A Federal Excessive Courtroom has been requested to halt additional proceedings on the Nationwide Meeting, searching for to increase the retirement age of Nationwide Meeting workers from 60 to 65 years.
The request contained in a movement on discover filed by the Registered Trustees of Mavrik Applicant Answer Basis, is geared toward preserving the subject material of a swimsuit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/287 /2024.
The applicant is particularly praying the court docket for, “An order of Interlocutory Injunction retraining the first and 2nd respondents from taking any additional transfer in passing or forwarding the Invoice extending the retirement age of the 4th Respondent and different workers of the Nationwide Meeting to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for Assent pending the listening to and willpower of the substantive swimsuit.
“An order mandating the 4th respondent or anyone in his capability and all of the workers of the Nationwide Meeting who’re due for retirement, to proceed on depart forthwith, since there isn’t any assented laws allowing them to keep greater than the age stipulated by the Public Service Guidelines.
The swimsuit introduced pursuant to Order 26 of the Federal Excessive Courtroom of Nigeria Civil Process Guidelines 2019 and below the inherent jurisdiction of the court docket, dated March 5, was filed on March 6, by Henry Okoro.
The President of the Senate, Speaker of the Home of Representatives, Chairman of the Nationwide Meeting and Clerk of the Nationwide Meeting are 1st to 4th respondents, respectively.
In an affidavit deposed to in help of the movement on discover, the applicant alleged that, “the due technique of regulation was not adopted in passing the invoice and as such is inconsistent with the structure”.
Whereas arguing that the order of the court docket is required to cease the additional perfection of the invoice pending the willpower of the substantive swimsuit, the applicant submitted that “if the res isn’t preserved, pending the willpower of this substantive swimsuit, the judgment of the court docket will on the finish be an effort in futility ought to it go in favour of the applicant”.
In the primary swimsuit, the plaintiff raised some points for willpower which embrace: “Whether or not having regard to the extant provisions of part 318 of the 1999 Structure of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (As Amended) if the 4th respondent and different workers of the Nationwide Meeting didn’t fall inside the purview of the outline of who may be known as a public servant?
“Whether or not having regard to the provisions of Rule 020908 of the Public Service Guidelines (2021), whether it is authorized for the first and 2nd Respondents to with uttermost disregard to the above provision, and with out firstly amending the 1999 Structure of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, plot for, by way of a clandestine laws, to increase the retirement age of the 4th respondent and different workers of the Nationwide Meeting to extra 5 (5) years?”
Among the many reliefs sought are a declaration that the 4th respondent and different workers of the Nationwide Meeting fall inside the purview of public servants as supplied in part 318 of 1999 Structure of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (As Amended) whose appointments and retirements are regulated by the Public Service Guidelines (2021)
In an 28 paragraph affidavit deposed to in help of the primary swimsuit, one of many trustees of the plaintiff, Mr Muhammad Haamid, recalled that workers of the Nationwide Meeting have through the years served and retired on the expiration of 35 or 60 years because the case could also be.
“That the mentioned years of retirement was set by the Public Service Guidelines, below which the 4th respondent and different Employees of the Nationwide Meeting have been employed.
“That in swift transfer, the Ist and 2nd defendant got here up with a laws searching for to extend the retirement age of the 4th respondent and different workers of the Nationwide Meeting from 35 to 40 years and 60 to 65 years relying on which one comes first.
“That the above invoice is at variance with the supply within the Public Service Guidelines.
“That the 4th respondents and different workers of the Nationwide Meeting didn’t fall below any particular class of public servants that would warrant such hasty modification.
“That the 1999 Structure of the Federal Republic of Nigeria didn’t place the 4th respondent and different Employees of the Nationwide Meeting as particular workers outdoors the Contemplation of the Public Service Guidelines.
“That the Ist and 2nd respondents don’t have any energy to secretly move a invoice on points which can be topic to the Structure with out firstly amending the structure.
“That the mentioned invoice (Harmonize Invoice for Retirement of Nationwide Meeting Employees) didn’t observe a due technique of regulation.
“That this court docket is urged to invalidate identical.
“That there isn’t any particular coaching on the level of their employment that makes them totally different from different Public Servants whose retirement age is 35 and 60 years relying on which one comes first.
“That an order of this court docket is required to cease the extension of the years of service of the 4th respondent and different Employees of the Nationwide Meeting.
“That if this court docket didn’t make the order, it can result in chaos in Public Service of the Federation.”
