Sacked CBN Directors petition court to prevent their replacement
Several sacked directors of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) have filed a motion at the Abuja Division of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) seeking an interlocutory injunction to prevent the bank from replacing them.
The directors, who are claimants in the case, contend that their employment was “unlawfully terminated” without valid justification by the bank.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been named as the sole defendant in a motion filed by sacked directors through Isa Mohammed & Associates (El-Shuayb Law Firm).
In March, it was reported that at least 27 staff members, primarily directors, were affected by the CBN’s first wave of restructuring. This included eight directors, ten deputy directors, five assistant directors, two principal managers, and two senior managers. The new governor, Olayemi Cardoso, relieved 17 directors and four others retired upon reaching the statutory retirement age of 60.
The CBN has since sought to replace the dismissed directors by advertising various vacancies in national dailies. The sacked directors have challenged their terminations, claiming they violated civil service rules, and have initiated a pending court case.
They are requesting an interlocutory injunction to prevent the bank from filling the director vacancies. In their motion, brought under Order 22 Rule 1 and 2 of the National Industrial Court Civil Procedure Rules, 2027, the applicants seek to restrain the CBN and its representatives from recruiting for the directorate or taking any steps related to the alleged unlawful termination of their appointments.
The claimants argue that an employer may only terminate an employee’s appointment without notice or compensation in cases of serious misconduct, such as criminal behavior. Since they have not been found guilty of any wrongdoing, they have approached the court for redress.
The application states, “The defendants have been making efforts to fill the vacancy created by the unlawful termination of the Claimants’ appointment, without regard to the pendency of the suit filed before this Honorable Court.”
Proofreading by Uchechi Ojo, Sub-editor at Neptune Prime.
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