The Abuja Division of the National Industrial Court has declared as wrongful, the termination of Mrs. Eunice Ojapa’s employment from the University of Ilorin.
Justice Edith Agbakoka on Thursday ordered the University’s Governing Board to pay Mrs Ojapa 5 years salary compensation.
The court also ordered them to pay her outstanding salaries and other emoluments alongside N500,000 cost of action within 60 days.
Background
Mrs. Eunice Ojapa, joined the University of Ilorin Secondary School in 2007 and has risen to the position of Vice Principal (Academics).
Her employment was terminated based on allegations of misconduct, a decision she contested.
She argued that the panel assigned to investigate the matter did not grant her a fair opportunity to explain herself.
In response, the University’s Secondary School Governing Board contended that Mrs. Ojapa failed to provide a satisfactory explanation for the alleged misconduct.
The defendant’s counsel argued that Mrs. Ojapa’s employment lacked statutory backing, making the hearing provided to her a gesture of goodwill from the school.
The board, while justifying their decision based on the panel’s report, urged the court to dismiss the case.
In contrast, Mrs. Ojapa’s counsel asserted that her employment was governed by statutory regulations and that the termination did not follow the prescribed procedure.
Consequently, she prayed the court to grant her client’s claims.
Court’s Decision
After a thorough examination of both parties’ arguments, Justice Agbakoba held that Mrs. Ojapa’s appointment was contractual and lacked evidence of renewal or conversion to a permanent position.
The court also found irregularities in the committee’s composition and the termination recommendation.
Justice Agbakoba ruled that the University’s Vice-Chancellor’s recommendation for Mrs. Ojapa’s termination did not align with the regulations governing her employment.
She therefore declared that the termination of her employer was wrongful.
She also ordered that the University of Ilorin Secondary School Governing Board compensate Mrs. Eunice Ojapa with five years’ worth of salary, settle her outstanding dues, and cover the cost of action of N500,000 within 60 days.