Law Tips (Tip 459) by Onyekachi Umah, Esq., LLM. ACIArb(UK)

Running universities where students’ liberty is restricted is unconstitutional and illegal.

After the biological characteristics of human being, the next characteristic is “Human Right”. When Human Right is unlawfully withdrawn, limited, affected, restricted, denied, suppressed or even threatened, human beings become mere beings. Fundamental Human Rights are sacrosanct, inalienable, “un-waive-able” and clearly contained in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. No human being can orally or in writing suspend or waive his/her fundamental human rights except the Constitution of Nigeria allows such.

One of the fundamental human rights in Nigeria, is the “Right to Personal Liberty”. It is simply, the right to be free, “not-arrested”, “not-detained”, unrestricted, unfettered, unchained or held back. It is the sweet right of being free to “go, come, stay and flex” within the law without violating another person’s rights.

Like most laws and rights, there is an exception to the Right to Personal Liberty. One of the six (6) exceptions to the “Right to Personal Liberty”, is that a person’s liberty may be restricted for education or welfare purposes of the person but that is where such a person is less than eighteen (18) years old. Hence, where schools restrict personal liberty of students that are 18 years old and above, it is illegal and unconstitutional. The weak argument that such students or their parents signed an agreement to obey school rules/regulations is immaterial. Fundamental Human Rights cannot be illegally limited, restricted or violated even with the oral or written consent of victim of such violation. Among the common human rights violations in schools, are;
1. Restricting students’ access to and out of campus, access to mobile phones/internet, access to relate with opposite sex, access to wear choice clothes and access to have visitors even in open/common centers.
2. Forcing students to do labour, sports or religious practises
3. Detaining students in school detention centers/security posts for weeks without immediately handing them over to security agencies.
Above common violations accept Right to Personal Liberty and many other nam rights.

Students that are 18 years and more but were I the past, or are been presently restricted or merely threatened to be restricted and their human rights violated, have a right to seek damages against their institutions for unlawful arrest/detention among others, as provided by the constitution. They are entitled to compensation and public apology.

My authorities are sections 35, 318 and 319 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.

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