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President Buhari Asks Court To Order ASUU To Call Off Strike
The administration of President Muhammadu Buhari urged the National Industrial Court on Monday to force the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to end its seven-month strike.
Adamu Adamu, the minister of education, has been added as a claimant, while the ASUU president is the only defendant.
Minister of Labor and Employment Chris Ngige took the case before Justice Polycarp Hamman on behalf of the government, asking the judge to order ASUU to resume academic activities among other things.
Ebunolu Adegoruwa (SAN) informed the court that he was representing the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and that he had filed a lawsuit on the same subject matter before the same court when the case that was scheduled for mention came up.
He added that SERAP is the claimant and the federal government is the defendant in the lawsuit NICN/ABJ/269/2022, requesting that the case be consolidated and SERAP added as a defendant in place of various lawsuits on the same topic before the same court.
T.A. Gazali (SAN), the claimant’s attorney, responded that the application was premature and that SERAP did not need to orally request to be joined in the lawsuit in a case where its name was not on the cause list.
ASUU’s attorney, Femi Falana, responded by telling the court that both counsels had informed him on Monday that they would be filing some documents.
In addition, Mr. Falana sought the court to adjourn the case so that both attorneys could file their documents and return later, after he had answered to the claimant’s process.
The defendant had not denied the existence of the lawsuit SERAP had filed and served on them, Mr. Adegoruwa said. Mr. Falana said he would need three days to respond to the procedure, and Mr. Gazali said he would file his process on Monday.
The judge decided to postpone the case until Friday so it could be discussed further. Prior to the adjourned date, he instructed both the claimant and defendant to file and serve their respective pleadings.
Additionally, Mr. Hamman decided that SERAP’s request to be included in the lawsuit was too early. Additionally, the lawsuit asks for an expedited hearing to resolve the conflict.
In the referral document, the claimant also asks the court to “interpret in its entirety the provisions of Section 18, LFN 2004, especially as it applies to the cessation of the strike once a trade dispute is apprehended” by the labour minister and “inquire into the legality or otherwise of the ongoing prolonged strike by ASUU leadership and members which had continued even after apprehension”
(NAN)
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