words, "I get home to meet a Bible study series and evangelism going on in my dad’s church. The church is located in our compound. I went into my room, dropped my bag and entered the church. I could have just closed up my mind and just let the preachers make their usual noise. But something caught my attention and, for the first time, I saw a bible study session accompanied with illustrations. The preacher was illustrating all he was saying with beautiful pictures, logical arguments and most importantly, biblical facts".

"I only intended to stay for three days before going back to Ibadan to embark on that journey of no return (at least that’s what I had in mind). But my dad made me stay for the whole 14-day programme. That was how my life changed. I gave my life to Christ, got baptized after the programme and decided to leave that aspect of my life and have a relationship with Christ. This time, it had to be a more substantial relationship because, for the first time in my life, Christianity actually made sense and was rational to me."

This decision to give his life to Christ, along with a missionary assignment in Seventh Day Adventist Church led to him studying CRS in Babcock.

"There I got the deep impression that God had a plan for my life and that He wanted me to get involved in full time ministry, "he explained.

Agbojo goes on to say, "That necessitated some preparation and equipping, hence, the need to come to Babcock University to study Christian Religious Studies. A lot of my friends thought I was crazy for choosing the course. One of them even said to me in Pidgin English, “Guy, bomb dey your head? You a first class student studying theology? You must be crazy.” 

He joins the likes of Peace Eze who emerged the best graduating student at the University of Louisiana in the United State.