The Nation Newspaper

Tag: restrains

  • High Court restrains Tukur on Adamawa congress

    A YOLA High Court in Adamawa State has granted an order restraining the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, and the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party’s Caretaker Committee from conducting congresses in the state.

    The order was given by the Acting Chief Judge of Adamawa State, Justice Nathan Musa, on Wednesday, following an application by some members of the party – Mustapha Njobdi, Abdullahi Haladu and Mohammed Salei – challenging last week’s ward congresses.

    Tukur and nine members of the state caretaker committee were barred from conducting the congresses.

    Salihu Adamu, who appeared for the applicants, sought a motion ex parte accompanied with a 42-paragraph affidavit and other evidence, including the nomination forms and payment receipts.

    The applicants sought an interim injunction restraining the defendants from conducting the congresses pending the determination of the motion.

    The applicants also sought the relief on the grounds that they were marginalised during the ward congresses in Mubi North Local Government.

    No counsel appeared for the defendants.

    But when Shehu Tahir, a member of the PDP nine-man caretaker committee and a respondent in the matter, announced appearance for himself, the judge objected.

    The judge threatened to walk him out of the court when the politician insisted that he wanted to appear for the defendants.

    Justice Nathan said the reliefs sought by the applicants met the requirements for granting an exparte order.

    He ruled against the defendants until hearing and determination of the motion on notice.

    The judge also ordered that the parties be served the order.

    He said the motion on notice would be heard by the court next Tuesday.

    The Acting Chief Judge warned the public to desist from discussing the matter and the court on the pages of newspapers or the radio.

    Justice Nathan threatened that the court would invoke its powers on any offender.

     

  • Court restrains Osun workers from going on strike

    The National Industrial Court (NIC), sitting in Lagos, has restrained the organised labour in Osun State, comprising the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), from going on strike over the remuneration dispute between it and the state government.

    Justice Benedict Kanyip said labour could not legally embark on a strike until it has complied with the provisions of Section 31(6) of the Trade Unions Act.

    The section, among other things, provides that no trade union shall go on strike unless “a ballot has been conducted in accordance with the rules and constitution of the union and majority of registered members vote in support of the strike.”

    The court held that the Osun State government has complied with the National Minimum Wage Act by paying the minimum wage of N19, 012.95 per month to workers.

    The judge said the National Minimum Wage Act does not place any obligation on the state government to increase salaries by 100 per cent across board, but to ensure that the least paid worker in the State Public Service does not earn below N18,000 monthly.

     

  • Court restrains EFCC from seizing Sylva’s property

    Court restrains EFCC from seizing Sylva’s property

    An Abuja High Court has granted an interim order, restraining the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from tampering with the property of the former Bayelsa State Governor, Timipre Sylva.

    Sylva’s Media Adviser, Mr. Doifie Ola, in a statement, said Justice M.M. Kolo, gave the order last Thursday when ruling on an ex-parte motion filed in suit FCT/HC/CV/1360/12.

    The property covered by the order include “Plot 262, Cadastral Zone A02, Wuse 1 District, Abuja, Plot 3192, located in the Cadastral Zone A06 Maitama District, Abuja, Plot 232, Cadastral Zone A07,(No. 8 Mistrata Street, Wuse II, Abuja.)”

    The order is to subsist pending the determination of the substantive suit filed for the enforcement of the ex-governor’s fundamental human rights.

    Joined as respondents in the suit are the Attorney-General of the Federation, the Chairman of the EFCC and the EFCC.

    Sylva, in the motion, prayed the court to order that the service of the originating process on the respondent should serve as a stay of all actions by the respondents and their agents “either by sealing off, confiscating, ejecting any person from the property, trespassing into the property or doing any other thing how ever so described relating to the said property pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.”

    Syva averred in an affidavit supporting his application that the identified property were acquired before his election as governor of Bayelsa State.

    He described as “unconstitutional, oppressive, null and void” EFCC’s attempt to seal or seize property duly declared in his Assets Declaration Form at the assumption of office in 2007.

    Ola said a few people in the present political dispensation have seen more persecution by state institutions as Chief Sylva.

    “Since leaving office in January, and denied a right to re-election by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) mandarins, Sylva has faced persistent state persecution. Even his family, friends and associates have not been spared from molestation and intimidation by the EFCC,” he said yesterday.

    “In the name of a corruption prosecution, EFCC is being used to pursue Sylva’s happiness, to try to incapacitate him and render him incapable of pursuing a decent living. Just on the eve of Christmas, when the world was ready to mark the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, EFCC’s agents perfected a shady plot to seize Sylva’s property, including his current Abuja home. The same EFCC, on December 10, invaded a property, which his wife uses as an office and arrested the manager. Before then, the EFCC had arrested and detained Sylva’s brother-in-law, Mr. Tommy Richie Imoh,” Ola said.

    He urged EFCC operatives to “act within the law and not reduce the all-important institution of state to a mere tool for vindictive and political pursuits.”