The Chief Medical Director of Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital, OAUTH, in Ile-Ife, Osun State, Professor John Okeniyi, announced yesterday his commitment to removing beds from various offices within the hospital to address concerns of sexual harassment among female staff.
During a press briefing on the progress of his one-year tenure, Prof. Okeniyi explained that the presence of beds in offices could potentially lead to inappropriate behavior, hence the decision to eliminate them.
He also emphasized that the institution has enacted an anti-sexual harassment law, underscoring that ignorance will not be accepted as an excuse for violating the new regulations.
He said: “The laws are clear, which we have brought to the fore for the notice of the people, ‘thou shall not sexually harass’. So ignorance can no longer be a defence, now you all know and if anybody does that, the next step is a deterrent with punishment. If anybody does that, we will punish him and will not sweep it under the carpet.
“Once we start punishing people, others will be exposed subsequently; there will be a wall of shame on the Internet for it. It will be there for your friends, children, and spouse to see forever.
“For those who cannot control their libido, they will have the law to contend with. Besides that, we will remove beds from offices being used under the guise of night shift. Having beds in offices could provoke sexual harassment. From now on, I will personally supervise the removal of beds from offices. The night shift is not meant for sleeping but for people to do their job and leave.”
(Vanguard)
Leave a Reply