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A university in Nigeria triggered indignation after a video has become viral showing that students affected to see if they were carrying supporters before participating in an exam.
In the images, the female staff of the University of Olabisi Onabanjo in the state of the southwest of Ogun is seen touching the chests of certain students while they are queuing to enter a examination room.
The university has not yet commented on the video, but a student leader defended the bra as part of the institution’s dress code aimed at maintaining “an environment without distraction”.
However, he recognized that other ways were necessary to enforce the policy which was condemned by criticisms as archaic, sexist and compared to sexual assault.
A senior official of the Human Rights Network campaign group told the BBC that students could continue their university for violating their rights.
“Unjustified touches to the body of another person are a violation and could lead to legal action. The university is wrong to adopt this method to slow down indecent dressing,” said Haruna Ayagi.
A student who did not want to be appointed told the BBC that the university had imposed a strict moral code although it was not a religious institution.
She said their clothes were always checked.
In response to the outcry, the president of the University Student Syndicate, Muizz Olingji, said on X that the University had promoted “a dress code policy aimed at maintaining a respectful and distraction environment, encouraging students to dress modestly and online with the values of the institution”.
He added that the policy was not new and that the union had “engaged in the institution to explore other approaches to fight against indecent dressing, focusing on respectful and worthy interactions between students and staff”.
He also published the dress code, which included a ban on all clothing “capable of making the identical sex or opposed to the student’s lust in an indecent manner”.
The university was founded in 1982 under the name of Ogun State University when Olabisi Onabanjo was governor of the State. He was renamed after him in 2001.
