Achimota Management Rejects Court Ruling Over Rasta, Seeks Appeal

The disgraced management of the Achimota Senior High School has hinted that it is going to appeal the High Court ruling that ordered the school to admit two Rastafarian students which it rejected because of their dreadlocks.

In a statement released today and sighted by Whatsup News, the Management of the school wrote that disagrees with the ruling and has started discussions with their lawyers for an appeal.

“The School Board disagrees with the ruling of the Court. The school Board has therefore directed its lawyers to appeal against the ruling,” reads the statement signed by the Chairman of the Board. 

On Monday, May 31, 2021, the Human Rights Division of the High Court in Accra ordered the Achimota School to admit the two Rastafarian students into the school.

In its final judgment, the court presided over by Justice Gifty Agyei Addo, ruled that the fundamental human rights of the two students cannot be limited by the academic rules of the

school and therefore Masters Tyron Iras Marhguy and Oheneba Kwaku Nkrabea

should be admitted with their hairstyles.

In March this year, Achimota School issued admission letters to the two students but refused them enrolment when they turned up with dreadlocks grown on grounds of their

Rastafarian religion.

The school then pre-conditioned their admission on them cutting their beloved dreadlocks, a

sacrifice the Rastafarians said was unacceptable. 

The Ghana Education Service (GES) had ordered the Headmistress of the school, Ms. Joyce Rhodaline Addo to admit the students, but she blatantly rejected the GES order. The GES

eventually chickened out and toed the line of the headmistress, ordering the students

to abide by the dictates of Ms. Rhodaline Addo.

Master Marhguy and Master Nkrabea, therefore, sued the School’s Board of Governors, the Minister of Education, Ghana Education Service and the Attorney General to enforce their

fundamental Human Rights.

Meanwhile, policy the think-tank, Alliance for Social Equity and Public Accountability (ASEPA) has called for the dismissal of the Achimota School headmistress for her headstrong

infringement of the rights of the students.

“We call for the immediate removal of the Headmistress and the entire Management of Achimota School from office to serve as a deterrent to the other school leaders. The

Ghana Education Service must take this punitive action to show that at least

they are interested in protecting the rights of students in Ghana,” Mensah

Thompson, the Executive Director of ASEPA wrote.