Following continuous disobedience to the judgment of the Court of Appeal which declared the suspension and proscription of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in Oyo State illegal, human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mrs. Funmi Falana, has faulted the Oyo State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Barr. Abiodun Aikomo, accusing him of misrepresenting the appellate court’s ruling.

Falana, who serves as counsel to the NURTW appellants, conveyed her position in a strongly worded letter addressed to Aikomo and copied to the Oyo State Commissioner of Police and the State Director of the Department of State Services (DSS). The letter, according to her, was prompted by the Attorney-General’s alleged misinterpretation of the court’s judgment, which she said was clear and unambiguous.

According to the SAN, the judgment in Suit No: CA/IB/263/2022, National Union of Road Transport Workers v. Governor of Oyo State & 3 Ors. nullified the suspension imposed by Governor Seyi Makinde on the activities of the NURTW, including the collection of check-off dues from motor parks and garages across the state.

“It is unfortunate that you have substituted your views for the judgment of the Court of Appeal without any legal basis,” Falana wrote. “In other words, the Court of Appeal never held that the NURTW remains suspended from collecting dues from motor parks and garages in the state.”

She further reminded the Attorney-General that, under Section 287(2) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the decision of the Court of Appeal is binding and must be enforced by all authorities and persons across the federation.

Falana warned that continued refusal to comply with the ruling amounts to contempt of court, stressing that her chambers would not hesitate to initiate contempt proceedings against the Attorney-General and refer him to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee should the state government persist in disobeying the judgment.

“The purported suspension of the activities of the NURTW by Governor Seyi Makinde, including the collection of check-off dues, has been set aside by the Court of Appeal. Any contrary interpretation is misleading and contemptuous of the judiciary,” she added.

Meanwhile, the Oyo State NURTW Chairman, Alhaji Abideen Olajide, popularly known as Ejiogbe, has declared the union’s readiness to resume operations “any moment from now.”

Speaking in Ibadan on Sunday, Ejiogbe assured residents that the NURTW under his leadership is committed to peace and lawfulness. He said the union is willing to co-exist with the state’s Motor Park Managers who currently collect revenue on behalf of the government.

“Our focus remains on the welfare of our members across Oyo State. We are law-abiding and ready to work with all relevant authorities to maintain order in the parks,” he stated.

The lingering dispute between the Oyo State government and the NURTW dates back to 2011, when former Governor Abiola Ajimobi first proscribed the union—a move later declared illegal by the Federal High Court in Ibadan in 2012. Despite this, Governor Seyi Makinde in 2019 suspended the NURTW from operating in the state, citing security concerns.

The union challenged the suspension at the National Industrial Court, which dismissed the case in 2022. However, upon appeal, the Court of Appeal overturned that judgment and ruled that the state government lacked the legal authority to suspend the operations of a registered trade union.

In his concurring judgment, Justice Biobele George-Will (JCA) declared emphatically that “the 1st respondent has no such powers outside the provisions of the law of the land,” adding that if there were any breaches of peace, the government should have relied on the police to maintain order rather than unlawfully suspending the union.

Falana has now urged the Oyo State government to immediately comply with the appellate court’s ruling by reinstating the NURTW’s lawful activities, warning that any further defiance undermines the rule of law and the sanctity of the judiciary. iThe Sun)