LUSAKA Apex Medical University has counter-sued two female students for damages after they accused a lecturer at the institution of having made sexual advances towards them in exchange for good examination results.
And the university has denied ever employing the lecturer accused of making sexual advances to the students.
This is in a matter Sandra Mubanga and Carol Saili have sued Philistone Nyirenda in the Lusaka High Court for allegedly making several sexual advances to them and promising to make them pass examinations.
Mubanga and Saili claimed that after refusing the sexual requests, Nyirenda, who they said is a lecturer and head of laboratory department at the university, vowed to ensure that they failed examinations, which came to pass.
The two fourth-year pharmacy students also sued institution, seeking a declaration that it breached its contractual obligation to provide a conducive environment for learning.
But the university has denied ever employing Nyirenda.
In its defence and counter-claim, the institution states that it will aver at trail that Nyirenda has never been employed by it as a lecturer or as head of the laboratory department.
The university has further denied receiving the two students’ report over Nyirenda’s alleged misconduct, and that if it ever happened, the duo will be made to prove the matter during trail.
Apex University states that the report it received from Mubanga and Saili was of a different nature and not sexual harassment.
It has further denied the claim that it did nothing in response to the report.
The institution has also denied that Mubanga and Saili had suffered loss and damage.
“The second defendant (university) denies the plaintiffs’ claims that it breached its contractual obligation to provide a conducive learning environment as well as proper administration of examinations to the plaitiffs,” the university has contended in its defence.