Ignatius Ajuru University of Education in Rivers State has expelled a final-year student, Nora Onyewuenyi, following a viral video in which she claimed a lecturer in her department handled her final-year project for ₦150,000. The university's Senate made the decision at a meeting held on Wednesday at the Postgraduate Hall, after reviewing the video and the student's claims. The expulsion was announced in a statement by the university's Public Relations Officer, Dr. Ngozi Okiridu.
Details of the Viral Video and University Response
The video, which circulated widely online, showed an interview between the student and a content creator. In it, Onyewuenyi described her research project and stated that a lecturer was handling the work for ₦150,000. The university's statement said she also referred to her project topic as "Citizenship," which it said does not exist in the Department of English and Literary Studies, and claimed that her supervisor wrote the project for her.
The university described her conduct as "damaging content creation." According to the statement, Onyewuenyi later admitted that her claims were untrue and said she made them to create social media content. The university said the post damaged its image, that such behaviour would not be tolerated, and that the expulsion is meant to deter other students from doing the same. Onyewuenyi studies at the university's Rumuolumeni campus in Port Harcourt.
Unverified Allegations and Lack of Investigation Details
The claims made in the video have not been independently verified. The part of the statement carried in reports does not say whether the university investigated the allegation against the lecturer or whether any action has been taken against him. None of the reports names the lecturer or carries his response. The student's own response has also not been reported, and the statement as quoted does not mention whether she can appeal.
Background of the Institution
Ignatius Ajuru University of Education is a state-owned institution. It was established as a university in 2009 and was previously the Rivers State College of Education, which operated from 1971 to 2009. The expulsion is a clear signal of the university's stance on protecting its reputation, but the lack of clarity on the lecturer's fate leaves questions about the thoroughness of the investigation.
