Seasoned Journalist, Abdul Malik Kweku Baako, has advised the management of the Achimota School not to seek an appeal over the High Court ruling that two Rastafarian students must be admitted into the school.
The Rasta students were asked to shave their dreadlocks before they gain enrollment but they sued the school, asking the court to “declare that the failure and or refusal of the 1st Respondent (Achimota School Board of Governors) to admit or enrol the Applicant on the basis of his Rastafarian religious inclination, beliefs and culture characterized by his keeping of Rasta, is a violation of his fundamental human rights and freedoms guaranteed under the 1992 constitution particularly Articles 12(1), 23, 21(1)(b)(c)”.
They further prayed the court for ”an order directed at [Achimota School] to immediately admit or enrol the applicant to continue with his education unhindered” and also sought compensation for the ”inconvenience, embarrassment, waste of time, and violation of his fundamental human rights and freedoms”.
The Human Rights Division of the High Court, on Monday, June 1, ruled that the students should be admitted into the Achimota school.
But the Achimota school Board says they disagree with the court ruling and has, therefore ”directed its lawyers to appeal against the ruling”.
“The Governing Board of Achimota School . . . has learned of the outcome of the case brought against it by two persons who had earlier applied to be admitted in the school. The school board disagrees with the ruling of the court,” the school further said in a press statement copied to Peacefmonline.com.
To Kweku Baako, the Achimota school and Rastafarian students’ brouhaha is a non-issue.
“I thought this whole thing was overblown. I didn’t get the point. If they have the Rasta and they come to misbehave, yes, then you take action. But the mere fact that they have dreadlocks and so they will inspire other students to do the same or something else, I was finding it very difficult to appreciate the logic behind the school’s position that their rules and regulations, some of which do not allow for you to grow your hair that way,” he told host Kwami Sefa Kayi on Peace FM’s ”Kokrokoo”.
He, therefore, asked the school Board to drop their appeal.
”To be honest with you, left for me, they should forget the appeal for us to move on.”