Musibau Olatidoye Adeniyi V. Ejigbo Local Government (2013)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

MOJEED ADEKUNLE OWOADE, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment)

This is an appeal against the judgment of A.O. Ogunlade J. delivered on 03/07/2009 at the Ejigbo Judicial Division of the High Court of Osun State.

The appellant who was Plaintiff at the Court below was an employee of the Respondent. The Appellant was an Assistant Executive Officer and was assigned as a payment voucher clerk attached to the Primary Health Centre (PHC) of the Ejigbo Local Government. The respondent alleged that the appellant defrauded it to the tune of Five Hundred and Twenty-Seven Thousand, One Hundred and Eighty-Nine Naira, Forty-four Kobo (N527, 189.44K) by manipulation of payment vouchers and collection of some staff salaries. This was denied by the appellant. The respondent after issuing the appellant with a query on the missing money set up a five man “panel of inquiry to investigate the allegation of stealing against Mr. M.O. Adeniyi, an Assistant Executive Officer (Account) on Grade Level 06 with the Local Government.

Between the setting up and the conclusion of the work of the panel of inquiry, the respondent also reported the appellant along with five others to the police and prosecution for the offence of stealing stated against them in Charge No. MEJ/17C/2003 before the Chief Magistrate Court, Ejigbo. Subsequently, the respondent formally withdrew the charges in the Chief Magistrate Court brought against the appellant and the other five accused persons.

By a letter dated 19/3/2003 and signed by one Alhaji S.O. Salawu (Director of Personnel Management) for Chairman Ejigbo Local Government, the appellant was informed of his dismissal from the service of the Local Government as follows inter alia.

“Following a critical examination of the report and recommendation of a five-man panel of enquiry set up on the allegation of fraud and embezzlement of public fund to which you have been undicted (sic) indicted, I am directed to inform you of your dismissal from the Local Government Service with immediate effect in line with Regulation 39 (f) of the Local Government staff Regulation (1978) as amended…”

Consequent on the above, the appellant on 10/3/2006 issued a writ of summons accompanied by a statement of claim which claimed against the respondent as follows:

1. A declaration that the Plaintiff dismissal as contained in the Defendant’s letter dated the 19th day of March, 2003 in so far as contravening the regulation and guideline and law governing the Plaintiff employment is illegal, unlawful, null and void and of no effect whatsoever.
2. An order of mandatory injunction compelling the Defendant to reinstate the Plaintiff with immediate effect to his position as employee of the Defendant.
3. An order compelling the Defendant to pay the Plaintiff all his unpaid salaries and entitlements from January 2003 when his salary and other emolument were abruptly stopped till the date of judgment and to effect his promotion accordingly as he may be entitled.

Pleadings were filed and exchanged. At the trial, the appellant as Plaintiff testified for himself and called no other witness. The respondent called six (6) witnesses in defence to the appellant’s claims.

The Learned Trial Judge dismissed the appellant’s claim. The Learned Trial Judge concluded his Judgment at pages 106 – 107 of the record as follows:

“The Chairman of the defendant instructed the DDPM to constitute a panel who were mostly Senior Staff of the Commission who conducted the investigation and submitted their findings to the Chairman of the defendant. The plaintiff was given a fair hearing by the panel. I cannot believe his story that he was never invited by the panel. To my mind, the defendant has appropriately applied the salient provisions of the unified Local Government – (staff). Regulations of 1978 as amended in dismissing the Plaintiff as it has been proved beyond reasonable doubt that he perpetrated the fraud”

He concluded:

“The plaintiff is a drowning man who is struggling to grip anything that can rescue him from the impending doom. Evidence placed before me revealed that he truly committed the fraud as his subsequent acts of confessional statement and paying back the first installment of Twenty Thousand Naira (N20, 000.00) strengthened the act of commission. The reliefs he sought are therefore rejected by me and the case is hereby dismissed in its entirety…”

Dissatisfied with this Judgment, the appellant filled a Notice of Appeal (containing three grounds of appeal) before this court on 31/08/2009.

The appellant’s grounds of appeal devoid of its particulars are as follows: