By Our reporter

            “Equity can only assist a person who does equity himself. Equity can only assist a person who seeks it with very clean hands” -  Justice Kado

Above are words of Hon. Justice Sanusi Kado, of the National Industrial Court, Abuja Division as he resolved a 3 years legal dispute between Orient Magazine Newspaper and Communication LTD, publisher of Orient Daily Newspaper & Orient Energy Magazine, and its erstwhile Abuja Bureau Chief, ‘Omosola Akingboye.

Sola had in July 2017 resigned his appointment after a meritorious seven years service, which though the company inexplicably reduced to five years by virtue of a re-issued appointment letter to staff sometimes in 2012 against the 2010 of the journalist’s full employment.

At his resignation in 2017, all efforts to get the company’s reaction to his resignation letter vis-à-vis his entitlements yielded no result in line with the Nigerian Labour Act. The journalist’s unpaid outstanding salary arrears, pension deductions, Payee Income Tax, and other official expenses incurred on behalf of the organizations were all denied by the company.

It would also be recalled that in the wake of the Sola’s lawsuit against the company in 2017, the company opted for ‘out of court settlement’, and the court thus referred parties to the ADR of the Industrial Court for amicable settlements.

At the arbitration panel, the company tactically rejected all statutory claims, said it would settle only for the unpaid outstanding salary arrears, which expectedly did not go down well with the complainant, and all matters returns to the main court for continuity.

Matters arising

Contrary to the law, and as stipulated in Omosola’s offer of Appointment Letter, no statutory deductions from the journalist’s wages were remitted by the company into any Pension Account in the seven years of labour for the organization, neither was PAYEE Income Tax remitted to the government among other expenses incurred on behalf of Orient Newspapers as the Head, Abuja branch.

Rather, the company engages the journalists on frivolous counter claims at the law court in a bid to deny the journalist his rights to entitlements after seven years of his hard labour in the organisation.

The Defense counsel

On pension deductions, Orient Newspapers through its counsel, Barr. C. A. N. Udechukwu, Esq, in its defense argued that, the nature of the employment offered the journalist and other employees in the organization are not pensionable per se, says neither was the Complainant registered with any Pension Remittance company to justify his claims.

The counsel further asserted in its dramatic counter-suit that, Omosola had engaged in other parallel businesses outside the company’s duty, that as a result, the company wants the journalist forfeits all his entitlements and unpaid salaries to the company.

Orient Newspaper further cited one Don Pedro Management Limited and its managing Director, Don Pedro Okojie, Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), as firms where Omosola had engagements to buttress its claims.

The company’s counsel equally jumped into conclusion, said all monetary transactions with these organizations as revealed through the Claimant’s statement of accounts were all evidence that the claimant had a parallel business while at the company’s service.

The Claimant (Omosola) lawyer

Sequel to a brilliant defense postulated by the Counsel to Omosola; Barr. Oche Tony Onazi, Esq; he argued the facts that the Defendant did not at any time raise any query against the Claimant for engaging in another business while still employed by the Defendant, neither was any query served on the journalist throughout his seven years of meritorious service in the employment of Orient Newspapers. This, among other strong references, were cited to set aside the defense put forward by the company on all grounds, and this eventually gave judgments in favour of the Claimant as follows:

The Judgment:

Hon. Justice Sanusi Kado, while dismissed claims by Orient Magazine, Newspaper & Communication LTD on many grounds, threw the company and its rhetoric off-balance in its attempt to escape issues relating to the journalist’s Pension Remittance among others.

The court based its decision on the Pension Reforms Act, as amended. It noted that employers of Labour are mandated to make deductions of 8% from the employees’ salaries and paid it into employee’s pension account with Pension Fund Administrator of their choice.

The Judge further admitted that, in the event where an employee has not opened an account for remittance of his/her pension, the law made it compulsory for the Employer to open an account for the employee with any of the Pension Funds Administrators and remit the pension deductions from the salaries of the Employee and the Contribution of the Employer. He added that the Defendant in this case is under an obligation to deduct 8% from the Claimant’s salary as pension contribution and contribute 10% and paid same into the Claimant’s pension savings account in line with the Pension Reforms Act as amended.

The Defendant is hereby ordered to open for the Claimant Pension savings account with any of the recognized Pension Funds Administrator and remits the 8% deductions from the Claimant’s salary for the period of April 2012 to July 2017. The Defendant shall also pay into the said pension savings account to be opened for the Claimant 10% of Claimant’s salary as the Defendant’s contribution required to be made by law.The Defendant is hereby ordered to remit to FCT Inland Revenue Services, 1% personal income tax deducted from the Claimant’s salary from April 2012 to July 2017.The Claimant is entitled to be paid the sum of N99,500.00 (Ninety Nine Thousand Five Hundred Naira) being money spent by the Claimant in repairing of the official vehicle attached to the Claimant while in service.

VII.            Reliefs g fails for lack of proof same is hereby refused.

VIII.            The Defendant is to pay the sum of N300,000.00 (Three Hundred Thousand Naira) cost to the Claimant.

The Claimant having admitted being in possession of the official vehicle attached to him is hereby ordered to return the said vehicle to the Defendant. Judgment entered accordingly.