The National Industrial Court sitting in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital yesterday admitted about 120 documents as exhibits tendered against a senior lecturer at the University of Ibadan (UI), Adenike Ogunshe.
Mrs Ogunshe of the Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, had dragged the institution and its council to court over alleged wrongful termination of her appointment.
She told the court that due process was not followed in terminating her appointment on June 14, 2016 over alleged misconduct.
Ogunshe said the termination of her appointment was wrongful, unconstitutional and a violation of her constitutional right to justice and fair hearing and urged the court to set aside the purported termination and order her reinstatement without any loss of earning, salaries and allowances.
The claimant’s counsel, Femi Aborisade, urged the court to award N8 million as damages against the university for failure to give her three months notice before the termination of her appointment.
Mr Aborisade had closed his case at the previous adjourned date by calling the last claimant’s witness.
But, at the resumed hearing on Wednesday, the defence counsel, Adebayo Ajayi, called one John Ajibola, Principal Assistant Registrar at UI, as the first defence witness.
Mr Ajibola tendered 140 documents as exhibits against the claimant and urged the court to dismiss the case.
Mr Aborisade said he has gone through the documents tendered against his client and about 20 of those documents were not signed and dated.
He cited section 104 of the Evidence Act to support his argument that documents not signed and dated cannot be acted upon. He urged the court to reject those documents based on the authority cited.
Mr Ajayi told the court that he was withdrawing those documents objected to by the claimant’s counsel.
The judge, John Peter, admitted the remaining 120 documents as exhibits, saying they were pleaded. He then adjourned the case till April 25 for the continuation of hearing.
