By Correspondent in Abuja.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja on Friday ordered the immediate reinstatement of Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) James Idachaba, who was compulsorily retired by the Police Service Commission (PSC).
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Mohammed Danjuma also nullified the PSC’s directive requiring Idachaba to refund eight years’ salaries with effect from August 1, 2025.
The appellate court’s decision followed an appeal filed by Idachaba’s counsel, Chikaosolu Ojukwu, SAN, challenging the earlier ruling of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN), which had upheld the PSC’s action.
Our correspondent recalls that Justice O.O. Oyewumi of the NICN had, on May 15, 2024, dismissed Idachaba’s originating summons in which he contested his compulsory retirement from the Nigeria Police Force.
In his submission before the trial court, Idachaba explained that following his promotion to the rank of ACP in 2023, his salary was abruptly stopped by the PSC and the police, who claimed he had been compulsorily retired without giving him a fair hearing.
He said he was neither served with any formal notice of allegations nor given access to records of proceedings from the PSC plenary where the retirement decision was allegedly made.
His lawyer, Ojukwu, sought 11 reliefs, arguing that the forced retirement and directive to refund salaries violated Idachaba’s right to a fair hearing and were therefore unconstitutional, null, and void.
He urged the court to compel the PSC to reinstate his client immediately and unconditionally, restoring him to the rank of ACP with full rights, entitlements, and emoluments from August 18, 2023.
However, the NICN dismissed the suit, ruling that Idachaba had failed to substantiate his claims or provide sufficient grounds for the court to exercise its discretion in his favour.
Dissatisfied with the ruling, Idachaba filed an appeal on September 24, 2024, which the police opposed.
In its judgment on Friday, the three-member panel of justices unanimously resolved the issues in Idachaba’s favour.
“It follows that this appeal is meritorious and hereby succeeds,” Justice Danjuma declared.
The appellate court set aside the judgment of the NICN in suit number NICN/ABJ/288/2023 and awarded N2 million in costs against the PSC and the Nigeria Police Force, to be paid jointly and severally.
Edited by Dada Ahmed.
