) Retired Brig.-Gen.Abubakar Sa’ad on Tuesday dragged the Nigerian Army before the National Industrial Court, Abuja, challenging his alleged compulsory retirement.
The other co-defendants in the suit are the Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Defence Staff, Minister of Defence and the Nigerian Army Council.
The claimant’s counsel, Mohamned Adelogun, told the court that the matter was slated for mention.
The counsel further informed the court that the matter was first filed on Sept. 7,2016, but was however struck out on Sept. 16, 2017 in a ruling.
Adelogun stated that the ruling was as a result of the preliminary objection raised by the defence on ground that the claimant failed to comply with the provisions of the Armed Forces Act, before instituting the suit.
According to the counsel, the claimant appealed the ruling at the Appeal Court in 2018 and in a ruling delivered on June 18,2020 set aside the ruling of the trial court.
Adelogun in addition said the Appeal Court accordingly ordered that the case be readmitted back to the NICN for reassignment.
He equally informed the court that they had been served with another preliminary objection by the defence stating lack of jurisdiction as the case had already been decided.
He stated that he had just filed the response to the preliminary objection, a motion to amend the claimant’s claims and apologized to the court for filing out of time.
Adelogun proceeded to seek for an expeditious hearing of the suit by citing Order 18, Rule 3 of the NICN proceeding, urging the court to take the preliminary objection together with the substantiative suit.
The defence counsel, Timileyin Kehinde also affirmed that the claimant’s counsel had been served the preliminary objection, however were yet to receive their response.
Kehinde also objected to the application of Adelogun for the court to take the preliminary objection together with the substantiative suit.
The judge, Justice Benedict Kanyip in his ruling said that the claimant’s counsel needed to adopt the procedures that would allow the court to take the preliminary objection together with the substantiative suit.
The judge therefore said the prayer and application to take them together was not granted.
He however directed that Adelogun serve the defence counsel a copy of his reply to the preliminary objection right in the court.
Kanyip also adjourned the matter until Nov.24, for hearing of the preliminary objection.
