The National Industrial Court, sitting in Lagos, has nullified the appointment of Parks and Garages Administrators made by the Lagos state government and reinstated the operations of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, RTEAN, in the state.
The Lagos State government had handed over the running of garages in the state to a caretaker committee of parks and garage administrators, after it dissolved RTEAN, and suspended its operations.
Following its dissolution, RTEAN, represented by its lawyer, Elisha Kurah, SAN, sued the Lagos state government in court in October 2022, challenging its replacement with a caretaker committee, and arguing that the state government has no right to interfere in the affairs of a trade union registered under the Trade Unions Act of 2004. as such matters were handled by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment.
Joined in the lawsuit were the state Governor, the Attorney-General of the state, Sola Giwa, a Special Adviser to the state governor on transportation, the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, and all members of the Caretaker Committee.
However, the state government argued that it neither violated the law nor did it stop the operations of the national body in the state, rather it sought to maintain law and order by creating the ad-hoc committee when violence broke out between the unions.
Delivering judgment on the matter, trial judge, Justice Esowe, on Monday dismissed the preliminary objections to the suit. raised by the defendants, saying it was a straightforward matter within the court's jurisdiction to hear and determine, and with no serious dispute to warrant an exchange of pleadings.
The Court ruled that the Lagos State government acted illegally in suspending the National Union’s operations in the state and setting up a caretaker committee as the action contravenes the provisions of Sections 4 (1), (2)& (3), and 5 (1) &(3), read along with item 34 of the exclusive legislative list, of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
The judge also held that the state government and the Police should have intervened by arresting and prosecuting those responsible for the fracas instead of inquiring into the dispute.
Justice Esowe further restrained the Lagos State government from further interfering with the operations of the RTEAN’s exco and ordered the police to stop intimidating the union’s officers, to remove all barricades it raised around the RTEAN secretariat and to grant them free access to their offices.
Counsel to the Lagos State government and Parks and Garages Administrators said they would act after studying the judgment.
Human Rights. Legal.
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