Court Dismisses Corporate Affairs Commission Suit Against Civil Service Union

The Hon. President of the National Industrial Court, His Lordship, Hon. Justice Benedict Kanyip, Ph.D. has dismissed the case filed by the Corporate Affairs Commission against the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations and Civil Service Technical and Recreational Service Employees for lacking merit.

The Court held that the Corporate Affairs Commission’s argument that the amalgamated union has been persistent in unionizing the senior staff of the agency and even threatening industrial action which has the capacity of crippling the operations of the claimant was not backed by any evidence.

From facts, the claimant- Corporate Affairs Commission had asked for determination amongst others whether the union can operate or parade itself as a union for the senior staff of the agency or can unionize the senior staff of the agency against the judgment of the court delivered in 2019, that flagrant disobedience to court orders by unionizing staff of the commission to cripple and embarrass the agency as its reason for initiating the matter.

In defense, the defendant- the amalgamated union described the commission allegation as false and submitted that the union was merely agitating for the welfare and wellbeing of its members.

In addition, the union’s senior learned counsel, Okon Efut SAN asked the court to dismiss the case for lack of jurisdiction on the ground that the judgment of the court in question has been appealed and the commission was not a party in the proceedings that gave rise to the judgment sought to be interpreted and cannot move the Court under any guise to sit on appeal over its judgment, urged the Court to so hold and protect its integrity.

In opposition, the claimant counsel O. O. Olowolafe Esq described the union submission as misplaced, stressed that the case is not for the Court to sit on appeal over its judgment but for the interpretation of her judgment within the ambits of the Constitution, urged the court to grant the reliefs sought.

Delivering the judgment in Abuja, the presiding Judge, Hon. Justice Benedict Kanyip affirmed the jurisdiction of the court to interprete its own decision, described the argument of the union that only the Court of Appeal has jurisdiction to review the judgment sought to be interpreted as misplaced.

The court ruled that no iota of evidence before the Court shown that the amalgamated union is attempting any unionization of senior staff of the Commission contrary to the dictates of the judgment delivered in December 2019, dismissed the case in its entirety for lacking merit.