Hon. Justice Zaynab Bashir of the Portharcourt Judicial Division of the National Industrial Court has ordered the Attorney-General of Rivers State to compute and pay the staff of the Internal Revenue and Computer Department of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Rivers State who were retrenched and reinstated, all their benefits, entitlements, and arrears of salary for the period they were put out of service between 1995 to 1999 with the sum of N3,000,000.00 (three million naira) to each staff as compensation for resultant hardship for withholding their arrears of salary.

The Court declared that by the express provisions of the Report of the Committee on the Review of the Retrenchment of Staff of the Internal Revenue and Computer Department of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Rivers State as approved by the Rivers State Governor, the Attorney-General of Rivers State is mandatorily required to pay the staff who were retrenched and reinstated all their benefits/entitlements/arrears of salary for the period they were put out of service between 1995 to 1999.

From facts, the claimant- E. W. Assaye and 142 others had submitted that they were wrongfully retired from service and then reinstated in 1995 but upon their reinstatement with a condition to pay all their arrears of salaries, benefits and entitlement, all efforts to get same were to no avail.

Counsel concluded that Assaye and 142 others are entitled to the benefits and arrears of salary amounting to N23,337,337.62 and also entitled to compensation calculated by interest at the Central Bank of Nigeria yearly lending rate for the period 1999-2020 amounting to the sum of N855,769,670.02.

In defence, the defendant- Attorney-General of Rivers State argued that there is no nexus between the 143 Claimants in this suit and the Committee’s findings as the Claimants herein have nothing to show that they were listed by the Committee’s Report as part of the retired staff covered by the Report while the 143 Claimants have nothing to show that they are part of an alleged persons whose salaries, entitlements or benefits where not paid from 1995 to 1999.

Counsel maintained that Assaye and 142 others who alleged that they were entitled to benefits and entitlements which allegedly accrued from 1995 – 1999 could not produce their letters or contract of employment and the terms and conditions of employment showing the salaries, benefits and entitlements.

Furthermore, the Attorney-General asked the court to strike out the case for lack of jurisdiction on the ground that the cause of action in the suit accrued in 2001, and the originating processes of the suit were filed on the 25th day of March 2021 more than 5 years after the cause of action accrued contrary to the provisions of Section 16 of the Limitation Law (Cap 80) Laws of Rivers State of Nigeria 1999.

In opposition, the Claimants’ Counsel also argued that Rivers State Limitation Law was not made to apply to Labour-related matters as it is an Item in the Exclusive Legislative List, and urged the court to dismiss the objection in its entirety.

After careful evaluation of the submission of both parties, the presiding Judge, Justice Zainab Bashir held that labour disputes associated with salaries or payments for work done cannot be caught up by the limitation laws, and affirmed that the instant suit is not statute-barred and the court is properly clothed with jurisdiction to entertain same.

The Court held that the standard of proof in civil cases is based on preponderance of evidence and since the Attorney-General has not presented a contrary roaster of employment for the staff of the Defendant who were retrenched or retired and who were recommended for recall, it means the court will rely on the narrative of the identified Assaye and 142 others as employees of the Defendant.

Justice Zaynab affirmed the other evidence before the court including exhibits RS3, RS12 and RS15 lends credence to the fact that indeed, staff of the Defendant were retrenched and reinstated without being paid arrears of salaries, that once an employee is reinstated upon the nullification of termination, such employee shall be entitled to arrears of salaries.