Court Dismisses NSITF’s Employees Compensation Fund Claim Against Firm

The Presiding Judge, Calabar Judicial division of the National Industrial Court, Hon. Justice Sanusi Kado has dismissed the claim filed by the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund Management Board against Manuchimso Weli Doing Business under the Name and Style of Bluebells School for lack of proof.

Justice Kado held that NSITF Management Board case suffers from paucity of facts required for proof of the claim that the vital information needed were not made available to the court; no evidence to prove that the defendant is an employer of labour under the Employee Compensation Act and nothing before the court showing existence staff in the employment of the defendant.

From facts, the claimant- NSITF Management Board had submitted that by Employees Compensation Act, every employer shall cause to be furnished to the agency a complete and accurate estimate of the probable amount of the payroll of each of the employer’s industries.

Sought amongst others for an order of the court to compel Manuchimso Weli to grant officers of the Insurance Trust Fund access to their total monthly payroll from September 2016 up to date and thereafter for purposes of assessing the firm minimum monthly contribution of 1-0 percent of the total monthly payroll.

However, the firm- Manuchimso Weli failed to file a defense despite being represented by counsel.

The counsel to the NSITF Management Board, Dagogo Harry Esq averred that Manuchimso Weli has been operating its educational business since 2016 but failed to key into the Employee Compensation Scheme, urged the court to grant the reliefs sought.

Delivering the judgment after careful evaluation of the NSITF submission, the presiding Judge, Justice Sanusi Kado held that failure to file defense does not translate to automatic judgment for the claimant that the law still requires the trust fund to meet up with minimal proof for it to be entitled to judgment.

Furthermore, Justice Kado held that the reliefs being sought by the claimant clearly revealed claims of declaration and special damages which require strict proof.

“Due to lack of adequate facts supplied by the claimant to prove that defendant is an employer of labour as no evidence of the existence of members of staff have been placed before the court and absence of quantum of claim and any assessment of the quantum, the claim of the claimant failed for lack of proof and same is hereby dismissed.”