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ALHAJI SHAMUSIDEEN ADELAJA AND 6 OTHERS ALHAJI MUHAMMADU MAMBO AND 6 OTHERS AND CHIEF SUNDAY OGUNYADE AND 6 OTHERS (NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL COURT) HON. JUSTICE M. A. BORISADE - PRESIDENT CHIEF M.A. BORISADE - MEMBER PROF.B.B. KANYIP - MEMBER SUIT NO: - NIC/12/1995 DATE OF RULING - FRIDAY, 29 JUNE, 2001. LABOUR LAW National Industrial Court - Terms of settlement - Where entered by one of appellants and respondents - Power of National Industrial Court to treat as withdrawal of appeal by the appellant concerned, LABOUR LAW National Industrial Court - Order of – Act done in breach of - Power of National Industrial Court to nullify. LABOUR LAW Trade union - Executive Council of trade union - Where factionalised - Power of National Industrial Court to expand and include other factions. NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL COURT Order of National Industrial Court - Act done in breach of-Power of to nullify. NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL COURT Terms of settlement - Where entered by one of appellants and respondents - Power of National Industrial Court to treat as withdrawal of appeal by the appellant concerned. TRADE UNION LAW Trade union - Executive Council of trade union - Where factionalised - Power of National Industrial Court to expand and include other factions. ISSUE Whether the RTEAN Delegates Conference held on 3th and 4th November, 1998 at Suleja, Niger State, where elections were held which produced the 2 set of Appellants, was valid. FACTS This was an intra -union dispute between two factions of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), which was referred to the National Industrial Court by the Minister of Labour. The 1st set of Appellants represented a faction, while the Respondents represented another faction. The I.A.P had made an award recognising the 1993 Minna Delegates Conference at which the Respondents were elected into various offices of RTEAN, and also directed the officers to maintain their posts or offices until new officers emerged from a fresh National Delegates Conference. Before the hearing of the substantive suit commenced, the 1st set of Appellants filed an application seeking injunction to restrain the Respondents. The Respondents on the other hand filed a notice of preliminary objection to the suit. Thereafter, the Court ordered both parties to keep the peace and maintain status quo until the suit was decided or a delegates’ conference had approved national officers, whichever was earlier. Later, by an originating summons dated 7th July, 1999 the 2 set of Appellants filed a suit against the Respondents in Suit No. NIC/3/99. On 26th October, 2000, the Court struck out the suit on the ground that the subject matter was an intra-union dispute over which it did not have original jurisdiction. However, having regard to affidavit evidence that a delegates’ conference of RTEAN was held at Suleja on 3 and 4 November, 1998, the Applicants were joined as interested parties to the present suit. At the hearing of the substantive appeal, the 1st set of Appellants informed the Court that they had executed terms of settlement with the Respondents in respect of the suit. The 2 set of Appellants however denied knowledge of the said terms of settlement. Nevertheless, the Court treated the terms of settlement as having the effect of withdrawal of the appeal between the 1St set of Appellants and the Respondents, and proceeded to strike out the 1st set of Appellants from the suit. HELD: (Substantially affirming the I.A.P award and expanding the National Executive Council of RTEAN) 1. On Effect where one of appellants before the National Industrial Court enters into terms of settlement with the Respondents - Where one of the Appellants before the National Industrial Court enters into a written agreement with the Respondents, the Court can decide to treat the agreement as a notice of withdrawal of the appeal against the I.A.P award by the Appellant concerned, pursuant to Rule 21 (1) of the National Industrial Court Rules. Consequently, in this case, the 1st set of Appellants was struck out from further proceedings in the suit, leaving only the 2nd set of Appellants and the Respondents in the contest. 2. On Power of National lndustrial Court to nullify acts done in disregard of its order In this case, the Suleja Delegates Conference held on 3 and 4th November, 1998 was not organized by the 1st Respondent as directed by the I.A.P and ordered by the National Industrial Court. In the circumstance, the purported Suleja conference was declared null and void. 3. On Power of National Industrial Court to expand the Executive Council of a union found to be factionalised Where the National Industrial Court finds that the National Executive Council of a trade union is factionalised, it can order expansion of the National Executive Council of the union to include persons from other factions within the association, in the interest of progress, peace, unity and smooth running of the said association. Thus, in this case, the National Industrial Court ordered an expansion of the National Executive Council of RTEAN to include other persons other than the Respondents.