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The Presiding Judge, Bauchi Judicial Division of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, Hon. Justice Mustapha Tijjani, has nullified the termination of the appointment of a lecturer, Muhammed from Sa’adu Zungur University, Bauchi, and ordered the University and its Governing Council to immediately reinstate Mr Muhammed with his full rights and entitlements.
The Court held that the university authorities violated the University Law and the 1999 Constitution, as amended, over failure to comply with statutory disciplinary procedures and Muhammed’s right to fair hearing.
From facts, the Claimant, Muhammed, had submitted that he was appointed as an Assistant Lecturer and was subjected to disciplinary proceedings following allegations of misconduct.
Challenging his termination, the lecturer argued that he was denied the opportunity to personally appear before the Governing Council or a properly constituted joint committee to defend himself, as required by the university’s enabling law and conditions of service.
In defence, the university authorities maintained that Mr Muhammad had been given several opportunities to respond to the allegations before the Investigation Committee and Senior Staff Disciplinary Committee. They also argued that Muhammad failed to exhaust the internal appeal mechanism provided under the university’s conditions of service before approaching the Court, and urged the Court to dismiss the case in its entirety.
In a well-considered judgment, the presiding judge, Justice Tijanni, distinguished between compliance with the university’s internal disciplinary procedures and compliance with its enabling law.
The Court held that although Mr Muhamed had appeared before the Investigation and Senior Staff Disciplinary Committees, none of those committees constituted the joint committee of the Governing Council and Senate contemplated by the university’s enabling law.
According to the Court, the law required that, upon the appropriate request, Mr Muhammed be given an opportunity to appear before and be heard by the prescribed joint committee before the Governing Council took a final decision on his removal.
Justice Tijjani therefore found that the university failed to comply with the statutory procedure for terminating Muhammed’s appointment and that the failure amounted to a denial of fair hearing.
The Court further held that the disciplinary proceedings could not be treated as having lawfully displaced the statutory requirements contained in the university’s enabling law.
Consequently, the Court partially upheld Muhammed’s case and declared his termination wrongful, unlawful, unconstitutional, null and void and of no effect.
Apart from the order for reinstatement, Justice Tijanni further ordered the university authorities to pay Mr Muhammed’s his salaries, allowances and other emoluments from the date of termination, February 2026, until the judgment is executed.
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