Vincent Amaino’s purported employment termination from the Department of State Services (DSS) in 2011 was overturned by the presiding judge of the Yenagoa Judicial Division of the National Industrial Court, Hon. Justice Bashar Alkali, who also ordered his reinstatement with the payment of N500,000 (Five Hundred Thousand Naira) as general damages.
The Court ruled that even though Mr. Vincent can be tried for misconduct while the criminal trial is ongoing, the DSS should have waited until the Police finished prosecuting Mr. Vincent before dismissing the criminal allegation before the conviction.
According to Justice Alkali, there is no proof that the DSS followed the guidelines set forth in the Public Service Rules, hence Mr. Vincent’s employment termination cannot be justified as being unjustified.
Vincent’s claim for payment of Salaries and Benefits from the Date of Dismissal to the Present, however, was denied by the Court for a lack of evidence.
According to the claimant, Vincent Amaino, he was wrongfully detained together with three other people on April 13, 2011, for allegedly carrying firearms illegally. The Department of State Services removed him from police custody during the course of the police’s investigation into the alleged offense, and before the Orderly Room Trial, his warrant card was withdrawn and he was discharged in an effort to free him so that he might face a criminal prosecution.
Vincent said, “I was accused in 2011 along with three others, discharged, and acquitted of all counts, and all attempts to get reinstated failed.”
“The Claimant was alleged to have committed a criminal offence, the criminal allegation against the Claimant by the Nigeria Police Force led to the detention of the Claimant. The Defendants ought to have waited for the police to finish with the prosecution of the Claimant for criminal charges before dismissing the Claimant. Dismissal for a criminal allegation prior to the conviction cannot be clothed with legality even though the claimant can be tried for misconduct while the criminal trial is ongoing.”
In defense, the defendant- Department of State Services filed no defense but relied on the case of the claimant.
The presiding Judge, Justice Bashar Alkali, stated in his ruling that Vincent Amaino’s removal from the DSS is irrelevant to the crime accusation for which he was found not guilty after carefully examining the arguments made by both sides and the documents submitted.
Vincent Amaino’s job with the DSS enjoys statutory flavor, according to Justice Alkali, and cannot be terminated in violation of the Public Service Rules and SSS Regulations.
Because the DSS was unable to substantiate the reasons listed in the letter of dismissal, the court ruled that Vincent Amaino’s termination was unlawful and void.