By Joe Udo
ABUJA (CONVERSEER) – Recall that Prof. Cyril Ndifon, suspended Dean of the Faculty of Law, University of Calabar (UNICAL), was jailed for two and five years respectively. The sentences are to run concurrently, according to Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja.
The conviction of Prof. Ndifon followed the harrowing testimony of a diploma student with the pseudonym ‘TJK‘, who detailed repeated sexual assault and exploitation.
The judgment, delivered by Justice Omotosho on Monday, came in a case prosecuted by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
Ndifon had earlier been suspended after female students staged a protest accusing him of sexual harassment, abuse of office, among others.
Below are verbatim excerpts from the student testimony that the judge quoted extensively in the judgment:
“He asked me to lock the door… He came close, held my wrist, tried to remove my trousers. I held his hand and begged him that I was on my period. He said it was a lie, put his hand inside my private part… Then he brought out his penis and told me to give him oral. I refused. I was crying. I knelt down and begged him, saying I would give him my virginity but not that day. He kept forcing his penis into my mouth. I crawled around the office on the floor while he followed me, trying to force it in.
“He told me not to bother about admission if I could only take in the cap of his penis.
“He came to my hostel in his car… While inside the car he brought out his penid again and asked me to give him a blow job. I begged him. He tried to put his hand in my trousers again. I told him I was on my period. He bent my head by force until the penis ended up in my mouth.
“Afterwards he apologised, told me to wipe my tears, and later sent me N3,000 to treat my neck.
“He kept pressuring me to send a video of me putting two fingers in my private part. I told him I was a virgin and couldn’t do that, but he insisted.
“Out of fear of missing admission, I sent it… Later he asked for a full nude video from my chin down to my private part. I sent it in ‘view-once’ format. He claimed he mistakenly deleted it and asked me to resend.”
Prof. Ndifon was convicted and sentenced on two out of the four counts brought before the court by the ICPC. He is to serve his sentence in the Correctional Facility for five years without the option of a fine.
