Oyo NURTW: Tokyo drags union, president to court

A factional leader of theproscribed NationalUnion of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Oyo State, Alhaji Lateef Akinsola, also known as Tokyo, has approached the state High Court in Ibadan, praying the court to declare that his fundamental human right has been trampled upon by his not being the chairman of the union.Alhaji Akinsola, in an originating summons filed by his lawyers, relied on the judgment of the National Industrial Court (NIC), Abuja, which ordered that he and other executive members of the union be returned as the duly elected officers of the union.Those in the suit number M/468/11 as first and second respondents are the NURTW and its president, Alhaji Najeem Yasin.But lawyers representing the union and its president said Tokyo could not hold the office of the chairman of the union because he had been expelled from the transport body since 2009, arguing that a non-member who still remained expelled had no stake in the union.Lead counsel for the respondent, W.A Olajide, added that there was an intra-union crisis in the state chapter of the union leading to its proscription, which only the industrial court could entertain, and thus challenged the jurisdiction of the court on the matter.When the case came up for mention on Wednesday at the state high court, a counsel for six other members of the union in the state brought an application on behalf of his clients seeking the leave of the court to join them as respondents in the matter.The presiding judge in the case, Justice Aderonke Aderemi, after listening to arguments from both parties, adjourned hearing on the several applications before her till December 14, to enable parties to prepare processes on the matter.There was a heavy presence of mobile and regular policemen at the entrance to the court as well as an armoured personnel carrier stationed at the gate to ensure no litigants and their supporters maintained law and order.
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