The government announced the withdrawal of the contempt suit on Monday, five days after filing it against the labour leaders for protesting against the removal of fuel subsidy.
The Nigerian government says it has terminated a contempt suit it filed against the leaders of the organised labour over their 2 August protest against removal of fuel subsidy.
The contempt suit, which was launched at the National Industrial Court in Abuja on the same day of the protest, had sought to have the labour leaders jailed for their alleged act of disobedience to the court's order.
The Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Justice, Beatrice Jedy-Agba, had said the action violated the 5 June order of the National Industrial Court in Abuja, which, according to her, barred the organised labour from embarking on any form of "industrial action".
But the labour had gone ahead with their protest, insisting that the court only stopped them from embarking on strike and not protest. The protest triggered the contempt suit the federal government initiated through the Federal Ministry of Justice.
Announcing the termination of the contempt suit on Monday, Mrs Jedy-Agba cited the intervention of President Bola Tinubu in a letter addressed to the lawyer to Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Femi Falana.
"Upon the intervention of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the decision of the labour unions to call-off their industrial action after meetings with the President and leadership of the National Assembly, this Ministry did not proceed further with the contempt proceedings, which would have required the issuance of Form 49 within two days of the issuance of Form 48.
"It is self-evident that the none-issuance of Form 49 as at 4th August 2023, renders the contempt proceedings inchoate. You may therefore wish to advise or guide the labour unions on the practice and procedure of contempt proceedings, particularly to the effect that the issues or concerns raised by NLC in its communique on the proceedings, have been overtaken by events," Mrs Jedy-Agba's letter to Mr Falana read in part.
Background
The letter is the latest in the series of correspondences both sides have exchanged since the NLC threatened to embark on strike late July.
The federal government and the labour union are locked in a dispute over fuel subsidy removal, which President Tinubu announced at his inauguration on 29 May.
The organised labour, since the declaration, had urged the government to rescind its decision, citing the economic hardship it would plunge workers into.
They subsequently threatened to begin a nationwide strike to pressure the governent to backtrack on the policy shift.
To stop the strike, the government rushed to court, praying for an order halting the planned strike, citing the socio-economic impact it would have.
The judge, Olufunke Anuwe, on 5 June, restrained the NLC and the TUC from embarking on the planned strike action, which they had planned to begin on 7 June.
The unions later shelved the planned strike to continue negotiations with the government.
But the talks have not yielded any positive results as union leaders continue to push for a reversal of the decision.
The NLC recently renewed its threat to embark on strike, after a second hike in petrol pump price in the aftermath of the subsidy removal.
In reaction, the justice ministry, on 26 July, warned the labour unions to desist from going ahead with the planned strike as it would amount to contempt of court.
Mrs Jedy-Agba re-echoed the warning in a letter to NLC's lawyer last Tuesday.
She had said in her letter that the planned action of the union, whether in form of a strike or protests, would be in be in violation of a court order in as much as it was about fuel subsidy removal.
The unions - NLC and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) - went on to stage the nationwide protest, calling on the government to restore fuel subsidy or end the hardship occasioned by the policy shift, angering the government which had in June obtained a court order to thwart the labour unions' plan for a nationwide strike.
The protest, most remarkable in Lagos and Abuja, was in defiance to an earlier warning against it by the Federal Ministry of Justice, which had said the demonstration would amount to a disobedience to a 5 June court order barring the labour unions from embarking on strike.
Following the protest by the labour unions, the justice ministry approached the industrial court to commence a contempt suit against the labour leaders that same day.
On 3 August, the NLC issued a communique, suspending protests, and condemning the contempt suit initiated against its leaders.
'Why we resorted to contempt suit'
But in her latest letter terminating the contempt suit, Mrs Jedy-Agba said her ministry took the action based on "the need to safeguard the integrity of the court and prevent avoidable service disruption or damages to public facilities."
She remarked that the organised labour, despite the correspondences she had exchanged with their lawyer, had gone ahead with the protest, causing distruption of work and destroying the gate of the National Assembly in Abuja
"The foregoing prompted the Ministry to initiate contempt proceedings by filing Form 48 on the same 2nd August 2023 in accordance with Section 72 of the Sheriffs and Civil Process Act and Order 9 Rule 13 of the Judgment (Enforcement) Rules. It is trite that issuance of Form 48 is just the starting point in contempt proceedings which will only crystalise upon the issuance of Form 49 and the consequential committal order," she wrote.
Read the letter of Ministry of Justice in full:
Messrs. Falana & Falana's Chambers
22 Mediterranean Street
Imani Estate
Off Shehu Shagari Way
Maitama, Abuja.
RE: COMMUNIQUE ISSUED BY NIGERIA LABOUR CONGRESS
The attention of the Federal Ministry of Justice has been drawn to the Communique issued by the Nigeria Labour Congress ("NLC") on 3rd August 2023 wherein NLC announced the suspension of its nationwide protests and criticized the contempt summons issued by the National Industrial Court ("Court"), amongst other issues.
2. Kindly recall the exchange of correspondence between the Ministry and your Office on the need for compliance with the extant court orders, restraining industrial action of any kind on the part of the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress. The position of the Ministry was informed by the need to safeguard the integrity of the court and prevent avoidable service disruption or damages to public facilities.
3. However, despite these exchanges/interventions, the labour unions on 2nd August 2023 proceeded with the industrial action through public protests which led to disruption of work and the eventual pulling down of the gate of the National Assembly. The foregoing prompted the Ministry to initiate contempt proceedings by filing Form 48 on the same 2nd August 2023 in accordance with Section 72 of the Sheriffs and Civil Process Act and Order 9 Rule 13 of the Judgment (Enforcement) Rules. It is trite that issuance of Form 48 is just the starting point in contempt proceedings which will only crystalize upon the issuance of Form 49 and the consequential committal order.
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4. Upon the intervention of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the decision of the labour unions to call-off their industrial action after meetings with the President and leadership of the National Assembly, this Ministry did not proceed further with the contempt proceedings, which would have required the issuance of Form 49 within two days of the issuance of Form 48. It is self-evident that the none-issuance of Form 49 as at 4th August 2023, renders the contempt proceedings inchoate. You may therefore wish to advise or guide the labour unions on the practice and procedure of contempt proceedings, particularly to the effect that the issues or concerns raised by NLC in its communique on the proceedings, have been overtaken by events.
5. Please accept the assurance of my warm regards
Mrs. B.E. Jedy-Agba, OON, mni
Solicitor-General of the Federation
& Permanent Secretary
Copy to:
1. Chief of Staff to the President
2. Head of the Civil Service of the Federation
3. National Security Adviser
4. Inspector-General of Police
5. Director-General, State Security Services
6. Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment
7. National President, Trade Union Congress
8. National President, Nigeria Labour Congress
