…As Ex-Staff Stay Put In Quarters despite Collecting Entitlements
The former Director of Engineering, Mr Godfrey Eze, and former General Manager, Mr Moshood Kolawole Jimoh, have been arraigned before the Agege Magistrate Court, Lagos on a four count charge.
The two accused were allegedly charged for break and forceful entry into NAMA premises at Strabag staff quarters, Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.
Other offences allegedly committed by the accused are: assault, occasioning harm, malicious damage to the agency’s premises.
The arraignment of the two ex staff is coming on the heels of several complaints by some staff of the agency that some of the agency’s retirees are not willing to vacate the quarters they were allocated despite the obvious fact that they have been paid their entitlements.
Abelnews learnt that the two accused left the service in 2009 and 2015 respectively
The first accused, Eze, was said to have been allocated official residence by the agency at the quarters while in service, adding that after he retired in 2009 instead of leaving the quarter he continued staying there contrary to the policy of NAMA as provided for in the Condition of Service(CoS), .
The CoS states that staff of the agency allocated official residence in the quarters must vacate his or her residence three months after retirement.
It was also learnt that that the first accused Eze maintained the apartment allocated to him after retirement despite the fact that he had been paid his severance benefits.
Eze was also said to have systematically used legal tactics to continue to occupy the quarter illegally and with impunity.
Eze, Abelnews.com learnt sued the agency under the pretence that he paid the sum of N10, 000 as expression of interest to buy the property in question in dispute.
However, it was learnt that the Presidential Implementation Committee on the Sale of Houses had written to the agency informing it that houses within the proximity of the airport should not be sold.
Based on this directive, the accused suit against the airspace agency was dismissed at both the Federal High Court and at the Court of Appeal for lack of merit.
On his part, the second accused, Moshood before he retired in February 2015 was the General Manager, Equipment /Stores Department.
It was reliably gathered like the first accused was served several quit notices by the agency after exhausting the three months of grace he pleaded with the agency to allow him collect his severance benefits to enable him look for another accommodation.
Jimoh it was further gathered refused to vacate the quarter despite fact that he had been paid and had collected his entitlement from the agency but instead he turned himself into a sub- landlord by subletting the flat in question to some tenants.
Abelnews checks revealed that the agency tried to evict the tenants the second accused sublet the quarter to but all agency’s efforts failed, as it was alleged that both first and second accused teamed up together to unleash thugs and miscreants popularly known as area boys who used cutlasses, clubs and daggers to inflict varying degrees of injuries on NAMA staff.
The agency, who could not tolerate the excesses of the two accused reported the case to the police and they were subsequently arrested and charged to court.
As if that was not enough, the platform gathered that the second accused some days after he was released on bail was said to have forcefully gained into the quarter in question by breaking the locks despite the fact that the case was in court
The General Manager, Public Affairs, Mrs Olajumoke Adetona could not be reached for the agency’s official reaction.