Rape, reputation and the of public opinion

By** Oluseyi Babaseyi**

The writer is the Police Public Relations Officer, Ogun State Command, a legal practitioner and an Associate of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR). He writes from Abeokuta.

There is a disturbing moment that now plays out with increasing frequency.

A woman says, “I was raped.”

A man says, “I did not rape her.”

Before the police investigate, before evidence is properly examined, before lawyers test the facts and before a court hears the matter, social media has often reached its verdict.

The courtroom now has a competitor.

It is called the internet.

And sometimes, it is faster than justice.

But speed is not the same as truth.

The law does not ask who is popular

Rape is one of the gravest allegations a person can face. It deserves seriousness, sensitivity and a proper investigation.

But there is an equally important principle we must not lose in our emotional response:

An allegation is not a conviction.

Nigeria does not operate with one single statutory definition of rape across every jurisdiction. The legal framework includes the Criminal Code, the Penal Code and the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015, alongside applicable state legislation.

Under the Criminal Code, rape is built around unlawful sexual intercourse with a woman or girl without her consent, including circumstances involving force, threats, intimidation, fear or deception.

Under the Penal Code, Section 282 begins with the words:

“A man is said to commit rape…”

It similarly addresses circumstances in which sexual intercourse occurs without consent or through coercion, fear or deception.

Then comes the broader language of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act.

Its Section 1 is significant because it speaks of penetration of “another person” and whether “the other person does not consent.”

That language matters.

Yes, a man can be raped

This is one part of the conversation society sometimes struggles to have.

Sexual violence is not exclusively a woman’s experience.

Under the broader formulation of the VAPP Act, a man can be a victim of rape. The law’s reference to “another person”, including penetration of the vagina, anus or mouth, moves the conversation beyond the traditional female-only formulation found in the older Criminal and Penal Codes.

That does not mean every Nigerian jurisdiction applies every provision identically. The applicable law depends on the jurisdiction and the legislation in force there.

But the principle deserves to be understood:

A male victim is still a victim.

His gender should not make his experience less believable.

Three legal frameworks. One difficult conversation

The differences between the Criminal Code, Penal Code and VAPP Act are not merely academic.

They remind us that rape is a legal question governed by the law applicable to the particular circumstances, not by hashtags, celebrity status, public sentiment or the number of people expressing outrage online.

The law also recognises that consent cannot simply be assumed from familiarity.

Knowing someone does not automatically mean consenting to sex.

Being in a relationship does not automatically mean consenting to every sexual act.

A previous consensual encounter does not create permanent consent.

Equally, an allegation cannot be transformed into proof merely because it is emotionally compelling or because the person accused is unpopular.

Both propositions can exist at the same time.

We can take an allegation seriously without declaring the accused guilty.

That is not contradiction.

That is justice.

What does the police actually do?

This is where public understanding becomes important.

The police are not the court.

The responsibility of investigators is not to manufacture guilt or innocence. It is to establish facts.

That means receiving complaints, protecting complainants, identifying and interviewing relevant persons, preserving evidence, examining digital communications, considering medical or forensic evidence where available, tracing witnesses, examining surrounding circumstances and testing competing accounts.

The investigation must be willing to follow the evidence wherever it leads.

That is what makes policing credible.

Not the ability to satisfy the crowd.

But the courage to pursue the truth.

The internet is not an evidence room

Social media can expose issues that might otherwise remain hidden.

It can encourage victims to speak.

It can generate public awareness.

It can even pressure institutions to take legitimate complaints seriously.

But social media has a dangerous weakness:

It does not have to prove its case.

A post can go viral without being verified.

A video can create an impression without providing the complete context.

A screenshot can be genuine and still tell only part of a story.

A person’s fame can make an allegation travel further.

And a person’s unpopularity can make the public accept an allegation too quickly.

Neither is evidence of guilt.

So, whose side are we on?

Perhaps this is the wrong question.

Instead of asking:

“Whose side are you on?”

Perhaps we should ask:

“Whose side is the truth on?”

That question is harder.

It requires patience.

It requires empathy without prejudice.

It requires investigators who will not be intimidated by fame, influence or public pressure.

It requires a justice system that protects victims without abandoning due process.

And it requires a public that understands the difference between believing that an allegation deserves investigation and declaring that an accused person is guilty.

Rape is not a popularity contest.

It is not a gender war.

It is not a social-media referendum.

It is a serious criminal allegation that demands serious investigation and, where the evidence supports it, serious prosecution.

Let us therefore create a society where a woman can say, “I was raped,” without being silenced.

Where a man can say the same without being mocked.

Where the accused can say, “I am innocent,” without being convicted by strangers.

And where the police can investigate without being forced to choose between compassion and impartiality.

Because justice is not served when we simply choose the person we prefer to believe.

Justice is served when we create enough room for the truth to survive the noise.

• DSP Babaseyi, anipr, is

Police Public Relations Officer

Ogun State Command

Eleweran, Abeokuta, Ogun State, legal practitioner | associate, Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, writes from Abeokuta.

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