O.A.U ASSAULTED STUDENT CALL FOR THE PROSECUTION OF DR LAOLU AGUNKUNLE OF DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY OF SAME INSTITUTION

I, Alaaka Tobi Jibola, of the Department of Demography and Social Statistics wish to publicly express my sadness at the physical assault I endured in the hands of one Dr. Laolu Ogunkule, a lecturer in the Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, and to briefly relive the torturous experience in writing, even as I appeal for quick intervention and seek redress.
 

On Wednesday, 16th of March 2016, at 1000SLT, at a little past noon, Dr. Ogunkunle accosted me on the unsubstantiable suspicion that I was an impersonator in an examination he was co-ordinating - CHM 102; when I had merely been mistaken about the venue of my actual exam -- an elective course which I had registered for, expected to hold at the same hour. But as I was making to leave for the exit, Dr. Ogunkule called me back, to which I respectfully responded.
 

But in a dramatic turn of event, the so-called "Dr." - evidently intolerant of dialogue, or maybe incapable of such civil resolution to a minor misunderstanding - and with only his indiscretion as proof of my impersonation, resorted to the lowly depths of a street urchin when he thundered violently, and landed repeated slaps on me. And in a manner disturbingly reminiscent of the activities of a lynch mob, the heavily-built Dr. Ogunkunle dragged me by my belt buckle, pushing angrily - in an attempt to shove me to the ground, eventually ripping my shirt to shreds: a public humiliation greeted by shock from the about 500 onlooking students waiting to write their exam, and even the younger lecturers assisting in the exam supervision -- some of whom pleaded with him, as I tearfully did the same. Ogunkule, however, was relentless in his mindless attack, after which he handed me over to the security who, so to speak, rescued me and later apologized to me on his behalf.


Nonetheless, Dr. Laolu Ogunkule by his actions has not only violated the principles of mutual respect, proper conduct, and elementary human decency of our civilization and culture; he has also proven to be a big stain on the Nigerian education system in general, and the academia in particular, with some of his colleagues already describing this incidence as "barbaric" among other colorful terms. But name-calling is not enough. It is partly because of men like Ogunkule, who routinely affront clearly stated laws, that the wider Nigerian society has degenerated into unspeakable lawlessness, now encroaching into our ivory towers. But even more, because men like me, the abused and trampled upon, keep quiet in the face of such cruelty, which partly, and most importantly, stem from the fact that the appropriate authorities and, indeed, the public are often either unpardonably silent or inexplicably lenient in their discharge, or rather perversion, of justice.  

I hereby call on the entirety of Obafemi Awolowo University students, on behalf of the students of other Nigerian universities, who quietly suffer similar harrassment - sexual, physical, or verbal - from their lecturers, to join their voice in pressing the university management (The VC, Deans of Faculties, members of the senate); the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the Nigerian University Commission (NUC), other similar authorities, and every stakeholder in the Nigerian education system to ensure that this case between Dr. Ogunkule and, indeed, the prevailing values of the civilized world is not swept under the carpet as usual, so as to serve as a notable deterrence of historical significance, and restore safety to our increasingly hostile academic communities. Of course, Dr. Laolu Ogunkule's rights to fair hearing are yet intact, and he now has a moral obligation, if not a professional necessity, to come out and defend himself over his violent conduct and have this issue resolved as due. We wait.


Petitioner  
Alaaka Tobi
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Cc: The Vice Chancellor Obafemi Awolowo University Cc: Dean Division