UNIZIK Suspends Professor, Extends Probe Into Sexual Harassment & Kidnapping Allegations
By AMAKA OHAFIAH
NNAMDI Azikiwe University has suspended Prof. Ifeanyi Sunny Odinye of the Department of Chinese Studies for three months after an investigative panel found him in alleged breach of the university’s examination regulations.
The university will pay the lecturer half salary during the suspension.
Management reached the decision after reviewing an interim report from a six-member panel investigating a wider dispute involving staff and students in the Department of Chinese Studies.
Interim Report Triggers Disciplinary Action
The panel submitted its preliminary findings to Vice-Chancellor Prof. Ugochukwu Bond Stanley Anyaehie on Friday.
Prof. Emmanuel Obidimma, Provost of the College of Postgraduate Studies, chaired the panel.
The university said the interim report addressed two of the five matters assigned to the panel.
According to the findings, Odinye allegedly failed to record and submit an examination misconduct case involving Chikamso Favour Okechukwu on the required Examination Misconduct Report Form.
The panel also found that he allegedly returned a mobile phone to the student on the same day after recovering it during an examination.
UNIZIK said those actions contravened Sections 5.8.3 and 5.8.1(iv) of its General and Academic Regulations.
The Vice-Chancellor consequently approved the panel’s recommendation for a three-month suspension with half salary.
Student’s Examination Case Also Under Review
The university has referred Okechukwu to its Students Examination Misconduct Committee.
That committee will consider the examination-related allegations involving the student and make its own recommendations.
Meanwhile, the university has separated the established findings from allegations that remain under investigation.
Wider Investigation Not Yet Concluded
The panel still has three outstanding matters to examine.
They include an allegation of sexual harassment against Odinye. The panel is also investigating the identities of persons allegedly involved in an assault on the lecturer.
A third issue concerns whether an alleged kidnapping incident actually occurred.
Because those matters remain unresolved, the Vice-Chancellor has granted the panel an additional two weeks to complete its work.
The university expects the panel to submit its final report at the end of the extension.
Management will then review the recommendations and determine the appropriate next steps. Where the evidence warrants it, the university said criminal prosecution could also follow.
Management Emphasises Fair Hearing
UNIZIK said the suspension resulted specifically from findings already established in the panel’s interim report.
It stressed that the disciplinary measure did not amount to a final determination of the unresolved allegations.
The university also reaffirmed its commitment to transparency, fair hearing and the welfare of staff and students.
As the investigation continues, the institution said it would await the panel’s final findings before making decisions on the outstanding allegations.
