The Presiding Judge, Yenagoa Judicial Division of the National Industrial Court, Hon. Justice Polycarp Hamman has ordered Potters Touch High School to pay Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund Management Board the sum of Seven Hundred and Thirty-Six Thousand, Four Hundred and Seventy-Six Naira (N736,476.00) only, being arrears of the School minimum contribution of 1.0% of the total monthly payroll from January 2017 to November 2022 into the Employees’ Compensation Fund managed by the Social Insurance Trust Fund within 30 days.
Hon. Justice Polycarp Hamman compelled the Potters Touch High School to keep at all times, with the Insurance Trust Fund complete and accurate particulars of the School’s payroll from January 2017 until judgment and thereafter.
However, on the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund claim for the sum of N3,500,000.00 as cost of litigation, the Court stated that the Insurance Trust Fund as a public institution did not pay any fee for filing of court processes and the learned Counsel that prosecuted the case is an employee of the agency and court cannot see the basis for the award of cost of litigation as none was expended in the suit.
From facts, the claimant- Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund Management Board had submitted that Potters Touch High School failed to furnish her with monthly its payroll for the period of January 2017 to November 2022 to enable the agency assess or compute the actual payroll of the School employees despite the demand notice for default in payment dated 4th April 2022, and the reminder letter dated 3rd June 2022.
The Insurance Trust Fund averred that by the National Industrial Court Act and the provisions contained in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), the Court has the exclusive jurisdiction to hear and determine the suit and prayed the Court to order payments by the defendant on the basis of the last assessment done in September 2016.
However, despite serving the court process and hearing notices, the Potters Touch High School failed to file defence.
The learned counsel to the Insurance Trust Fund argued that where relevant evidence is not challenged or debunked, such evidence remains good and credible evidence that since the Potters Touch High School did not file any defence to the suit, the School is deemed to have admitted the case of his client, and urged the Court to grant the reliefs sought in the interest of justice.
In a well-considered judgment, the presiding Judge, Justice Polycarp Hamman held that the Employees’ Compensation Act imposes a further obligation on the High School as an employer to furnish the claimant complete and accurate particulars of the defendant’s payrolls.
The Court concluded that the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund Management Board has established its case as required under the Evidence Act because the obligations imposed on the defendant under the Employees’ Compensation Act are sacrosanct and mandatory.
Justice Polycarp declared that the Potters Touch High School being an Employer within the meaning of the Employees’ Compensation Act, 2010 is obligated to furnish Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund, with complete and accurate particulars of its total monthly payroll.