Key Highlight
- An ex-staff of Med-view airline had approached the court seeking to be paid his unpaid salaries and entitlements.
- The company failed to enter defense in the case and the court ruled in favor of the ex-staff
- The court ordered the airline to pay him the sum of N5 million which he had claimed.
The Kano division of the National Industrial Court has ordered Med-View Airline Nigeria Ltd. to immediately pay the sum of N5,069,048:00 to Mr. Garba Abubakar.
Justice Ebiye Isele gave the order on Wednesday following a claim brought before the court by Mr Abubakar.
The judge declared that Mr Abubakar is entitled to be paid his salaries and unremitted monthly deductions made by the Airline from his salaries from May 2016 to December 2018.
Backstory:Mr Abubakar told the court that he was employed by Med-View Airline as a marketing officer and was subsequently promoted and posted to several stations within and outside Nigeria.
He said in 2017, he was in Dakar until March 30, 2018 when he was posted back to Nigeria.
He said he resumed work in April 2018 and worked until December 2018 when the company relieved him of his duty. He said his salary from February 2018 to December 2018 was not paid by the airline.
He submitted told the court that the company failed to remit the monthly deduction made from his salaries to his Pension Managers from May 2016 to December 2018. Which made him approach the court seeking to be paid his entitlements.
Med-view Airline Nig. Ltd in inturn filed a preliminary objection before the court praying the court to dismiss or strike out Mr. Abubakar’s suit for non-compliance with the Rules of Court, Sheriffs and Civil Process Act.
They noted that the summons served on the firm outside Borno state was not endorsed hence, they failed to enter defence.
While ruling on the Preliminary objection filed by the airline, the court dismissed the objection and ordered the airline to enter defence.
The court struck out the said Preliminary Objection for lacking merit and the case proceeded to hearing.
The Airline failed to file its defence, neither did it take any step to file any further process in the suit as required by the Rules of Court.
Court’s Judgement : In his judgement, Justice Ebiye Isele held that where an adversary fails to adduce evidence to put on the other side of the imaginary scale of justice, minimal evidence adduced by the other side will suffice to prove his case.
Consequently he ordered the airline to immediately “pay Mr. Garba Abubakar the sum of N5,069,048:00 being his unpaid salaries for the months of February – December 2018 and the unremitted monthly deduction made from his salaries from May 2016 – December 2018 within 60 days.
The court declared “That Mr. Garba Abubakar is entitled to and be paid his salaries for the months of February – December 2018 totalling the sum of N4,470,000:00 (Four Million Four Hundred and Seventy Thousand Naira), and the sum of N599,048:00 (Five Hundred and Ninety-Nine Thousand Forty-Eight Naira) being the unremitted monthly deductions made by the Airline from his salaries from the months of May 2016 to December 2018.
