JSS1 Student Flogged For ‘Indecent Hairstyle’ Sues Ekiti Govt, Demands N15m Damages
Gift Agenoisa, a JSS1 student at Mary Immaculate Secondary School in Ado Ekiti, has sued the Ekiti State Government for breach of fundamental rights after being suspended from school for alleged indiscipline and her parents’ assault on teachers.
Mrs Odunayo Agenoisa swore to suit number HAD/01/CR/2021 on her behalf before the Ado Ekiti High Court, claiming that her suspension from school by the government infringed on her rights after her parents allegedly beat up some instructors for penalizing her for indecent dressing and gross indiscipline.
The claimed treatment meted out to her for wearing an obscene hairdo to school was described by the plaintiff as cruel and inhuman.
The School Principal, Mrs Oluwasanmi F.M (first respondent); the Commissioner for Education, Dr Olabimpe Aderiye (second respondent); the Ekiti State Teaching Service Commission (third respondent); and the Ekiti State Government (fourth respondent) are all named as defendants in the claim (fourth respondent).
The plaintiff claimed in an affidavit accompanied to the original summons that on May 22, 2021, she was singled out of assembly and given 20 cane lashes on the instruction of the school principal for allegedly indecent hairdo.
The applicant sought N15 million in damages for her suspension in her originating summons, which was deposed to by her counsel, Mr Timmy Omotoso, and brought pursuant to Order 2 rules 1,3,4,5, and 6 of the Fundamental Rights Enforcement Procedure Rules 2009, as preserved by Section 315 of the 1999 constitution.
She also sought her immediate return to school, as well as unrestricted access to all services provided there.
The plaintiff claimed that the assault she received that day left her with bruises, life-threatening scars, and bloodstains on her uniform, and that she passed out and was brought to an Ado Ekiti police clinic, where she was resuscitated.
She further alleged that her letters of protest to the wife of the Ekiti State Governor and certain key government offices were unanswered, prompting her to seek redress through legal means.
Since then, the plaintiff has been refused access to the school grounds and her class on the principal’s orders, according to the lawsuit.
Meanwhile, the case before Justice Lekan Ogunmoye of the Ekiti State High Court on Thursday has been rescheduled for hearing on September 22.
On May 22, the plaintiff’s father, Elijah Agenoisa, a Police Sergeant, allegedly dispatched four armed officers to the school to assault some instructors for scolding his daughter for wearing an obscene haircut in violation of school rules and regulations.
As a result, his daughter was suspended from school, and the Ekiti State Police Command purportedly questioned the officer, the outcome of which is unknown.
