By Henry Umoru, ABUJA
The Senate has adopted a fourteen-year jail term and not less than five years without an option of a fine for sexual harassment of students in tertiary educational institutions in the country.
The Senate yesterday passed, read for the third time, and passed a bill seeking to prevent and prohibit sexual harassment of students in educational institutions and other places across the country.
The bill titled Sexual Harassment of Students (Prevention and Prohibition) Bill, 2025 (HB.1597), was presented for concurrence by the Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, APC, Ekiti Central.
According to Bamidele, the bill is designed to protect students from all forms of sexual misconduct and abuse within academic environments while providing clear legal frameworks for the enforcement and punishment of offenders.
He said that the Bill is enacted to promote and protect ethical standards in tertiary education, the sanctity of the student-educator fiduciary relationship of authority, dependency and trust and respect for human dignity in tertiary educational institutions by providing for protection of students against sexual harassment by educators in tertiary educational institutions; prevention of sexual harassment of students by educators in tertiary educational institutions; and redressal of complaints of sexual harassment of students by educators in tertiary educational institutions.
According to the Senate, (1) “Any person who commits any of the offences or acts specified in clause 4 (1), (2) and (3) of this Bill is guilty of an offence of felony and shall, on conviction, be sentenced to an imprisonment term of up to 14 years but not less than 5 years, without an option of a fine.
“(i) Any person who commits any of the offences or acts specified in Clause 4 (4), (5) and (6) of this Bill is guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to an imprisonment term of up to 5 years but not less than 2 years, without an option of a fine.
Civil action for breach of fiduciary duty
“Notwithstanding the provisions of clauses 4, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 1201 of this Bill or any other part of this Bill thereof, the sight of a student who complains of or alleges sexual harassment by an educator to commence and maintain a civil action in court for breach of fiduciary duty of care contrary to clauses 2 and 3 of this Bill shall be the same standard applicable in all civil proceedings.
“The standard of proof in any proceedings for an educator’s breach of the fiduciary duty owed to a student under clauses 2 and 3 of this Bill shall be the same standard applicable in all civil proceedings.
Institutional disciplinary measures
“Nothing under this Bill shall preclude an institution from proceeding under its established policies, rules and regulations for the internal administrative discipline of its staff and students, provided that
“Where criminal proceedings have been commenced under this Bill or are pending in a court in respect of a complaint of sexual harassment of a student by an educator, no disciplinary body, including an Independent Sexual Harassment Prohibition Committee in an institution, shall have the power to commence or continue disciplinary proceedings or render any decision in respect of the acts or offences complained of.
“Where a student makes a sexual harassment complaint against an educator, an institution’s Independent Sexual Harassment Prohibition Committee established under this Bill shall investigate, determine and render a final decision on the merits of the complaint in line with the provisions of this Bill, which shall supersede any existing policies, rules or regulations for internal administrative discipline of its staff and students.”
The approved bill further said on the offences that “any educator shall be guilty of committing an offence or a felony of sexual harassment if he/she has sexual intercourse with a student or demands forces from a student or a prospective student, or intimidates or creates a hostile or offensive environment for the student by soliciting for sex from the student or making sexual advances towards the student, or directs or induces another person to commit any act of sexual harassment under this Bill, or cooperates in the commission of sexual harassment by another person without which it would not have been committed.”
“Grabs, hugs, kisses, rules or strokes or touches or pinches the breasts or hair or lips or hips of buttocks or any other sensual part of the body of a woman; or displays, gives or sends by hand or courier an electric or any other means naked or sexually explicit pictures or videos or sex related objects to a student-related or whistles or winks at a student or screams or exclaims or jokes or makes sexually complimentary or uncomplimentary remarks about a student’s physique or stalks a student
“For the purposes of the offences created in Clause 4 of this Hili, it shall be a defence that the educator and the student are legally married.
“It shall not be a defence to any offence created in Clause 4 of this Bill that a student consented to any offence.
“For the purpose of proving the commission of any of the offences in Clause 4 of this Bill, it shall not be necessary for the prosecution to prove the intention of the accused person or the condition under which the act of sexual harassment was carried out.”
On commencement of criminal proceedings, the bill read, “(1) A written sexual harassment petition complaining of the offence or felony of sexual harassment against an educator may be filed or made by a student or by a student’s representative who may be a relative, a guardian, or a lawyer of the student, or any person who has interest in the wellbeing of the student to the Nigerian Police Force, or the Attorney-General, who shall take necessary measures to prosecute the educator in accordance with the provisions of this Bill.
“A copy of the written Sexual Harassment Petition complaining of sexual harassment in Clause 8 of this Bill shall be delivered by the student or the student’s representative to both the administrative head and the secretary of the Independent Sexual Harassment Committee of the affected institution for record purposes and such actions that may be required under this Bill.”
During consideration of the bill, several lawmakers commended its intent but called for broader coverage beyond the education sector.
In his contribution, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, APC, Delta North, who argued that the legislation should not be limited to students alone but extended to address sexual harassment in workplaces and other settings, said, “There is no need to restrict sexual harassment issues to students. We should craft this law in a way that gives it universal application.’
However, Deputy Senate President Senator Barau Jibrin, APC, Kano North, who presided over the session, clarified that since the legislation is a concurrent bill from the House, it is not open to extensive debate but can only be amended.
He further explained that there already exist laws addressing harassment in workplaces and other public institutions. After brief deliberations, the Senate passed the bill for third reading.
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