Senate Confirms Professor Facing Sexual Harassment Cases as Ambassador

The Senate yesterday confirmed Professor Abayomi Fasina as a non-career ambassadorial designate despite two sexual harassment cases pending against him in court. Senator Adams Oshiomhole stood up and argued that endorsing a man facing such allegations would be insensitive to Nigerian women. He said, and I quote: "For the Senate to endorse a man who faces cases like that would amount to being insensitive to the feelings of women because it is not just one woman; there are two women making different allegations."

But Senate President Godswill Akpabio and the majority pushed through the confirmation anyway. So now a man with two separate women accusing him of sexual harassment is being sent abroad as Nigeria's representative. Tell me what message that sends to the international community about how we treat women in this country.

The question nobody is asking is this: what does it take for the Senate to say "wait, let the courts finish first"? If a man cannot clear his name before two courts, how is he fit to represent Nigeria anywhere? Oshiomhole was right on this one, and I do not say that often.