Former political functionaries that served between year 2004 till 2007 in the 20 local government area of Ogun State have made an appeal to Governor Dapo Abiodun to comply with the orders of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) compelling him to effect payments of their severance gratuity and other allowances.
The former councils’ political functionaries also appealed to the Chief Judge of the federation to help them prevail on the governor towards ensuring that he respects the orders of the court and release funds for the payments of their entitlements without further delay.
In a Save Our Soul message issued in Abeokuta, the state capital, dated 8th of July, 2023 and signed by their leaders from the 20 Local Government Councils, all the affected political functionaries pleaded with the Chief Judge of the Federation to take actions that will stop Governor Abiodun from setting a bad precedence in the judicial system through his flagrance disobedience to an Order of the Court.
Speaking with journalists yesterday in Abeokuta, the secretary of the Ogun former LGs Political Functionaries, Hon. Kazeem Adebisi said the affected functionaries have on two occasions, secured the judgements of the NIC in the suits numbers: NICN/IB/92/2016 which they instituted against the Ogun State Government for its refusal to pay their entitlements.
Kazeem said in the judgment, entered into by the NICN presided over by Justice Opeloye Ogunbowale in the 17th of March, 2021, ruled that all their entitlements, comprising three years severance package; furniture allowance and an unpaid salaries arrears for the months of February and March, 2007 all amounting to the sum of N1. 204 billion be paid without further delay.
He said the Abiodun-led administration had on June 25, 2021 through the state’s attorney-general and commissioner for justice, as well as the director of Civil Litigation and Advisory Services, entered into a Terms of Settlements with the claimants through which it promised to offset their gratuities and allowances, but later failed to honour its promise.
Consequent upon that failure and the death of some of his members before and after the judgments, Hon. Kazeem said the development forced his members to return to the Industrial Court on the 23rd of March, 2023 where they secured another judgement against the Ogun State government on the same subject matter.
