Total E & P Nigeria Limited V. Mr. Tari Imoladei & Ors (2012)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

PAUL ADAMU GALINJE, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment)

By their statement of claim dated 19 August, 2009, the Respondents herein claimed against the appellant at the High Court of Rivers State sitting at Port Harcourt, the following reliefs:-

“i. A DECLARATION that having regard to the circumstances of the claimants appointment and/or employment, the claimants are in the service or employ [sic] of the Defendant having individually entered into their respective contracts of employment with the Defendant and are therefore not members or staff of the Nigerian Police Force as erroneously portrayed by the Defendant.

ii. A DECLARATION that the claimants are entitled to the same salaries, benefits rights, emoluments, privileges immunities, conditions of service and all legitimate protections as the Defendant has conferred upon its junior staff employees engaged other than in the security services of the Defendant company.

iii. A DECLARATION that not withstanding the appellation, police ranks, police uniforms and other police insignia, the appointments of the claimants were not made in accordance with the provisions of section 18, 19, 20, and 21 of the Police Act, CAP P29 LFN 2004.

iv. AN ORDER mandating the Defendant to take an account and compute all salaries, allowances, bonuses, subsidies and other entitlements howsoever described paid to the other junior staff employees pursuant to the terms conditions and scales of remuneration and other benefits negotiated and prescribed for junior staff employees in the management/NUPENG Negotiation 2002.

v. AN ORDER of perpetual injunction restraining the Defendant from discriminating against the claimants in favour of other junior staff employees in other departments of the Defendant’s company.

vi. AN ORDER mandating the Defendant to pay the claimants through their counsel, the law firm of Falana & Falana’s chambers the sums, if any, found due to the claimants from the Defendant on the taking of the said account and for interest thereon pursuant to the provisions of the Rules of this court and at the rate of 22 per cent from the date of judgment until the final liquidation of the judgment-debt.”

In addition to the claims, the claimants/Respondents by a motion dated 19th August, 2009 and filed on the 21st August, 2009 prayed for interlocutory injunction restraining the Appellant from terminating or dismissing them from service pending the determination of the substantive suit.

While the suit and the motion for injunction were pending, the appointments of the claimants/respondents were terminated by the Commissioner of Police Rivers State Command, Port Harcourt. Based on the notice of dismissal, the claimant/Respondent by a motion dated and filed on the 30th November, 2009 prayed for on order of Mandatory injunction compelling the Appellant to restore the Respondents to their position as Spy Police in the Appellant, being the position they occupied before the appellant issued exhibit A with intention to obstruct whatever order the lower court might make in the Respondent’s application dated 19th of August, 2009 and filed on the 21st August, 2009.

The motion for order of mandatory injunction was heard by Ogbuji J. of the High Court of Rivers State. In a reserved and considered ruling, the learned trial Judge granted the relief sought by the Respondents.

It is against that ruling that the appellant has brought this appeal. Its notice of appeal dated 25th March 2010 and filed on the same date contains eight grounds of appeal.

Parties filed and exchanged briefs of argument.

For the Appellant, three issues have been formulated for determination of the appeal. They read thus:-