The National Industrial Court sitting in Ibadan, Oyo State, has ruled in favour of Adenike Ogunshe, a senior lecturer at the University of Ibadan, who was dismissed by the school’s governing council in 2016 over her refusal to vacate an office space.The judgement was delivered by Justice J. D. Peters of the court on June 24, 2021.
Ogunshe had in September 2016 instituted a suit against the university and its governing council after her appointment as a senior lecturer was terminated.
From the judgement, it was stated that Ogunshe was directed by her Head of Department to vacate her office, which is said to be a ‘preparatory room’ for the final year laboratory.
She, however, refused to comply with this directive arguing that there were many other offices in the annex but only hers was labelled ‘a preparatory laboratory’.
It was also stated that the department provided her with another office but with claims of threat to life, she refused to move to the office.
The court, in its ruling on June 24, however, held that the defendants — the university and her governing council — had failed to comply with the applicable rules and regulations guiding the employment relationship relating to termination as stated in the university’s staff information handbook of rules and regulations.
The court also held that the ’employment of a staff (member) with statutory flavour who has been found guilty of misconduct cannot be terminated by the employer as presented in this case without full compliance with the established disciplinary procedure’.
Hence, the court ordered the immediate reinstatement of Ogunshe to her position as Senior Lecturer in the Department of Microbiology.
It also held that the university should pay her a sum of N13, 607, 028.08 as salary arrears of the claimant from August 15, 2016 to the date of the judgement.
The defendants were also ordered to pay Ogunshe N200, 000 as the cost of the legal proceedings.
