IN THE NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL COURT OF NIGERIA

IN THE LAGOS JUDICIAL DIVISION

HOLDEN AT LAGOS

BEFORE HIS LORDSHIP, HON. JUSTICE (DR.) 1. J. ESSIEN

DATE: 3^rd December, 2025                 SUIT NO NICN/LA/25/2023

BETWEEN

MR. AYODELE ABIODUN OGUNJIMI                              Claimant                                                         

AND

ASCON OIL COMPANY LIMITED                                    Defendant

QUEST OIL AND ENGINEERING SERVICES LTD.

 

                                                               JUDGMENT.

The claimant commenced this action by a complaint dated the 13/12/2022 and filed on the 23/1/2023. In the complaint the claimant sought the following relieves from the court:

1. An order that the Defendants jointly and or severally remit to
     Leadway Pensure in favour of the Claimant the sum of
     N469,447.42 (Four hundred and sixty nine thousand four hundred
     and forty seven Naira forty two Kobo) only being Claimant’s
     employer and employee pension from June 2017 to May 2018.

 

2. General damages in the sum of N1,000,000 (One Million Naira) to
     be paid jointly and or severally by the Defendants for the financial
     hardship and socio-economic discomfort suffered by the claimant
     for non-remittance of his pension.

 

3.  Cost of the action assessed at N1,000,000 (One Million Naira) to
     be paid jointly and or severally by the Defendants.

Filed along with the complaint is the statement of fact and witness deposition of the claimant. The originating process was served on the  defendant on the 23/1/2023. The defendant did not file a statement of defence to the claimant suit before this court. At the expiration of the time provided by the rules for the filing of the defence to this suit, the claimant counsel filed a motion on notice for summary judgment.

In the motion for summary judgment dated and filed on the 31/5/2025, the claimant sought the following relief:

An order entering final judgment in favour of the Claimant/Applicant against the Defendant/Respondent in terms of the relief 1-3 sought in the Statement of Claim herein, in default of Pleadings within the time prescribed by the rules of this Honourable Court.

The grounds of the application are that upon the service of the originating process on the defendant, the defendant has failed to file a defence within the 14 day allowed by the rules of this court to file a defence. The period to file defence elapsed on the 13/2/2023. His further ground is that by Order 35 Rule (1) the claimant is entitled to file an application for judgment in default of defence. In support of this application, the claimant filed a 17 paragraphs affidavit. Attached to the affidavit are Exhibits IJ-1 and IJ-2. In the affidavit the claimant deposed that he worked for the 1^st defendant for 3 years and 219 days before the 1^st defendant was taken over by the 2^nd defendant. The claimant was relieved of his appointment as shown on Exhibit IJ-1 on the 7/5/2018. The claimant now claims that there was no remittance of his pension in the sum of N18,579.12k from June 2017 to May 2018.

I have carefully examined the claimant statement of account exhibit IJ-2. The statement of account covers the period of 4/7/2011 to 24/9/2021. This statement of account is not certified by Leadway Pensure. This makes it difficult to determine whether the statement actually ends in May, 2018. At the foot of the last page of the Statement of Account it is clearly stated that ‘’This is a computer-generated statement’ There is no certificate of compliance with section 84 of the Evidence Act 2011. What is more confusing is that in paragraph 10 of the witness deposition the claimant contradicts his claim by making another assertion thus,

From the same Crusader Sterling Pensions statement, it is shown that the Defendant remits a counter pension contribution in the sum of N23,23.90 per month which the Defendants failed to remit for the relevant period. The total unremitted employer contribution is the sum of N260,881.81.

It is difficult to determine what the claimant claim is in this court. The claimant did not tender any statement of account from Crusader Pension he has mentioned in the above quoted deposition. It is difficult to determine whether it is Leadway Pensure or Crusader Sterling Pension that the claimant is making this claim against. The established position of the law is that a party must succeed on the strength of his case and not on the weakness of the defence. Amodu & Anor V. Ero & Ors [2020] LPELR-51000(CA) (Pp. 26-28 paras. A) "It is indubitable that a party succeeds on the strength of his case and not on the weakness of the defence. See also Orianzi V. A.G. Rivers & Ors (2017) LPELR-41737(SC).

 

In the face of this contradiction, the claimant has not been able to proof his entitlement to the unremitted pension going by the state of evidence for which the claimant wants this court to rely upon in entering judgment in this action. In view of the lack of proof this suit is hereby struck out 

 

The 2nd and 3rd relief on this motion paper is hereby struck out.

I make no order as to cost. Judgment is hereby entered.

 

 

__________________________________________

HON. JUSTICE (Dr.) ISAAC J. ESSIEN

(Presiding Judge)

REPRESENTATION

D. Bello Esq. for claimant.

No representation for the defendant