Hon. Justice Polycarp Hamman of the Portharcourt Judicial Division of the National Industrial Court has declared the continued withholding of placement or reinstatement of Miriam Uche Mark by the Rivers State Universal Basic Education Board since 24th day of March 2017, to date without official explanation as capricious, vindictive, oppressive, illegal, unlawful and constitutes a gross abuse of powers.
It was gathered that, the claimant- Miriam Uche Mark had submitted that prior to her marriage she was known and addressed as Chukwu Uche Ukeni and was employed by Ebonyi State Universal Basic Education Board as a classroom teacher on the 1st of May, 2007 on Salary Grade Level 05 step 1, and applied for an inter-state transfer to Emohua Local Government Area, Rivers State, that despite the assurance and willingness of the Rivers State and the Executive Chairman of the Rivers State Universal Basic Education Board to accept the transfer and the request to release her along with her transfer documents, the agency has failed/or neglected to re-instate her claiming that her internal file is missing.
In defence, the defendant- Rivers State Universal Basic Education Board failed to defend the suit, but only filed a Notice of Preliminary Objection and urged the court to dismiss the case for lack of jurisdiction on the ground that Miriam has no locus standi to institute the action, and also that the action is statute-barred.
However, The Court granted an order compelling the Rivers State Universal Basic Education Board to place or reinstate Mrs. Miriam into any of the Primary Schools in Emohua Local Government Area of Rivers State in the name of Chukwu Uche Ukeni (Mrs.) pending the completion of her change of name with the board.
Justice Polycarp ordered the Rivers State Universal Basic Education Board to compute and pay Mrs Miriam her loss of basic salary of N31,480.00 (Thirty-one thousand, Four Hundred and Eighty Naira) only per month and her allowances of N6,785.49 (Six thousand, Seven Hundred and eighty-Five Naira, Forty Nine Kobo) only per month totalling N38, 265.49 (Thirty-Eight thousand, Two hundred and Sixty Five Naira, Forty Nine Kobo) only per month commencing from March 2017 till date within 30 day.
