"I Have Been Receiving Threats From People Saying I Want To Destroy His Political Career"- 300 Level LASU Music Student Who Was Sexually Harassed Twice Tells Her Story

By David Lawal

  When it comes to events we stumble upon, that keep us amazed, that lengthens our curiosity, that pokes our conscience, this story is one of them. With the whole world still in the mood of celebrating women and urging them to break the bias, it is evident that some of the gender-based violence actions and experiences, mostly faced by the female, are unabated. They keep increasing. 

   This story was triggered by an event that involved two students of the Lagos State University, a female 300 level Music student named Anuoluwapo Omilere and Kehinde Sunnayo, a Head Of Class (HOC) of his department in Accounting (Education). The incident which occurred on March 11, 2022, at PPL, la b'esu ọjọ around 7 pm is centred around the former's (Anuoluwapo Omilere) experience at the hands of Kehinde Sunnayo, who was said to have sexually harassed Anuoluwapo, on two occasions, denied that he committed the crime, threatened and even demanded that the victim withdraw her accusations and say that it was a mere misunderstanding between the both of them amongst others. According to Miss Anuoluwapo, she had video shreds of evidence that Mr Sunnayo committed the act, of which one of the said videos has gone viral as it will be mentioned in her narration. In essence, this is an account of Anuoluwapo Omilere in an interview session with ACJ-LASU on Sunday, March 13, 2022.

How It Happened

  Notably, she said, on the times, the two incidents occurred respectively, "Yes. The first one was around 5 pm. Yes, it was around 5pm on the March 28. And this Friday evening, I think 7pm, around after."

  ACJ-LASU's correspondent has seen the viral video Miss Anuoluwapo posted on her WhatsApp status thought it wise to have her speak on the matter although it was uncomfortable for her to do this she summoned up the courage to speak. Beginning with what really transpired between the students, Miss Anuoluwapo went back to her first experience with Mr Sunnayo.

Anuoluwapo's First Experience

  Miss Anuoluwapo stated that on February 28, 2022 at about 5pm,  she had just returned from work, was tired in her room and undressed. 

She said, "The first time it happened, I came back from work, I was tired and there was the heat. In my room, I was undressed. I was using a top to cover my chest, in my room, sitting in my room. So, thereafter, this guy came to my door. I think he came to call someone in my room because there were other people like there were three inside my room. So he came to call this other lady. I think the lady opened the door, when she opened the door, this guy was standing at the entrance of the door and staring at me while I was undressed. Then, I told him- " you can see that I am undressed when you saw me, you should excuse yourself from my room." And this guy stood at the door till I got up to get a wrapper, to wrap my body. And that was how my roommate slammed the door. Thereafter, when I dressed I went to confront him, he said, "what you tried with me today, don't ever let it try to repeat itself." So, I told him the first time."

Anuoluwapo's Second Experience

  After this first incident passed, again, just a few days ago, by March 11, 2022, on Friday evening, around 7pm, her second experience with the same person (Mr Sunnayo) occurred and this time around she didn't take it lightly. With video pieces of evidence, she took her stand against the immoral act. 

   In her words, she continued, "Thereafter, it happened again that on Friday evening, March 11, 2022, so, there was light in the hostel, it was getting dark, so, I went to rinse my plate at the back. I felt I needed to pee. Before I got to the bathroom, I was trying to get a bucket to get water. So, when I saw that somebody already fetched water, I saw there was plenty of water. Then, I went to get another bucket to fetch water. So, when I got the bucket, NEPA took the light. So, I was not holding any form of light to enter into the bathroom and there was a pavement where the guys use to make use of. So, I was like since I was not holding any form of light, let me just excuse myself from here. So, then I had to use the bathroom to ease myself and the door was slightly opened."

  "So, this guy came out of his room and stood in the direction of the bathroom, watching me use the restroom. The first question he asked was " who took my water?".  I was like, "I didn't take your water" and we were conversing. I was in the bathroom, he was in the direction of the bathroom and I was like, "you saw me using the restroom and why can't you just excuse yourself?  You stood there watching me continuously." And as I was telling him such, he was like, "and so? I should have blindfolded his face, because I was using the toilet."

 So, that was how we started exchanging words that- "What sort of rubbish is that; don't ever try it with me; the first time you tried it" . And that was how I went to my room. I was like, "what kind of indiscipline is this?"  He was in the passage and the next thing he started making threats like "I will beat the hell out of you. I will break you into two. I will do so so so...Who are your mates?" So, initially in my mind, I was like, "this guy did something wrong and he should be questioned about it."

  After thinking it through and through, she took her first step to take up the matter and confront the situation. Miss Anu said, "So, in my mind, I was trying to inform some authorities first but I told my friend about it, who followed me to meet him. He (my friend) told me he was going to talk to him and warn him never to repeat what he did again."

Her Video Evidence

  Narrating how the discussion went, when she (Anuoluwapo) and her friend went to meet Mr Sunnayo, Miss Anuoluwapo revealed that during the conversation turned physical argument, she had the scene recorded on her phone. She gave reasons for recording the scene.

  Her words went thus, "So, as soon as I got there, I started making the video talking about him that he is so so so person, so that people can know the kind of person he is-" that he harassed me and he should never try it with me again." So, then when I was making the video, he was trying to wriggle my wrist, trying to collect the phone. If you watched the video, you would see that at some point, we were dragging. So, he was threatening to beat me up and everything. So, thereafter, people came in, other housemates came in and they were like what you did was wrong completely and the guy was still insisting that he never did anything. The next statement that came out of his mouth is- "ehn eh (and so?), the first time that I wasn't completely naked now, so, what is there, what is in my own body?" You know those statements got me crazy like, what sort of nonsense is this? So, thereafter, we left. Do you know that this guy never apologised? and never said anything, and he is still being full of himself. He never did anything towards me, not even an apology, not even feeling remorseful about what he did. So, thereafter, I got to my hostel, I was with the video "that was my only evidence and if I haven't shared it, if I did not share it, people would not know what just happened to me." And if I should wait till the following day, they will tell me that "when it happened, who and who was there and was aware?" That is why I decided to put the video on my status and after I put the video on my status, I started receiving calls because I went away from the hostel, I went to stay with my friend.

  She disclosed that 10 minutes after she posted the video on her status, different individuals started calling and begging her to pull down the video, on his behalf but still the guy refused to admit his actions, did not apologise or feel any remorse whatsoever.

  She narrated further, "I started receiving calls, and people started begging on his behalf for me to bring down the video and I don't know if it was a mistake that I listened to them and brought down the video after 10 minutes on my status. And this guy still never apologised. I told the people, "this guy you are begging for never apologised to me." And they were like " he is here, he is here." He was like, "e jor e jor (Please, please).  I was like, *

"you never felt remorseful which is very bad."

 Sunnayo's Attempt To Change The Narrative In His Favour

  After the video post and continuous pleas of people, on behalf of Kehinde Sunnayo to Anuoluwapo Omilere to take the video off the internet, the latter discovered a shocking revelation.

  She continued, "So, the next day, my phone was on 1%, so I never knew he had made a broadcast message that- "everything I said was lies, I was trying to blackmail him, that I have a temper problem." I was like, " when does speaking up for yourself become blackmail and when does what you don't like and speaking against it becomes a temper problem? You harassed me, you watched me naked, and still, you said it is blackmail." Then, thereafter, I got a call, so, I came to the hostel and a lot of people started questioning me and they were being judgemental about it. I was like, this is not the right authority to talk to me. Later, I decided to take a step to channel it to the right authority. So, today it was weekend, I was waiting for Monday (March 14, 2022) to get to the authorities and make a report."

Meanwhile, Anuoluwapo already established to ACJ-LASU that, "Yes. We stayed together in the hostel. I stay in the main building and he (Sunnayo) stays at the boy's quarter (BQ). The boy's quarter was closer to the bathroom."

Anonymous Phone threats, physical attempts to assault Anuoluwapo and Sunnayo's prideful demands against Anu's official apology request

  Speaking on a related development that occurred after the Sunnayo attempted to discredit her claims via a broadcast message, Miss Anuoluwapo revealed again that she had been getting threats from people who claim that she wants to destroy Mr Sunnayo's political career. 

  According to Miss Anuoluwapo, "After yesterday, when there was some intervention which I have decided to bring down everything. After it, he said he was sorry but I told him to be official about his apology and he told me to make a video of me telling people that everything that happened was a mere misunderstanding and I should say I am sorry for defaming his character, that everything I said that happened was not true. And I was like, "you did this thing" and even till now, he has failed toadmit that he harassed me or he invaded my privacy. He still never admitted it. So, because of his political career, I have been receiving some threats from other people that I am trying to destroy his political career. Even some ladies from the hostel almost beat me up in the hostel this afternoon after I came back from service (Sunday)."

  Above all, the matter is still ongoing as Miss Anuoluwapo is expected to have visited the right authorities on Monday, March 14, 2022, in the school premises or any recognised agency that specialises in cases such as hers', to make her report on the matter official. Until time of press briefing, the accused, Mr Kehinde Sunnayo has not been reached by ACJ-LASU for his side of the story as efforts to reach him have proven futile. 

However, reports gathered in the last 24 hours claim that Mr Sunnayo has mobilised different ladies to become impostors who tell people that Miss Anuoluwapo lied against him.