The National Industrial Court of Nigeria, sitting in Abuja, on Wednesday, asked the Nigerian Army to reinstate Col. Muhammed Suleiman, after he was dismissed from service.
Justice Sanusi Kado of the Abuja Division of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria gave the order in a judgment on the application brought by the claimant who was dismissed from the Nigerian Army four years ago.
Justice Kado held that the disengagement of Col. Suleiman by the Nigerian Army vied a letter of compulsory retirement in 2016, was ultra vires, illegal, unlawful, null and void.
Col. Suleiman was among 38 army officers of the Nigerian Army allegedly dismissed from service in 2016. He had approached the court to challenge the unlawful dismissal from service on grounds that the army did not follow laid down procedures before relieving him of his service.
Delivering judgment in the suit with number NICN/ABJ/315/16, the judge held that it was not at the behest of the army to hire and fire, adding that once an employment enjoys statutory flavour, appropriate steps in line with the law governing that employment must be taking to bring such employment to an end.
Justice Kado said that having not followed its own rules and guidelines of employment, the action of the army authority in retiring the claimant is unconstitutional, null and void and of no effect.
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He stated that although, the army had cited serious disciplinary offences as grounds for compulsorily retiring the claimant, it nevertheless failed to prove any of such offences said to have been committed by the claimant.
In addition, the court added that the claim of over staying in office which the defendant described as a serious disciplinary offence was not stated in the letter disengaging the claimant from office.
He subsequently, ordered the reinstatement of Col. Suleiman to his rank in the Nigerian Army before he was disengaged in June 9, 2016.
The judge also ordered the payment of all his entitlements from the day he was compulsorily retired till date. The National Industrial Court of Nigeria had in previous separate judgments ordered the Army to reinstate four other affected officers.
They include, Maj. Gen. Nwokoro Ijeoma, Col. Danladi Hassan as well as Lt. Colonels Abdulfatai Mohammed and Thomas Arigbe.
