Maanaa Myers, the mother of one of the students initially turned down by Achimota School because of his dreadlocks, which are a symbol of his Rastafarian religion, says she can now breathe a sigh of relief because her son has finally enrolled.
Her solace comes after her son, Oheneba Nkrabea, returned to class on Thursday, June 3, 2021, to the delight of some students, just days after a High Court ordered the school to admit him and another student, Tyrone Marhguy.
Nkrabea’s admission follows a High Court decision on a lawsuit filed by the student to protest the school’s refusal to admit him.
A visit to the school by Citi News on Thursday, June 3, 2021, confirmed that the student had reported to the school and completed the admission process.
The boy’s parents arrived at school early on Thursday morning and handed in the completed admission forms to the school officials.
Oheneba has been assigned a General Arts class and has started his academic work. Maanaa Myers, his mother, said she is pleased with how her son was received, despite her fears that the school would be hostile.
“We passed some dorms where students were yelling and hailing us.” It was reassuring because we were nervous. Even the students are rooting for him. We were approached by the school chaplain, who requested that we go to the administration. There, the perfect day students’ girls approached us.”
“That’s when everything changed; she came in warmly, introduced herself, and told Oheneba that he would be her school son, making sure he was comfortable on campus.”
“I just felt relieved and at ease knowing he was safe because we also met a teacher who has been protective of him since the first day.” He ushered him into the classroom when we met him today [Thursday]. So far, I’m pleased with the warm reception we’ve received,” the mother said.
Meanwhile, the other Rastafarian boy, Tyrone Marhguy, has not yet been admitted. He will begin the admissions process tomorrow [June 4, 2021].
Students drag Achimota to court; judge rules in their favour
On Monday, May 31, 2021, the Accra High Court issued its decision regarding the denial of admission to Achimota School for two Rastafarian boys, Tyrone Marhguy and Oheneba Nkrabea, because they did not cut their dreadlocks.
The presiding judge, Justice Gifty Adjei Addo, disagreed with the Attorney General’s submissions and granted all of the reliefs separately sought by the embattled students except compensation in the case of Tyrone Marhguy.
According to Justice Addo, the Attorney General’s suggestion that the two were not students in the first place is absurd.
As a result, Justice Gifty Adjei Addo ordered that the two Rastafarian students be admitted to Achimota School.
Following the court’s decision, Achimota School announced through its board that it would appeal the decision.
School backs down
Achimota School then attempted to obtain a stay of execution order to halt the order’s implementation, but it has now announced that it has withdrawn the decision.
The school reversed its decision to freeze the court order, but reiterated their commitment to appealing the ruling in a statement released on Wednesday, June 2, 2021.
Also read: High Court orders Achimota School to admit Rasta student
It stated that the decision was reached after discussions with two stakeholders about the next steps.
“Further to our statement issued on 1st June 2021 on the subject of two Rastafarian applicants, we have been in consultation with other relevant stakeholders to seek the best ways forward, taking all parties’ interests into account,” it said.
“While the Board remains committed to the appeal against the High Court ruling,” the statement continues, “it will withdraw the application for a stay of execution pending the determination of the appeal by a higher court.”
Source: CitiNews
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