Alhaji M.K. V. First Bank Of Nigeria Plc & Anor (2011)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

OBANDE OGBUINYA, J.C.A.(Delivering the Leading Judgment)

Sometime in 2005, precisely on 09/11/2005, the appellant’ as a plaintiff, via a writ of summons, instituted an action, which led to this appeal, in suit No. K/657/2005, against the respondents, in the High court of Kano State presided over by Hon. Justice P.A. Mahmoud. The said trial court delivered its judgment on 30/03/2009.

The facts of the case, as can be gleaned from the processes filed by both parties, are simple. The appellant was an employee of the first respondent bank, one of the customers of the first respondent, Alin Baffa and Sons Limited, alleged against the appellant that he made several unauthorized withdrawals, running into huge sums of money, from its account with the first respondent. It also alleged that those withdrawals were made without cheques, or any written instruments, and that caused the first respondent to refund over N25M Naira to the company customer.

Following those allegations, an investigative panel was set up by the first respondent and it sat, in Kano on 08/07/2004, over the allegations. The appellant and the complainant were duly represented and fairly heard in that panel. The panel forwarded its report to the Head office Disciplinary committee of the first respondent for further action. The committee sat, on 16/08/2004, in the first respondent’s head office in Lagos and the appellant was duly and fairly heard. The committee found him “guilty as charged” for a dismissible offence over the allegations, but recommended for a termination of his employment. However, the first respondent ignored the recommendation and dismissed the appellant from its employment. On 20/10/2005, the first respondent wrote a letter to the appellant and demanded for a refund of the sum of N25.7M Naira being an unauthorized sum withdrawn from the account of the company, Alin Baffa and Sons Limited. The first respondent warned, in that letter, that his failure to comply would lead to legal consequences, including a resort to the Economic and Financial crimes commission (EFCC). The appellant took the letter as libellous for being published to other officials of the first respondent.

Sequel to the dismissal and the claimed defamatory letter, the appellant approached the High Court of Kano State, on 09/11/2005, and claimed against the respondents as follows: damages for wrongful dismissal from the employment of the first respondent, payment of accrued pension in lump sum, payment of gratuity or leaving service benefits, payment for performance in 2003 and 2004 and damages for defamation against the respondents jointly and severally.

The matter went through a full-scale trial. The appellant testified in person to prove his case. The respondents fielded one witness to disprove the appellant’s case. Tons of documentary evidence, exhibits, were tendered in the proceedings. After the addresses of learned counsel, the lower court, in a considered judgment, on page 258 of the printed record, held:- “On the whole therefore I find that this claim fails and I accordingly dismiss it.”

Aggrieved by that decision, the appellant filed the instant appeal, via a notice of appeal filed on 29/04/2009 hosting ten grounds of appeal.

Subsequently, the appellant sought for and was granted leave by this court to file an additional ground of appeal. Following that leave, the appellant filed an eleven-ground of amended notice of appeal on 21/06/2010. Briefs of argument were duly filed and exchanged by parties.

When the appeal came up for hearing on 01/03/2011, both parties were duly represented. On that day, learned counsel for the appellant, Olajide Ayodele, SAN, adopted the appellant’s brief of argument, filed on 21/06/2010, as representing his arguments in support of the appeal.

He relied particularly from pages 16-30 of the brief in urging the court to allow the appeal. In the same vein, learned counsel for the respondents’ S. Eigbedon, Esq., adopted the respondents’ brief of argument, filed on 19/07/2010, as forming his submissions against the appeal. He also adopted the respondent’s notice, filed on 19/07/2010, with the arguments thereon contained in the respondent’s brief of argument. He urged the Court to dismiss the appeal.

In the appellant’s brief of argument’ three issues for determination were crafted to wit:

“(i) whether the trial court correctly interpreted paragraph 11 (c) at page 39 of the Employee’s Hand book which is at page 187A of the record of proceedings.

(ii) Whether the learned trial Judge was correct in stating that the plaintiffs claims (sic) is neither for wrongful termination nor for wrongful dismissal?

(iii) whether the learned trial Judge was correct when she held that the plaintiff did not prove publication of libel?”