Court suspends NNPC ongoing job recruitment – TheNigerialawyer

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has ordered the
suspension of Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) ongoing
job recruitment pending determination of a suit filed by one Mr
Pelumi Olajengbesi.

Olajengbesi, a public interest lawyer, had commenced the
enforcement of the Fundamental Rights of all potential applicants
to set aside the recruitment by the NNPC on the ground that it was
discriminatory.

The recruitment had disqualified Nigerians above the age of 28
from applying for the vacant positions.

Olajengbesi had faulted the age criterion placed on the ongoing
recruitment of the NNPC noting that it violated section 3(e)(iv) of
the Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure), 2009 which
protected the public interest of Nigerians.

He had written to the then Group Managing Director of NNPC, Dr
Maikanti Baru, on March 26, threatening to drag the organisation to
court for placing discriminatory age requirement on qualified
Nigerians who would have applied for the jobs advertised by the
corporation.

The NNPC had invited applications from candidates for a number
of positions including trainees who must not be more than 28 years
as of Dec. 31, 2018 and had graduated from a university or
polytechnic not earlier than 2014.

At the hearing on Oct. 18, 2019, the applicant prayed the court
to ensure that justice was served on the unemployed Nigerians who
needed to know their stand in the matter.

“The matter has long been before the court and the rest of the
matter is at a stake and under Order 8 Rule 4 of the Article II of
the African Charter of Human and People’s Right (Ratification and
Enforcement) Act.

“I pray that the matter be heard together with the preliminary
objection filed by the respondents in the interest of justice,” the
applicant said.

When the matter was called up, the applicant’s counsel informed
the court that the respondent filed his counter on Oct. 15,
2019.

In reply, the respondent informed the court that he was sick and
had surgery.

The presiding judge, Justice Muhammed Tsoho (Acting Chief
Justice of The Federal High Court) informed the respondents counsel
that his counter was not proper before the court and had not been
regularised.

The court in considering the urgent nature of the matter granted
an adjournment for the respondents to regularise their counter.

Tsoho however, ordered that parties must maintain status quo
pending the hearing of the substantive suit.

He adjourned the matter until Oct. 29, 2019, for hearing.