Prof. Richard Akindele, the lecturer dismissed from the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) after a panel found him guilty of sexual misconduct, says Monica Osagie, the student involved in the controversy, seduced him with nude pictures.
According to New Telegraph, Akindele said this in his reply to a query issued to him by the university.
OAU had set up a panel to investigate the allegations levelled against Akindele who went into hiding after the scandal broke.
On June 20, Eyitope Ogunbodede, vice-chancellor of the institution, announced that the governing had approved the sack of the lecturer.
In a report, New Telegraph quoted Akindele as saying sometimes in November 2017, Osagie sexually harassed him in his office by pulling off her dress and revealing her body.
He reportedly also presented screenshots of the WhatsApp messages between him and his accuser.
“I know the lady in the audio recording to be an MBA regular student. I recall sometimes in November 2017 when she came to my office in company of some of her other MBA students/colleagues to inform me they failed a course that I took with another lecturer and pleaded that they should be upgraded,” he reportedly wrote.
“But I informed them that it was not possible because the result has been submitted and approved by the department. They left my office, but the lady returned alone to my office some few minutes after they had left begging me to upgrade her to an ‘A’.
“She confessed that she did not fail the course, but that she had two other courses in the Department that she failed (not any of which that I am involved) but that she would need an “A” in my own course to boost her CGPA to get to an average of 50 to enable her obtain an MBA degree.
“I promptly turned down her request. She knelt down and held my legs pretending to be begging me, but was actually romancing me. I shouted at her to stop her madness, but she immediately stood up, raised her gown up to cover her face and I noticed she was not wearing any pant.
“I was afraid she could shout to attract other people and it may be difficult for me to defend myself of sexual assault. So I had to gently tell her to calm down and that we will do it five times on another day and place to which she agreed and gently left my office. I had to do that to save myself from any possible accusation of sexual assault which may be difficult to prove if she had shouted on that day. Of course, she attempted calling me at other times and seeing me after that day, but I kept avoiding her.
“Since then, she kept sending messages to me regularly describing how good she is in bed and how badly she needs to sleep with me and get an “A” in the course, all of which I resisted.”
Akindele alleged that the day the leaked phone conversation was recorded, he deliberately played along because two unknown vehicles with unidentified men and a lady suspected to be Osagie had trailed him from OAU campus to Moro Campus, where the MBA programme was being run.
“On that fateful morning, I left my office on campus for Centre for Distance Learning (CDL), Moro to go for the MBA lecture. As I was driving out of the university, I noticed two vehicles following…” he wrote.
“I was somehow scared and wondered what the occupants in the cars were up to. While still wondering, my phone rang and it was the lady in question calling, but I did not pick. When the phone rang the third time, I picked and sensing danger with cars behind me, I decided to play along with her request, and that was what led me to demand five times of sex and for her to come to my office.
“I have evidence and proof that she naked herself and harassed me sexually and I have a naked picture she sent to my WhatsApp contact, pressing that she wanted to have sexual intercourse with me. I have known this lady to be a bad behaved lady and as if she is a psychotic person….”
Akindele said if truly he had wanted to sleep with the student, he would not have demanded five sessions of sex, saying dating a girl would not ordinarily begin with the request for five times.
The dismissed professor said it was only unfortunate that the girl was faster in implicating him.
When TheCable contacted Abiola Akiode-Afolabi, lawyer to Osagie, she said she did not want to get involved because the university had taken a decision.
“The university has done its findings, and a decision has been made on the matter. This is just an after talk, and I don’t want to get involved,” she said.
“If he feels in anyway, the university didn’t do what they are supposed to do, he has the right to go to court. He cannot subject this discussion to a public court. Why didn’t he raise this issue right from the onset? Why is it being raised months after the decision has been made? The case is also being investigated by the ICPC.”
In an interview with CNN, Osagie said Akindele was her mentor but that their relationship went sour after he made sexual advances towards her.