The National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) sitting in Abuja has ordered the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to pay a penalty of N620,000 for causing delays in the hearing of cases filed by 62 former employees challenging their dismissal.
Justice Osatohanmwen Obaseki-Osaghae issued the order on Thursday following a complaint by the claimants’ counsel, Ola Olanipekun (SAN), who said the apex bank’s late filing of a fresh application forced an unnecessary adjournment in a matter already scheduled for hearing.
The 62 former staff members, who filed separate but related suits before the court, are asking the NICN to nullify their termination letters dated 23 May 2024. The letters, which cited “Re-Organisation,” are being contested as unlawful and in violation of the CBN Act 2007 and the bank’s internal human resource policies.
The claimants are seeking reinstatement to their former or equivalent roles, payment of outstanding salaries and benefits, and an order voiding the termination entirely. Their lawyer has also asked the court to consolidate the multiple suits, which had previously faced procedural challenges.
In 2024, the President of the NICN, Justice Benedict Kanyip, stepped aside from the case after discovering that a lawyer from D.D. Dodo & Co., part of CBN’s legal team, is his in-law.
Many of the disengaged workers were part of the now-defunct Economic Intelligence Unit of the CBN and argue that they were unfairly targeted despite the unit’s critical contributions to key national investigations. These include the probe into the P&ID $11 billion arbitration, the recovery of N3.18 billion withheld by a bank agent, and investigations into gaming companies allegedly involved in large-scale unauthorised foreign exchange repatriation.
At Thursday’s proceedings, Olanipekun said both parties were ready to address the substantive originating summons and the CBN’s pending preliminary objection when the bank unexpectedly introduced a new motion. The fresh application—filed on 26 November and served on the claimants the same morning—sought to convert the case from an originating summons to a writ of summons on the grounds that material facts were in dispute.
The senior lawyer urged the court to dismiss the motion, describing it as a deliberate attempt to stall the matter. He requested a cost of N10,000 per claimant, totalling N620,000, for the inconvenience caused.
CBN’s counsel, Wilson Inam (SAN), apologised for the late filing, stating that he sought the conversion of the suit because the facts required trial by writ of summons.
Justice Obaseki-Osaghae agreed with the claimants’ counsel that the CBN’s action had disrupted the scheduled hearing, noting that “cost follows event.” She consequently awarded N620,000 against the bank and directed that the sum be paid before the next adjourned date.
The matter was adjourned to 12 January 2026 for the hearing of all pending applications.
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