Suspended manager drags OAGFZ before industrial court, seeks reinstatement

A suspended member of staff of the Oil and Gas Free Zone Authority, Funmilayo Omosule, has urged the National Industrial Court, Abuja, to declare his purported suspension illegal and order his reinstatement in office.
Omosule was purportedly suspended through a board resolution, FZA/P/088, dated April 18, 2011 and addressed to one Olufunmilayo O. Funmi.
Omosule’s counsel, Mr Joseph Tobi, also urged the court to make an order mandating the respondent to pay his outstanding salaries and allowances due to him since April 2011, when the purported suspension took effect.
The claimant is also asking for a mandatory order placing him on grade level 17 and or any position and grade level his mates, who were managers like him as at April 2011, occupied presently in the company.
He added that as at the time he was forcibly relieved of his position, there were vacancies for general managers in the respondent’s authority, which he served meritoriously for 21 years.
Claiming that the letter bearing file number FZ/P/088, dated April 18, 2011 issued to Olufunmilayo. O. Funmi, notifying same of the respondent’s resolution to suspend him from work was not addressed to him, declaring that his names, known to the respondent upon employment and which had not changed, were Funmilayo David Omosule.
The claimant averred that the purported suspension, vide letter reference No FZA/P/088, dated April 18, 2011 addressed to Olufunilayo. O. Funmi, was wrongful, oppressive, unjustifiable and should be declared null and void. He, therefore, sought a declaration of the NIC that the stoppage of his salaries and allowances on the basis of the purported suspension letter amounted to a nullity.
The claimant declared that he was employed as a manager, administration, on Salary GL 12/4 effective from January 2008, adding that upon employment, he was deployed to head the Abuja office of the defendant as Manager, Abuja Liaison Office.
Omosule further claimed that after serving the probation period as stipulated in the authority’s conditions of service, his appointment was confirmed, which gave him a permanent employment status with the authority.