The retired workers of the Nigerian Railway Corporation, under the aegis of Railway Senior Citizens Association Eastern District
Enugu, on Tuesday, staged a peaceful protest in Enugu against an illegal sale of railway quarters’ premises in violation of a subsisting court judgment.
The senior citizens, who carried placards with various inscriptions such as “Railway Police Enugu Stop Aiding and Abetting Contempt of Court;” “Railway Police Command Emulate Enugu State Police Command CID on Court Order;” “Railway Police Command Obey Court Orders”, among others, chanted labour solidarity songs.
Addressing journalists, the Chairman of the association, Mr Monday Nnonah, lamented how government officials would violate valid and subsisting court judgments with impunity and turn around to ask to Nigerians to be law abiding.
Nnonah said that the Zonal Manager, Railway Property Company Limited, Enugu, Mr Anthony Okhibenor, had been selling the premises of the retirees’ quarters with impunity, contrary to a court order which gave them right of first rejection under the Federal Government’s monetization policy.
In their protest letter handed over to the Railway District Manager, Enugu, they demanded, among other things, that “Zonal Manager, Railway Property Company Limited Enugu, should be redeployed following his illegal sale of our quarters’ premises with impunity, contrary to court order.”
They also demanded that there should be “a halt to use of police to intimidate our members. DHRO, NRC Enugu should stop allocation of quarters and back dating of the letters.”
They asked “the DHRO NRC Enugu to stop illegal ejection of monetization beneficiaries. Zonal Manager (ED) Railway Property Company should desist from infringing on rights of our members as contained in the National Industrial Court judgement on monetization of Nigerian Railway Quarters, delivered by Justice B.A. Adejumo on January 6, 2016 in Suit No: NICN/LA/11/2011.”
Justice Adejumo of the National Industrial Court had, in a 63 page judgment, which was made available to our correspondent, ordered the defendants (Nigerian Railway Corporation) to offer for sale residential quarters/ accommodation occupied by members of the claimants who were legal sitting tenants in compliance with the monetization policy of the Federal Government.
“The Court further made an order setting aside any offer made any third party and perpetually restrained the Defendants from offering for bid purchase or selling the houses without first availing members of the Claimant who are legal sitting tenants the opportunity to purchase the houses.”
