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The court has exclusive jurisdiction in civil causes and matters relating to or connected with any labour, employment, trade unions, industrial relations and matters arising from workplace, the conditions of service, including health, safety, welfare of labour, employee, worker and matter incidental thereto or connected therewith.

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Industrial Court nullifies termination of Account Officer Oluwasegun from Kaduna Polytechnic, orders payment of Salaries from 2020


860 Friday 30th December 2022

The Presiding Judge, Kaduna Judicial Division of the National Industrial Court, Hon. Justice Sinmisola Adeniyi has declared the termination of Mr. Aribido Oluwasegun from service of Kaduna State Polytechnic by the Governing Council as unlawful, null and void and of no effect.

 

The Court ordered the Kaduna State Polytechnic, Registrar, Rector and Governing Council to reinstate Mr. Aribido Oluwasegun to his position as Chief Executive Officer (Account), with payment of the sum of N6,979,144.40 (Six Million, Nine Hundred and Seventy-Nine Thousand, One Hundred and Forty-Four Naira, Forty Kobo) being his salaries, allowances from February 2020 till date, and to refund the sum of N500,000.00 paid by him on the alleged revenue shortfall within 30 days.

 

Justice Adeniyi held that the decision of the Council of the Kaduna State Polytechnic founded on the investigation and the report of the SSDC on the allegations made against Mr. Oluwasegun without affording him his right to fair hearing cannot stand and the failure to keep record is not listed as one the grounds of misconduct under the Polytechnic Senior Staff Conditions and Regulations.   

 

From facts, the Claimant- Mr. Aribido Oluwasegun had averred that the purported termination of his appointment violates the extant provisions of the Senior Staff Conditions and Regulations of the Polytechnic and the principles of natural justice.

 

He submitted that the Institution did not avail him with the documents he requested to prepare his defence and he was denied the opportunity to interrogate those who were invited to make oral representations on the allegations that were levelled against him in the queries.  

 

In defense, the Defendants- Kaduna State Polytechnic, Registrar, Rector and Governing Council maintained that Mr. Oluwasegun was given the opportunity to respond to the allegations of misconduct that were levelled against him and that the termination was lawful as the procedure adopted was in accordance with the Senior Staff Conditions of Service.

 

The Claimant Counsel A. F. Fashola Esq also challenged the validity of the letter of termination of his client appointment that failure to keep records for the school bus ticketing service is not within the meaning of misconduct under the Kaduna Polytechnic Senior Staff Conditions and Regulations and urged the Court to grant the reliefs sought.

 

Delivering the judgment, the presiding Judge, Justice Sinmisola Adeniyi held that the Defendants’ failure to furnish Mr. Oluwasegun with the documents he requested to prepare his defense and denying him the opportunity to interact with the members of staff who made representations on the allegations are obvious breaches of his right to fair hearing.

 

Justice Adeniyi stated that the Committee, being an administrative body and having been conferred with the powers to determine the civil rights and obligations of members of its staff, is bound by such powers conferred on them, to determine the said civil rights and obligations, to act judicially and observe all the implications and attributes of fair hearing. 

 

“Having held that the Defendants did not furnish the Claimants with the documents he required for his defence and having not given him the right to fair hearing by affording him the opportunity to interrogate the witnesses called by the Defendants to testify, the purported termination of the Claimant’s appointment is hereby set aside as same is unlawful, null, void and of no effect whatsoever. I so hold.” Justice Adeniyi

 

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