Dr. Ajewumi Bili Raji V University Of Ilorin & Ors (2018)

LAWGLOBAL HUB Lead Judgment Report

MARY UKAEGO PETER-ODILI, J.S.C.

This appeal is against the decision of the Court of Appeal, sitting at Ilorin, Coram: Aboyi John Ikongbeh, Tijjani Abdullahi and Helen Moronkeji, Ogunwumiju JJCA on 31st May, 2006.

In the said judgment the Court of Appeal, or Lower Court or Court below upheld the decision of the trial Court and dismissed the appeal to the effect that the employment of the appellant was rightly terminated by the respondents.

BACKGROUND FACTS:

The appellant joined the service of the 1st respondent University on 7th January, 1991 and by the year 2000 he had become a Senior Lecturer in English in the department of Modern European Languages, Faculty of Arts of the University.

In February, 2000, the appellant was awarded the Alexander Von Humboldt Research Fellowship tenable in the Federal Republic of Germany. The appellant thereupon applied for leave to utilize the external award from the Administration of the University. His application in this regard was expressly supported by his Head of Department and the Dean of the Faculty of Arts.

1

When, by 13th March, 2000, it dawned on the appellant that the Appointments and Promotions Committee of the University, which is the body invested with such power, would not be convened before March 29th, 2000, the scheduled date for his departure for the award, the appellant forwarded an application directly to the Vice-Chancellor, the 4th respondent, for executive approval of his application for leave to utilize the scholarship award.

The appellant left for the Federal Republic of Germany on the 29th March, 2000 to utilize the award at which time the 4th respondent had not made any response to the application of the appellant, despite the urgency.

Immediately after the appellant had left the Country, the 4th respondent ordered the Bursary Department to stop the salary of the appellant. The appellant was eventually accused of absconding from the University. At the end of some disciplinary proceedings on this allegation, the appellant was directed by the 2nd respondent to return to the University on December 21, 2000. The letter conveying this directive was received by the appellant in Germany on December 19, 2000, id est, two days before the expiry of the ultimatum.

2

The employment of the appellant with the University was terminated on the premise of his failure to return to the University on the December 21, 2000 without the benefit of any hearing as to why he could not comply with the directive.

It was sequel to this that the appellant filed this action at the trial Court claiming the reliefs contained in the Originating Summons which spans pages 1 and 2 of the Record in this appeal. As indicated above, the learned trial judge dismissed the case of the appellant. The appellant appealed to the Court below which dismissed his appeal and further aggrieved has appealed to the Supreme Court.

On the 5th day of March, 2018, the learned counsel for the appellant, Dayo Akinlaja SAN adopted the brief of argument filed on 25/6/2007 and a Reply brief titled Consequentially Further Amended Reply Brief filed on 12/8/13 and deemed filed on 22/1/14. In the appellant’s brief of argument was crafted a sole issue for determination which is thus: –