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Court reinstates Prof. Uche
ACHILLEUS UCHEGBU (Asst News Editor)
and IHEANACHO NWOSU
A
RENOWNED communications scholar and former Head of Department of Mass
Communication at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Professor Luke Uka Uche, has
triumphed over the university in a legal tussle that lasted three years.
Prof. Uche had gone to court to challenge
his suspension by the university over allegations which he felt the university
did not give him fair hearing before taking a decision against him. Now, a
Federal High Court in Lagos has reinstated him to his job and office at the
university.
Delivering judgement in a suit filed by
Prof. Uche, seeking judicial review of the process that led to his suspension,
Justice Grace Okeke on Monday held that the action of the university’s Senate
was heavily flawed, and thus quashed the suspension order.
According to her, the procedure for
levelling charges against Prof. Uche, who was head of the Mass Communication
Department at the time, and his eventual suspension, smacked of bias and were
procedurally wrong.
The judge, in dismissing the university’s
action, granted all reliefs sought by Prof. Uche.
In his suit marked FHC/L/CS/617/2001,
Prof. Uche had asked the court for a declaration that the suspension of the
applicant (himself) by the respondents is unconstitutional, null and void and of
no effect."
He also prayed the court for "an order of
prohibition restraining the respondents (UNILAG) from acting on decisions of
committees of the respondents recommending that the applicant be removed as
staff of the respondent.
Further, Prof. Uche urged the court to
grant "an order of Certiorari removing the investigations, findings and
recommendations of the committees of the respondents against the applicant with
this court for the purpose of being quashed."
Quashing the decision of the university to
suspend Prof. Uche from office, the court also restrained the university from
taking any more action on the recommendations of the committees that
investigated the allegations.
Prof. Uche, who joined the university in
March, 1982 as Lecturer Grade One, rose to become a professor in 1996 and was in
1999 appointed Head of Mass Communication department, before he was suspended on
January 26, 2001.
His suspension followed a misunderstanding
he had with his predecessor in office, Prof. Ralph Akinfeleye, over examination
malpractices and other academic irregularities he discovered on assumption of
duty as head of department.
As the misunderstanding became tense, the
university suspended both professors, but recalled Prof. Akinfeleye few months
after, leaving Prof. Uche in the lurch.
Prof. Uche had also told the court through
his counsel, Olisa Agbakoba (SAN) that prior to his suspension, UNILAG
authorities had slammed allegations of misconduct accusing him of examination
malpractices and sexual harassment, and went ahead to suspend him without giving
him opportunity of fair hearing.
In her judgement, Justice Okeke observed
that the police was invited into the matter, to investigate a crime alleged
against Prof. Uche, holding, however, that the police ought to have commenced
criminal proceedings if the allegations were substantiated.
She held that it was improper for the university, having
dragged Prof. Uche before the police, and having not succeeded in substantiating
its allegations before the police, to have gone ahead and ordered his suspension
which has kept him out of office since January, 2001.
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