Date Published: 05/12/09

NUJ Crisis: Court chides NUJ scribe

The National Secretary of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Mr. Usman Shu’aibu Leman was yesterday scolded by a Federal Capital Territory High Court for his role in the current crisis rocking the union and advised him to act like an elder.

Justice S. E. Aladetoyinbo of High Court Six, descended heavily on Leman while presiding on a case brought against him by the NUJ and members of the National Credentials Committee, which sought the court’s interpretation of certain aspects of the constitution of the union.

Members of the NUJ National Credentials Committee particularly want the court to interprete the power inherent in the office of the appointed National Secretary and if the National Secretary, being a paid employee of the Union, can appropriate Executive powers that are ordinarily vested on the National Secretariat comprising of the National President and other officers of the NUJ.

Leman has shortly after the aborted national convention of the union of March 28, issued a statement where he purportedly suspended the National Credentials Committee, an action the committee insisted is beyond the powers of the national secretary.

While presiding over the matter yesterday Justice Aladetoyinbo at a point asked Leman to step forward lambasted him for taking actions that have deepened the crisis rocking Union and advised him to always try to unite warring parties in the union instead of taking sides.

This brief encounter came up after the judge drew the plaintiffs’ council, Mr. A. C. Uzendu to a letter purportedly written by some of the plaintiffs, asking that they were no longer part of the suit.

But Uzendu quickly drew the court’s attention to the lapses in the said latter and subsequent notice of withdrawal of suit, which he said he told the court is an aberration as it emanated from the defence counsel, Mr. Waziri Mamman.

The plaintiffs counsel also brought out a newspaper publication in which Leman purportedly was quoted as having suspended the credentials committee; another publication in which Leman claimed he has lifted the suspension slammed on some Abuja Council members, to which the court agreed with him that Leman has no powers to issue such a statement, after Leman has denied issuing such a statement.

As the court decided that it was wrong for a defence counsel to file a process which ought to have been filed by the plaintiff counsel in court, the presiding judge reminded the parties that the issues is an union matter which ought to have been resolved in-house had the administrative leadership played its proper roles.

The Judge then he asked Leman to stand up and proceed to the bench and openly gave him a piece of his mind.

His words:“you are supposed to act like an elder.  You should bring them together and resolve their problems.  You are supposed to be fighting for these people, not dis-uniting them.

“Instead of you to unite these people, you are doing all these.  Try to unite them.  That is what it should be”.

It was at this point he ordered both the plaintiff and defense counsels to meet and seek amicable settlement of the issues outside the court and report the outcome of their meeting on May 20th, the next adjourned date.

By-Tuoyo Williams