19 dismissed ICCON workers demand reinstatement after court verdict

Nineteen dismissed staff of the Institute of Chartered Chemists of Nigeria (ICCON) have demanded their immediate reinstatement following a judgment by the National Industrial Court.

The affected employees — Peter Aphunu, Odumani Okpodien, Julie Ezoen, Jonathan Dolor, Oghenetega Uduophori, Francisca Udoro, Fredrick Ojonuba, Alero Edema, Ovye Mari, Victor Nangil, Sani Musa, Moses Ominyi, Onome Idejeneba, Ayotunde Osibanjo, Solomon Showunmi, Abdullahi Solanke, Lukeman Okey, Olarenwaju Alaya, and Onyinye Odilinye –were among 40 candidates recruited by ICCON in September 2011.

In October 2013, they were dismissed by ICCON. The institute alleged procedural irregularities in their recruitment.

The termination of their appointments followed an investigative panel’s report.

Onyebuchi Chukwu, the minister of health at the time, allegedly approved the termination of their appointments.

However, 21 other employees recruited when the sacked 19 workers were employed, are still in the service of ICCON.

Dissatisfied with the dismissal, the affected staff approached the court, arguing that the termination of their appointment was unfair and politically motivated.

The claimants said they were perceived as allies of Jay Oghifo, a former registrar of the institute, who had sued the federal ministry of health over his suspension.

They also claimed that the investigative panel denied them the right to be heard, violating their fundamental right to a fair hearing.

The claimants maintain that only ICCON’s governing council, as established by the ICCON Act, has the legal authority to handle matters of recruitment and termination.

They accused the health ministry of overstepping its bounds by interfering with ICCON’s employment decisions.

‘DISMISSAL IS NULL AND VOID’

On May 21, 2024, after years of protracted legal battles, I.G Nweneka, judge of the industrial court in Lagos, ruled in favour of the claimants, declaring their disengagement unlawful, null, and void.

The court ordered their immediate reinstatement and directed ICCON and the ministry of health to pay their salary arrears from the date of their termination.

“Relief six seeks an order setting aside the purported disengagement of the Claimants from the service of the 3rd Defendant in that same is contrary to and inconsistent with the ICCON Act CAP 112, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, the Public Service Rules and the principle of fair hearing as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria [as amended]. I adopt my reasoning and conclusion in paragraphs 24, 25, and 26[c] and [d] above and hold that this claim succeeds,” the judge ruled.

ICCON YET TO IMPLEMENT JUDGMENT

However, eight months after the court’s verdict, the management of ICCON and the federal ministry of health are yet to reinstate the disengaged workers.

The claimants have made several efforts to resume but to no avail.

On Tuesday, they met with Wilford Jwalshik, the ICCON registrar, and demanded their immediate reinstatement in compliance with the judgment.

Jwalshik reportedly claimed not to have received the “full extent” of the interpretation of the court ruling.

The registrar said he is yet to receive a directive from the ministry of health, adding that the institute will appeal the verdict.

Following the outcome of the meeting, the claimants issued a statement, demanding their immediate reinstatement.

“Due to dissatisfaction with the meeting held with the Registrar, ICCON on Tuesday 21st of January 2025 concerning the resumption and payment of all entitlements, the following points need to be addressed,” the statement reads.

“For the Institute to honour all the 10 orders especially order 7 compelling the 3rd and 4th defendants to reinstate the claimants who were unlawfully disengaged from service of the Institute in 2013.

“We should be shown our offices and assigned duties accordingly and be included in the payroll for January 2025 salary and beyond.

“We want to know what has been done concerning order 8 compelling the 3rd and 4th defendants and their privies to pay to the claimants their full entitlement and remuneration from the date of purported disengagement from service to date.

“The Institute should pay the cost of litigation as stipulated in the ruling which is One Million Naira in favour of the claimants.”

Efforts to reach Jwalshik for comments were unsuccessful, as calls to his line went unanswered, and text messages received no responses.