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By Lukman Olabiyi
Three former security personnel of Base Aviation Systems Nigeria Limited have pleaded with the company to obey court judgement by paying the debt owed them following their wrongful dismissal.
The three ex-employees, Musa Abdulsalam, Sunday Samuel and Ovili Emmanuel (now late), had, through their lawyer, Charles Ogwu, dragged the company before the National Industrial Court, Lagos, over their dismissal.
Delivering the judgment, ustice I. J. Essien ordered Base Aviation Systems Nigeria Limited to pay the sum of N7 million to the three applicants for illegally terminating their appointments. The trio were employed by the company on different dates as security personnel, but their employment were terminated on the same date, due to allegations of theft which caused the company to lose property worth N1.9 million.
In their affidavit in support of the suit against the company, the claimants averred that sometime on January 1, 2010, while they were carrying out their respective lawful duties for the company, the defendant accused them and other staffs of conspiracy to steal and stealing transit cargo valued at N1, 940,000.
They claimed that based on the allegation, the company handed them over to police for prosecution, and they were tried by the court of competent jurisdiction, which later discharged and acquired them. The claimants said during their travail, the company paid their salaries from January till March before stopping, without giving them any reason, nor were they informed that their employment had been terminated.
Delivering its judgment, the court held that the claimants’ employment with the company were valid and subsisting up to November 4, 2016, having not been duly terminated by the defendant.
The court declared that the refusal of the defendant to recall the claimants to their jobs was illegal, wrongful and contrary to the terms of contract entered with them.
“The claimants are entitled to their monthly salaries for 70 months. The defendant shall pay to each of the claimants the following sums as areas of salaries for 70 months. First claimant, Ovili Emmanuel, N22, 344, 160; second claimant, Musa Abdulsalam, N 1, 847, 000 and third claimant, Sunday Samuel, N 1,400,000.
“The defendant shall pay sums of N500, 000 each to the claimants as damages and also pay N50, 000 each to the claimants as cost of action,” the court held.
However, when Daily Sun contacted the company’s Managing Director, Mr. Joseph Abel, for reaction, he disclosed that they had already appealed the court ruling. Besides, he said the judgement’s debt sum is domiciled in one of the company’s bank accounts, which the claimants got garnishee orders against.
Abel explained that refusal to pay the judgement debt was because of the appeal the company filed and the garnishee order.
