National Telescope national telescope newspaper
A lecturer at the Federal University Otuoke Stephen Nwabuzor has filed a suit against the Institution Vice Chancellor Professor Seth Accra Jaja and the Management for demoting him from the level of a Professor to Lecturer 1.
The lecturer is also seeking “an order of the honourable court setting aside the defendants’ letter of 5th of July, 2018, converting the claimant’s statutory appointment to a mere contract of employment”.
A Student of the Institution who spoke CAMPUS FOCUS and pleaded anonymity confirmed the report.
“Yes It is true that the Professor was demoted and even the dean of the faculty of Engineering was also demoted. All I know is that the matter is currently been addressed.”
Meanwhile, in the suit filed before the National Industrial Court, Yenagoa marked NICN/YEN01/2019, the aggrieved Professor Nwabuzor sought the order of the court to make a declaration that the regulation of his appointment as Professor to a pensionable appointment by the institution’s letter of the appointment dated September 1, 2015 and the confirmation of his appointment vide the letter of February 21, 2017, has statutory favour and could not be tampered with except in accordance with the Federal University, Otuoke (Establishment) Act 2015.
Also sought is a “declaration that the purported conversion of the claimant’s pensionable appointment to a contract appointment is ultra vires the defendants having regard to the Federal University, Otuoke (Establishment ) Act, 2015 of the 1999 constitution (as Amended) and all known Labour practices; a declaration that the purported reclassification of appointment of the claimant by the defendant from Professor to Lecturer 1 on the grounds that the claimant did not have the requisite scholarship at the point of entry without hearing the claimant is ultra vires, unconstitutional, null and void and of no effect”.
The lecturer is also seeking “an order of the honourable court setting aside the defendants’ letter of 5th of July, 2018, converting the claimant’s statutory appointment to a mere contract of employment”.
(CAMPUS FOCUS/SAHARA REPORTER)
