BREAKING (LASG, RTEAN FACE-OFF): NICN REINSTATES UNION'S OPERATION, NULLIFIES CARETAKER COMMITTEE IN LAGOS

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By Aishat Momoh. O.

The National Industrial Court of Nigeria has delivered judgement on the face-off between the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria and the Lagos State Parks and Garages.

Justice Maureen Esowe, while delivering her judgement, ordered the reinstatement of the operations of the RTEAN in Lagos State, nullifiying the state government’s appointment of a caretaker committee.

Responding to the Judgement delivered on Tuesday, Mr. Taiwo Kupolati, the counsel to the Lagos State Government and LASPAGA administrator, said they will study the judgement and ensure to act on it accordingly.

In order to challenge the Lagos state government for allegedly dissolving the elected executive committee of the union in the state and appointing a caretaker body, known as the Parks and Garages Administrators, RTEAN filed a lawsuit with the ID number: NICN/LA/381/2022 in October 2022.

The state’s governor, its attorney general, and its special transportation adviser, Sola Giwa, are named as defendants in the lawsuit.

The Lagos State Commissioner of Police and each member of the caretaker committee make up the 4th through 37th defendants.

A trade union that has been registered with the government under the Trade Unions Act of 2004 cannot be interfered with by the government, according to the union’s legal representative in January, Elisha Kurah (SAN).

He continued by noting that the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment is responsible for handling such issues and that the state cannot dissolve the union.

“The government dissolved RTEAN, suspended its operations and took over the garages.

“The union is challenging Lagos State since union matters are under the federal ministry,” he said.

Adebayo Haroun, the state government’s attorney, said that rather than breaking the law or ending the national body’s operations in the state, the government instead established the ad hoc committee to keep the peace after violence broke out between the unions.

In his arguments, Taiwo Kupolati (SAN), the attorney representing the 5th to 37th defendants, claimed that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had the authority to uphold national peace.

“There was a crisis and the governor exercised his authority as the Chief Security Officer of the state and put up a committee to be in charge of garages for peace to reign.

“The government issued a document to ensure public safety and order. And since the ad-hoc committee was set up, there has been peace,”

Both counsel also filed notices of preliminary objections, urging the court to dismiss the suit brought by way of originating summons, in view of the conflicting facts deposed to by the parties.

There was no appearance nor filing of court processes by the NPF, Lagos, who are the fourth defendants.

JUDGEMENT

Justice Maureen Esowe, held that the act of the LASG, in suspending the national unions operations in the state and setting up a caretaker committee is illegal and unconstitutional,

She held that the government and the Police should have intervened by arresting and prosecuting those behind the fracas and not to inquire into the dispute.

The court also restrained the state government from further interfering with the operations of the union’s executive members.

The court ordered the police to refrain from intimidating the union’ s officers and to remove all barricades it imposed around their secretariat and to grant them unfettered Access to their offices.

The judge also dismissed the defendants’ preliminary objections to the suit, saying the matter is straight forward, with no serious dispute to warrant an exchange of pleadings.

Reacting to the judgment, Mr Kupolati said he will study it and act accordingly

While the state counsel, Adekunle Laditan, told the court that the state, being a law abiding government, would also study the decision.