Women Group Decries Senate’s Confirmation of Fasina As Ambassador

Over 300 women's rights organizations have voiced their strong disapproval of the Nigerian Senate's confirmation of Prof. Abayomi Sunday Fasina as an Ambassador. The primary concerns raised by these groups center around alleged negligence in handling ongoing sexual harassment cases and a disregard for proper due process. In a formal petition, Co-Convener Wumi Asubiaro-Dada of the group Womanifesto criticized the Senate's decision, labeling it as "a charade of shame, travesty of justice, and in total oblivion of existing petitions."

Senate President Godswill Akpabio announced Fasina's nomination in the Senate's plenary session, presenting four key justifications. These included Fasina's geographical origin from Lagos State, the absence of opposition to his nomination, the principle of innocent until proven guilty, and the clearance of his background by both the police and FUOYE Governing Council. However, the women's rights organizations refuted each of these points and highlighted the inconsistent evidence regarding Fasina's true origin.

Two formal petitions, dated June 25, 2026, and June 29, 2026, were submitted to the Senate President and the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. These petitions also contained documentation of civil suits currently pending at the National Industrial Court. The petitioners emphasized that Ambassadorial appointments demand transparency, ethical credibility, and adherence to accountability processes.

They argue that confirming a nominee while multiple legal proceedings are ongoing sends a worrisome message to victims of workplace sexual harassment.

One of the two lawsuits, identified as Suit No. NICN/ABJ/201/2025, is a sexual harassment case filed by a staff member at the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO). The petitioners provided evidence of a 37-minute audio recording allegedly containing Prof. Fasina's comments during the incident. The second lawsuit, labeled as Suit No. NICN/LA/61/2025, alleges further harassment and victimization, including the termination of the complainant's employment following her refusal to comply with alleged advances in violation of a court order to maintain peace.

The women's rights groups also disputed claims that Fasina had been cleared of any wrongdoing. They argued that the police lack the constitutional authority to give final clearance on sexual harassment allegations, and the FUOYE panel responsible for the clearance was composed of university employees who were under the control of the then Vice-Chancellor.

Further evidence was presented regarding the Senate's failure to extend invitations to the complainants or civil society groups, thus contradicting the Senate's claim that the victims failed to appear for their hearings. The petition referenced House of Representatives records, which indicated that Folasade Adebayo had submitted over 100 pages of evidence and visited Abuja on May 14, 2025 for a scheduled hearing, only to have it subsequently postponed due to Fasina's failure to respond to the committee's invitation.

Additionally, the CSOs reported that the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) had initiated an investigation into allegations of abuse of office and sexual harassment against Fasina in 2025. The matter remained pending as Fasina had obtained a restraining court order against the ICPC.