The suit between 10
retired judges of the Oyo State High Court and Governor Adebayo
Alao-Akala will be opened for argument on Tuesday, April 5, 2011.
NEXT gathered in
Ibadan that the state’s Chief Judge, Bolajoko Adeniji, has assigned
Justice Muktar Ladi Abimbola of High Court three to adjudicate in the
matter.
The retired judges,
comprising three Chief Judges, two acting Chief Judges and five judges,
who served for decades in the state’s judiciary, are seeking judicial
redress over non-payment of their severance gratuities.
The claimants are
Justices N.O. Adekola, M.O. Adio, R. G. Oyetunde, A. Adeniran, J.O.
Ige, K. Jimoh, L.O. Arasi, A. Sanda, Atilade Ojo, and S.O. Akintola.
They are also making a case for their late colleague, T.O. Adeniran.
In a suit filed by
their counsel, Lasun Sanusi, they accused the governor and the state’s
Attorney-General and commissioner for Justice, Aare Ladi Abdusalam, of
flouting the provisions of the 1999 constitution, on “Certain Political
Public and Judicial Office Holder (Salaries and Allowances) Act 2002
and the amended Act 2008” alleging the duo conspired to deny them
payment of their gratuities.
In their
originating summons, they prayed the court to determine four posers
which include whether the state government is not bound by the
provisions of the law on the payment of the entitlement; whether,
following their retirement, they are not entitled to the pay; whether
having completed their services in the state’s judicial service, it is
not wrong for the state to deny them their severance entitlement; and
whether the denial should be compensated with interest on the payable
sums.
The claimants, anticipating affirmative reactions to their questions, also seek from the court five consequential reliefs.
“Declaration that
each of the 1st to 10th claimants, including the estate of Late Hon
Justice T.O. Adeniran (rtd) is entitled to be paid severance gratuity
to be based on 300 percent of each claimant’s annual basic salary while
in service.
“Declaration that
the claimants are entitled to be paid interest on their respective
unpaid severance gratuity from the date of their respective successful
completion of their tenure of office till date of judgement and until
the judgement is fully satisfied.
“Order restraining
the defendants to pay the 1st to 10th claimants and the estate of late
Honourable Justice T.A. Adeniran (11th claimant) forthwith their
severance gratuities based on 300 percent annual basic salary of each
of the claimants.
“Order directing
the defendants to pay each of the claimants an estate of Late
Honourable Justice T.A. Adeniran 21 percent interest per annum on the
severance gratuity from the date of their respective retirement till
delivery of judgement and 10 percent interest from the date of
judgement till the judgement is fully satisfied.
“Any such order or further order(s) as this Honourable Court may deem fit to make in the circumstance of this case.
The National
Judicial Council (NJC), in a circular to all heads of courts in the
federal and states judiciary, had written to ‘notify all judicial
officers in the federation that on retirement, they shall be entitled
to payment of severance gratuity based on 300 percent of their annual
basic salaries’, adding that the payment must be made ‘once in life
time after successful completion of tenure of office of the judicial
officer’.
In another circular dated December 21, 2009, the NJC also said, in
respect of the severance gratuity that “the National Judicial Council
is responsible for payment of severance gratuity to only retired
federal judicial officer, while the state government is responsible for
payment of same to state judicial officers”.
