Rights Lawyer Obasi Considering Suing Abuja School Over Alleged Complicity In Schoolchild Exorcism 

ABUJA — Human rights lawyer Ikechukwu Obasi discloses that he is considering legal action against Durumi II Junior Secondary School, Abuja, over what he calls the school’s complicity in a “vicious” child exorcism carried out by actress Tonto Dikeh on 6 March 2026.

In a press statement issued after an undercover probe by Genesis Eririoma (Critical Thinking Education Initiative), Obasi said the initiative’s findings—published by Sahara Reporters—flagged “witchcraft narratives” inside the school, including an alleged claim by the principal that some pupils are “witches” and use food to “initiate” others. He called it “preposterous” for a school meant to inculcate critical thinking to promote superstition.

Obasi emphasised that he had already filed a ₦200 million fundamental-rights suit at the FCT High Court on behalf of a JSS1 pupil of Durumi II, accusing Dikeh of conducting a degrading “deliverance” on the girl and posting the footage online—alleging violations of dignity and privacy under the Nigerian Constitution and the Child Rights Act.

The suit seeks declarations that the act breached the child’s rights, an order for Dikeh to delete the video/images and publish an apology in three national dailies, a perpetual injunction against similar rites on any child, and damages.

Citing s.216(b) of the Penal Code Act, which punishes accusing or threatening to accuse anyone of witchcraft with up to two years’ imprisonment or a fine, Obasi said his team may petition relevant agencies to investigate the school and/or join Durumi II JSS as a co-respondent in the pending fundamental-rights case.

The Critical Thinking Education Initiative report also urged the FCT Secondary Education Board and child-protection bodies to probe the incident and the school’s response; it noted the principal denied the deliverance happened inside the school, a claim the group said was inconsistent with widely circulated footage.