BBC Africa’s latest documentary revealing how lecturers in Universities in West Africa demand sex from their students to offer them undeserved good grades appears to be generating controversy.
Names of lecturers involved the act, particularly male lecturers have begun to pop up.
BBC Africa as at the time of filing this report was scheduled to air the documentary that is likely to lead to many dismissals of lecturers and reforms in universities that have been affected.
In the documentary titled “Sex For Grades,” a Ghanaian lecturer has been caught on camera pleading with an undercover reporter who pretended as a student, for sex.
The name of that lecturer has been given as Dr. Paul Kwame Butakor.
Dr. Butakor, is said to be a lecturer at the College of Education, University of Ghana (UG).
UG is Ghana’s premier university and host thousands of university students from across the world annually, with many of them being females, of course beautiful looking and sexually attractive females, apparently one of the reasons Dr. Butakor fell so easily to proposing to the supposed student in question.
In the BBC Africa Eye undercover documentary, Dr. Butakor, in a ‘teenage’ love affair fashion, is heard begging the lady to be her side lover.
The Ghanaian lecturer appealed to the lady on several occasions, saying “Let me be your side boy, side guy…men have side chicks…I will not give you trouble…seriously I will not give you trouble…I will not give you trouble…I will not be a distraction to your life…let me be your side guy…”
He went on to reveal to the ‘student’ that
he is a married man and that his wife is not in Ghana.
He then told her again that he would like to be by her side ‘amorously.’
He said “maybe you’ll be my side and I’ll also be your side. Because me, I’m married…my wife is not in the country though…my wife is out of the country.”
About the documentary
BBC Africa came out with the documentary following its interactions with some female students at UG.
The undercover journalist had posed as a final year student of the School of Education and Leadership.
She then approached Dr. Butakor and expressed an interest in reading for a Masters Degree after her Bachelor’s Degree.
Per the documentary, after meeting him for the second time in his office, Dr Butakor told her how beautiful she was looking and inquired whether any guy on campus has said so.
“You look muwaah…how many guys have told you ‘You are beautiful’ today?” he asked.
Regulations of UG forbids lecturers from having sexual relationships with students.
That is because lecturers are in positions to influence their education and such flirtatious behaviour is considered misconduct.
According to the documentary, Dr Butakor, after his meeting with the final year student, offered a National Service placement in his department even though the deadline for National Service application had passed.
He had assured her that there would be no interruptions and being in his office will help her focus on her career.
He noted “No distractions, your focus should be on your career…then the side will see how best he can also contribute to your career and make you to become a better person.”
The BBC claimed that Dr. Butakor denied having any sexual relationship with the lady when he was contacted, saying he follows all university sexual harassment and misconduct rules and added that he had no intention of dating either any student or the reporter.
About ‘Sex for grades’
‘Sex for grades’ is a BBC Africa Eye undercover investigation into some academic institutions in West Africa which increasingly have been faced with allegations of sexual harassment by lecturers.
It conducted the probe after receiving complaints from students.
BBC Africa Eye sent out undercover journalists who posed as students inside the University of Lagos and the University of Ghana.
Female reporters were sexually harassed, propositioned and put under pressure by senior lecturers at the institutions – all the while wearing secret cameras.
Undercover reporter Kiki Mordi, who knows first-hand how devastating sexual harassment can be, reveals what happens behind closed doors at some of the region’s most prestigious universities.
BY Melvin Tarlue