A 300-level student of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU) Bauchi, Victor Alom Oboh, who was wrongfully expelled from school for examination malpractice has won his case against the school at the Court of Appeal, Jos division.
The Court of Appeal ordered ATBU to reinstate and pay N1.1 million damage to Oboh for illegally expelling him over accusation of examination malpractice.
In the ruling passed by a three-man panel led by Justice Tani Yusuf Hassan, the Appeal Court upheld the ruling of an earlier ruling by the High Court.
The court maintained that “the appeal failed and it is dismissed. That the judgement passed by Justice Shittu Abubakar is hereby affirmed.”
He ordered that ATBU pay Oboh the sum of N100,000 in addition to the N1 million awarded to him by the High Court.Excited about the judgement, the plaintiff, Victor Oboh said he fought to clear his name and uphold his dignity.
“Just within three minutes after the commencement of an examination, an invigilator accused me of malpractice and asked me to fill a form which I declined, then I was expelled,” he said.
He added that he would return to school to further his studies with immediate effect.
Earlier in 2013, the Plaintiff, Victor Alom Oboh had filed a suit against the university at the Federal High Court in Bauchi where he challenged his expulsion by the management.
Oboh was awarded N1,000,000 as general damages, to be paid by ATBU after the presiding Judge, Justice Shittu Abubakar, on May 17, 2018, ruled that the expulsion of the plaintiff “is hereby null and void”, while ordering that the student be reinstated and allowed to continue his study with immediate effect.
However, ATBU challenged the ruling of the Federal High Court and approached Appeal Court, Jos Division on June 1, 2018.