Rape of Keren: Court declines to strike out N10b suit against Premiere Academy

***Hearing fixed for December 7, 2022

An Abuja High Court has rejected the request of Premiere Academy, Lugbe to terminate a suit brought against it by Mrs Vivien Vihimga Akpagher, mother of late 13 year old Keren -Happuch Aondododoo, who was a boarding student of the school.

The suit is predicated on the school’s alleged failure of the duty of care to the late rape victim and negligence.

Keren-Happuch died on June 22, 2021 following health complications after being raped allegedly at her school premises and condom left inside her vagina, which infected her with sepsis and spike her blood sugar leading to hyperglycemia.

As a result of this and the failure of the school – Premiere Academy to take responsibility, her Mother, Mrs Akpagher instituted a civil action against the school on account of failure of the duty of care and negligence.

However, when the case came up yesterday, the court rejected the prayer made by Premiere Academy through its counsel, Olajide-Olaleye Kumuyi, objecting to an application by Mrs Akpagher’s counsel, Barrister Chioma Onyenucheya-Uko, seeking to amend a misnomer in the spelling of the name of the school.

Arguing, Premiere Academy’s counsel had submitted that since the name of his client had been spelt as premier without an ‘e’, he was not a juristic person and can therefore not be sued, urging the court to so hold.

Earlier, Barrister Onyenucheya-Uko had prayed the court for “an order to correct the misnomer in the name of the 1st defendant to wit: Premiere Academy Limited which was wrongly spelt as Premier Academy Limited”.

She submitted that “a Court of law allows the correction of any misnomer which occurs in the course of filing of any process before her especially where the party seeking for the correction of such a misnomer has brought an application before the Court, praying for such correction and stating clearly the circumstances surrounding same.

She cited the case of Gombe State Co-operative, Savings and Loans Limited v. Guarantee Trust Bank Plc & Ors, where the Court of Appeal while considering the issue of misnomer held that it usually occurs when there is a mistake as to the name of a person who sued or was sued or when an action is brought to court under, by or against the wrong name of person.

“We humbly submit that the error in the spelling of the name of the 1st defendant as Premier Academy Limited instead of Premiere Academy Limited is a misnomer”, she concluded.

Delivering her ruling on the request, the judge, Justice Chinyere Elewe Nwecheonwu rejected the arguments of Premiere Academy, seeking to terminate the suit filed by late Keren’s mother.

Consequently, she upheld the arguments of Barrister Onyenucheya-Uko, saying the error was a misnomer, granted the request for the said amendment and adjourned to 7th of December 2022 hearing of the substantive suit, seeking damages from the school for failure of the duty of care and negligence, which led to the rape and death of Keren.

Barrister Uzoma Anaeto is lead counsel for the plaintiff (Mrs Akpagher), while Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN) with whom are Chief Mrs Victoria Awomolo (SAN) and Eyitayo Fatogun (SAN) and others lead the defence of Premiere Academy.