Sexual Harassment: You Have Case To Answer, Court Overrules UNICAL Professor On No-Case Submission

The Federal High Court, Abuja, has overruled the suspended Dean of the Faculty of Law, Professor Cyril Ndifon, on his no-case submission against the amended sexual harassment and gratification suit instituted against him and his lawyer, Barrister Sunny Anyanwu, by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).

THE WHISTLER recalls that TKJ, the second prosecution witness, had testified that Prof. Ndifon “forced her” to perform oral sex on him in exchange for help with admission into UNICAL.

Under cross-examination by the defence team led by Joe Agi, TKJ had also admitted that several allegations she made in open court — including being forced to perform oral sex on the professor — were not mentioned in her original statement to the ICPC, saying her experience was summarised out of “shame” and “fear.”

An official of the ICPC, Lucy Ogechi Chima (PW1), had also told the court that a forensic analysis carried out on the phone of the professor revealed nude photos of several contacts, including that of the star witness, TKJ.

The ICPC closed its case on February 14 after fielding an exhibit keeper as well as a forensic analyst, Fungo Bwaigu, who told Justice James Omotosho that the professor’s phone contained WhatsApp chats, nude videos, phone call logs, and text messages involving TKJ.

But the professor through his lawyer, Joe Agi, maintained in his no-case submission that the 22-year-old star witness, was in a “love” relationship with him going by the series of chats between them and that the ICPC was desperate to create, search for any conceivable crime against his client.

The professor also asked the court to decline jurisdiction on the matter because ICPC cannot prosecute him over cybercrime and allegations that allegedly happened in Calabar.

But ICPC’s counsel, Osuobeni Akponimisingha, urged the court to dismiss the no-case submission, insisting through his written reply that TKJ sent pornographic and obscene pictures on the “prompting of the first defendant.”

He argued that the court has jurisdiction to preside over the matter because all his pleas against the professor are being done under the purview of the Attorney-General of the Federation.

Ruling on the no-case submission on Wednesday, Justice James Omotosho disagreed with the professor that he lacked jurisdiction to entertain the suit.

Subsequently, the judge held that the professor must enter defence on March 12.