Court Reinstates DSS Official Dismissed For Firearms Offence

The Presiding Judge of the National Industrial Court, Yenogoa, Justice Bashar Alkali, has ordered the reinstatement of a former official of the Department of State Services (DSS), Vincent Amaino, whose employment was terminated in 2011 due to allegations bordering on possession of firearms.

The court set aside his dismissal while awarding Amaino N500, 000 (Five Hundred Thousand Naira) as general damages.

Amaino had approached the court to challenge his dismissal by the DSS.

He claimed that “he was wrongly arrested alongside 3 other persons on the 13th day of April 2011 for allegedly possessing firearms unlawfully and while the alleged offence was being investigated by the Police, the Department of State Services took him from the custody of the Police and before the Orderly room trial, his warrant card was withdrawn and he was dismissed in a bid to release him to face a criminal charge.”

The claimant added that after he was sacked in 2011, he was arraigned in court alongside 3 others but was eventually discharged and acquitted of all counts.

He argued that despite his acquittal by the court, all efforts to get reinstatement into DSS proved abortive.

According to the NIC statement on Tuesday, the Court found that the DSS did not wait for the Police to conclude its prosecution of Mr. Vincent before dismissing him for the criminal allegation of firearms possession.

Alkali held that the claimant’s dismissal when he had not been convicted by a law court is illegal.

“The Claimant was alleged to have committed a criminal offence, the criminal allegation against the Claimant by the Nigeria Police Force led to the detention of the Claimant. The Defendants ought to have waited for the police to finish with the prosecution of the Claimant for criminal charges before dismissing the Claimant. Dismissal for a criminal allegation prior to the conviction cannot be clothed with legality even though the claimant can be tried for misconduct while the criminal trial is ongoing,” the judge said.

Justice Alkali ruled that the DSS contravened the provisions of the Public Service Rules when it wrongfully terminated Mr. Vincent’s employment.

The NIC stated that the Department of State Services filed no defense in the case.