Blind Student Drags LASU To Court Over Expulsion
A visually impaired part time student of History and International Relations programme at the Lagos State University (LASU) has slammed a N5 million suit against the institution for arbitrarily expelling him from the institution.
The embattled student who gave his name as Adeola Aina, alleged that he has been humiliated by the institution and frustrated simply because of his condition.
Aina lamented how the school allegedly discriminated against him after making all “necessary payments and going through admission processes,” causing him to “waste time and resources.”
According to him, the school also published a false story about him in a national newspaper.
He said the institution has left him in limbo in spite of the letter from his lawyer, the Femi Falana Chambers, which rejected the offer from the school that he should restart the programme after his mates were already in 200 Level.
Through his lawyer, Aina is, however, pressing for damages to the tune of N5m for the trauma he said the experienced as well as the newspaper article that was not correct about him had made him go through.
Aina, who described himself as a self sponsored student, said after procuring the application form and he was invited for the entrance examination, he had informed the then Assistant Campus Director, Dr. Afolashade Suleimann, of his visual challenge and was assured that the school would find a way around it since it had had dealings with visually impaired students before.
According to him, the problem, however, started some weeks into the programme and a day to the first semester examination.
He said he was informed by the new Assistant Campus Director, Dr. Isiaka Ogunwale, not to come for the examination, after he had earlier assured Aina that he would take care of the student’s needs to take the examination.
“But I am not the first blind person in LASU, why is it coming at this time? Dr. Ogunwale said I could direct my case through a letter to the Director of Part Time Studies, Ojo Campus, which I hurriedly drafted with my typewriter in Ogunwale’s office, stating how I had been stopped from sitting for the exam on no account.
When contacted, Dr. Ogunwale said since he did not stay beyond 2010 as the Assistant Director, he would not be able to comment on the matter.
Director of Lagos State University External System (LASUES), Dr. S. Ogunpitan, had told our correspondent that inquiry could be sent to his mail for reaction over the issue, but did not respond to the questions sent to him on Wednesday, neither did he respond to a reminder sent to him.
