The Nigerian Bar Association Lawyers with Disabilities Forum (NBA-LWDF) has issued pre-action legal notices demanding N10 million compensation and a public apology for alleged discrimination against a visually-impaired nurse who was denied reasonable accommodations during an entrance examination at the Federal Neuropsychiatric School of Post-Basic Mental Health Nursing in Enugu.
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In three separate letters dated January 22, 2026, and addressed to the Federal Minister of Health, the Provost of the Federal Neuropsychiatric School, and the Chief Medical Director of the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital in Enugu State, the NBA-LWDF detailed what it described as “systemic, deliberate, and reflective of institutional disregard for the rights of persons with disabilities.”
According to the legal notices signed by Patience N. Etumudon, Chairperson of NBA-LWDF, and Justice Christopher, Chairman of the Litigation Committee, Ms. Uche Olivia, a registered nurse with visual impairment, sat for the entrance examination into the Federal Neuropsychiatric School of Post-Basic Mental Health Nursing, Enugu, on March 22, 2025.
Prior to the examination, she formally requested reasonable accommodations, including but not limited to large-print question papers, a reader/scribe, and/or additional time, necessary to facilitate her participation given her disability.
“Despite these requests and reminders shortly before the examination, the School failed to provide any accommodation. On the day of the examination, the School wilfully failed, refused, and neglected to provide any accommodation whatsoever,” the legal notice stated.
The NBA-LWDF stated that their client was subjected to undue delay, humiliation, dismissive conduct, and was effectively compelled to attempt an examination she could not reasonably access.
“When she sought assistance from an examiner and the Provost, she was told to ‘answer only what she could see,’ a statement that is demeaning, discriminatory, and wholly indefensible in law and ethics,” the legal notice stated.
The lawyers described the statement as particularly egregious given that it was made to a person with visual impairment who had specifically requested accommodations to enable her to see the examination materials.
The NBA-LWDF argued that the conduct of the institutions supervised by the Federal Ministry of Health constitutes a flagrant breach of their client’s right to dignity of the human person and freedom from discrimination contrary to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The legal notices cited the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018, and other relevant laws which impose a mandatory duty on public institutions to provide reasonable accommodations to persons with disabilities, particularly in access to education and examinations.
“The failure complained of was not accidental; it was systemic, deliberate, and reflective of institutional disregard for the rights of persons with disabilities,” the NBA-LWDF stated.
In the letter to the Federal Ministry of Health, the lawyers emphasized that “the Ministry bears supervisory responsibility for ensuring compliance with federal laws and policies within institutions under its control. The failure to ensure compliance constitutes a breach of statutory duty.”
In the letter to the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, the lawyers stated: “The Hospital bears responsibility for the actions and omissions of the School operating within its institutional framework. Your failure to prevent or address this discriminatory treatment is a breach of statutory duty and constitutes a clear violation of our Client’s constitutional right to dignity and freedom from discrimination.”
The legal notices stated that as a result of the acts and omissions, Ms. Uche Olivia has suffered:
- Psychological trauma
- Public humiliation
- Loss of opportunity
- Unlawful exclusion from an educational process for which she was otherwise qualified
“The actions of officials within your institution have subjected her to humiliation, exclusion, and unlawful discrimination,” the notice to the hospital stated.
The NBA-LWDF gave all three institutions thirty (30) days from receipt of the letters to meet the following demands:
1. Public Apology: Issue a formal written apology to Ms. Uche Olivia, to be published on the institutions’ official platforms and in two (2) national dailies.
2. Compensation: Pay N10,000,000.00 (Ten Million Naira only) as compensation.
3. Institutional Reforms:
- For the Ministry: Issue enforceable directives mandating disability-inclusive practices in federal health institutions
- For the School: Give a written undertaking to comply with disability-inclusive examination standards
- For the Hospital: Commit in writing to institutional compliance with disability-inclusive standards
The NBA-LWDF made it clear that failure to comply with these demands within the stipulated period would result in immediate legal action.
“We shall proceed to institute legal action without further notice. This notice shall be relied upon as compliance with all statutory pre-action requirements,” the letters stated.
The legal actions would include seeking declaratory reliefs, damages, injunctive orders, and ancillary reliefs in a competent court of law.
The case represents a significant test of Nigeria’s commitment to implementing the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018, particularly in educational institutions.
The Act was enacted to eliminate discrimination against persons with disabilities and to establish a National Commission for Persons with Disabilities to ensure their full integration into society.
Section 3 of the Act specifically prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities in educational institutions, while Section 19 mandates that educational institutions provide reasonable accommodations to ensure that persons with disabilities are not excluded from the general education system.
The NBA-LWDF’s action signals that the legal profession, through its specialized forum for lawyers with disabilities, is prepared to aggressively enforce these rights and hold public institutions accountable for violations.
Legal experts note that the case highlights a broader pattern of discrimination faced by persons with disabilities in Nigerian educational institutions, where requests for reasonable accommodations are often ignored or treated as special favors rather than legal rights.
The fact that Ms. Uche Olivia is a registered nurse seeking post-basic training—meaning she is already a qualified professional—makes the denial of accommodations even more difficult to justify, as it effectively blocks her from advancing in her chosen profession despite her qualifications and abilities.
PRE-ACTION NOTICE OF INTENTION TO COMMENCE LEGAL PROCEEDINGSAs of the time of this report, none of the three institutions—the Federal Ministry of Health, the Federal Neuropsychiatric School of Post-Basic Mental Health Nursing, or the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital in Enugu—had issued any public response to the legal notices.
The 30-day ultimatum means the institutions have until late February 2026 to comply with the demands or face litigation.
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