THE management of Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka, Anambra State, said it had launched an investigation into a viral video showing a third-year student of its Department of History and International Studies, Goddy Mbakwe Precious, assaulting a lecturer of the school’s Department of Theatre Arts and Film Studies, Chukwudi Okoye.
The altercation began when Okoye walked into Precious who was taking a video along the university hallway.
Footage showed Okoye tapping the student on the shoulder, saying “Excuse me” as he passed, but Mbakwe reacted, saying “Can you imagine? He just hit me.”
The situation escalated, with other videos showing Precious grabbing Okoye’s shirt and tearing it. She also bit the man on the wrist.
Throughout the process, Okoye was seen as maintaining his composure and not retaliating.
The ICIR, however, could not independently confirm how the incident degenerated as the lecturer was seen to have passed by the young student in the first footage.
However, social media posts attributed to the lecturer and Precious provided differing accounts of the incident.
Precious, in a post attributed to her, claimed that someone attempted to grab her phone from behind, and eventually realised it was the same lecturer who had interrupted her video.
She further alleged that Okoye grabbed her “breast region,” and scratched her chest with his nail.
“I was devastated and at the same time still lamenting in pain as I picked up the pieces of my shattered phone. But the situation took a dark turn when the lecturer grasped my breast region, saying unspeakable things.
“I was left stunned, trying to comprehend the horror unfolding before me. As I realised my cleavage was exposed, I begged him to let me go, but he ignored my pleas, holding me firmly. His nails and clutches left certain prints and scratches on my chest rather.
“I was mortified. I tried to cover myself, pulling my dress together, and exclaimed in desperation, ‘Sir, I’ll hold you oh!’. I didn’t mean to threaten him; I just wanted him to release me. But he wouldn’t budge. In a split second, I bit his hands, hoping he’d let go. That was when I held his clothes and accidentally tore his shirt,” she reportedly said.
However, the lecturer, in a post linked to him, claimed that he overheard her insulting him and decided to return to ascertain if she was one of his students and also to demand that she delete the video that showed him passing by.
“My theatre Arts people, I had just left Hall 19, where Dr Ebekue (another lecturer) was teaching. Walking along the passage, I saw a girl doing a video with her phone,” he said.
He added, “Tapping her slightly, I asked her to excuse me as I walked past. After about two or three steps, I heard her say, ‘Who does this man think he is?’ I walked back to ascertain first if she was my student and second to make sure she deleted the video showing where I passed.”
According to him, the student bit him on both arms, tore his clothes, slapped him, and scratched his face in the process.
“I then demanded and reached for her phone, only to be bitten by the girl on both arms in quick succession. I then held on to her left hand so she wouldn’t get away. That was when she lost it; she tore my clothes, slapped and scratched my face, and generally went berserk on me – all which I received with calm.”
Reacting to the incident in a statement signed by its spokesperson, Njelita Louis, on Tuesday, February 11, the university emphasised its commitment to upholding its core values of discipline, self-reliance, excellence, and justice.
It announced a full-scale, transparent, and unbiased investigation into the matter, urging all parties and the public to remain calm.
The management further assured that appropriate sanctions would be implemented based on the investigation’s outcome.
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: umustapha@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M