AUTHORITIES of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, on Wednesday dismissed Professor Richard Akindele, who was alleged to have been involved in a sex-for-marks scandal with a postgraduate student of the institution, identified as Monica Osagie.
Announcing the dismissal of Akindele, a professor in the Department of Management and Accounting, the Vice Chancellor (VC) of OAU, Professor Eyitope Ogunbodede at a press conference declared that the development was the outcome of the Governing Council’s decision over the sexual misconduct, which trended on social media a few months back.
Ogunbodede, who read a prepared statement endorsed by the OAU Governing Council said “around 7th of April, 2018 or thereabout, there was an audio conversation between a man and a lady which was sensationally trending on social media because of its explicit sexual tone.”
According to him, “after a thorough investigation, it was discovered that the said audio conversation was between a lecturer and student of our university who were later identified to be Professor Richard Akindele and Ms Monica Osagie. To save the image of the university and to unravel the circumstances that surrounded the who saga, the university set up a committee and mandated it to submit its report within a week.”
“Last Thursday, 14th of June, 2018, the University Senate considered the committee’s findings that Professor Akindele had an inappropriate relationship with the student, Miss Osagie. This was established through their conversation in the audio recordings, his reply to query, the oral evidence and the printed WhatsApp conversations tendered before the committee.”
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“He had acted in a manner that is seen to have compromised his position as a teacher and examiner, in that, his conversation with Miss Osagie was about examination scores and inducement of favour for the alteration of examination scores. He offered to change Miss Osagie’s purported “33%” result to a pass mark in consideration for sexual favour, this was established in the audio recording which he admitted.”
“His claim that Miss Osagie knew that she had passed with a score of “45” but was seeking to score ‘A’ and that this led to him being harassed by Miss Osagie cannot be supported by any evidence. Professor Akindele’s action in requesting for sexual favours from Osagie to change her examination scores was scandalous behaviour that has brought ridicule to the name of the university and has tarnished the reputation of the university as it portrays the university as an institution where its teachers and examiners trade marks for sex.”
“From the evidence, Miss Osagie had no idea that she scored ’45’, a pass mark as later claimed Professor Akindele, although she later found out that she did not fail the course. Professor Akindele was liable for all the allegations of misconduct levelled against him. Accordingly, the Senate recommended that Professor Richard Akindele, having been found liable on all allegations against him, should be dismissed from the service of the university.”
“The Council, at its meeting of today, Wednesday, 20th of June, 2018, having considered the recommendation of the Senate, as well as the report of Joint Committee of Council and Senate, decided that Professor Richard I. Akindele be dismissed from the services of the university for gross misconduct,” Ogunbodede concluded.
It would be recalled that be recalled that a recorded audio conversation of Akindele demanding for five rounds of sex from Osagie before she could pass his course had trended on social media on the 7th of April generating varied reactions from the public.
He was suspended on April 19 by the committee, constituted by the institution’s management to investigate the matter, while Osagie appeared before the committee to give evidence on the 24th of April, 2018.
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