A Federal High Court sitting in Bauchi has set aside the expulsion of a 300 level student of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, (ATBU) Bauchi, Victor Oboh Alom.
In a fundamental rights enforcement Suit No.FHC/BAU/CS/24/2013 Victor Oboh Alom, a 300 level student of Electrical and Electronics Engineering of ATBU had approached the court challenging the University’s decision to expel him.
It will be recalled that the student was sometimes in 2013 wrongly expelled on the allegation that he entered the examination hall with foreign materials after the invigilator drew his attention to which the student in surprise shouted Jesus.
The student said that they were asked to bring their personal stream tables to examination hall despite paying the University management neglected to provide them for the students and asked the students to come with their personal ones to the examination hall.
The student said that when the invigilator asked for the stream table, he removed it from his bag and handed it to him, unknown to him he forgot the sheets he used to solve past question papers inside the stream table.
He said that he explained to the invigilator but despite his explanations, the invigilator insisted that the student must sign the examination malpractice-form adding that it was three minutes into the examination and he had not written anything apart from his registration number.
The student further said that he refused to sign the form but the examinations officer, a Professor advised him to sign so that he could testify before the Senate what transpired in the examination hall.
Victor Oboh also said that he discovered that he had only 30 minutes to the end of the examination so he decided to write the paper and signed the form so that he would be allowed to write the examination.
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He said that the after proper investigations by the Examination Misconduct Committee of the School of Engineering, he was not found guilty of examination malpractice.
He said that he was later invited by the University’s Senate Examination Misconduct Committee which after investigating the case also not found him guilty of examination malpractice, and seeing the negligent of the school management to provide the examination material, recommended a warning letter to the student for disturbing in the examination hall.
The student said that after the warning letter, he discovered that his safety was no longer guaranteed and sought for transfer to University of Agriculture Makurdi adding that when he took the transfer form to the Supervisor for endorsement, the supervisor not only refused to sign but also told him that he would not escape, that he (the supervisor) will petition the decision of the Senate and make sure that he was expelled.
The student explained that the supervisor not only sat on his transfer form until February 18, 2013, he was
issued with the expulsion letter.
Delivering the judgement, Hon. Justice M. Shitu Abubakar declared the expulsion null and void and without effect and ordered the University
to immediately reinstate the student with full rights and privileges as a student of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University.
Justice Abubakar then ordered that the sum of N1 million should be paid to the student by the university as general damages.
While acknowledging the judgement, Counsel to the plaintiff, Barrister Chinenye Nwogu, hailed the verdict as a vindication of his client’s innocence, stressing that indeed the court is the last hope of the common man.
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