The National Industrial Court (NICN) in Abuja has vacated it’s order halting the reinstatement of about 445 forcefully retired policemen who were already undergoing court ordered training at the Police College, Jos, Plateau State.
The affected officers were mainly of the Cadet Entrant 18, 19 and 20 of the Nigeria Police Academy, Kano, who have been serving in the Nigeria Police Force.
Justice Buhari Sani, in a ruling delivered on Monday, September 28, 2026, quashed his earlier order of September 22, 2026, in which he granted an interim injunction restraining the Police Service Commission (PSC), the Nigerian Police Force, the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and other authorities from implementing, giving effect to or enforcing the decision approving the officers’ reinstatement pending the determination of an application for interlocutory injunction.
The suit where the interim order was given is marked NICN/KN/51/2026 filed by Advocacy for Human Rights and Cultural Values for Development Initiatives.
The appeal on the judgment was adjudicated upon by a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal comprising of Justices Okorowo, Banjoko and Abang, who dismissed the commission’s appeal and affirmed the decision of the lower court.
The originating summons was supported by a 29-paragraph affidavit deposed to by one Sambo Jibril Jada, at which the applicants sought an order of the court, restraining the first, second and fifth defendants from enforcing the decision of the appellate court pending the determination of its originating summons.
However during Monday, September 28, 2026 hearing to address the court on the ruling called by the court, leading counsel for the Cadet Entrants 18, 19 and 20, Chief Gordy Uche SAN,informed the court that the interim order was obtained fraudulently by suppressing material facts.
According to him, the NICN had issued the order for the reinstatement of the affected officers after hearing the submissions of the necessary and desirable parties, including the PSC and NPF, who are the employers of the affected police officers.
He added that after the court had reinstated the officers, both the NPF and PSC appealed the judgment which was upheld by the Court of Appeal, wondering why a body registered as a cultural association could come behind the police officers and worse still suppressed the fact that their reinstatement followed the striking out of the appeal by the NPF after it withdrew its appeal and the dismissal of the appel processes filed by the PSC after it failed to argue it’s appeal.
Counsel for the Claimants, Yunus Abdulsalam SAN, disputed the claims made by Chief Uche, arguing that the court did not address section 18 (8) of the Police Act on the end point of a police officer.
Delivering his ruling after a three hour stand down, Justice Sani said: “I have studied the judgment of this Hon Court in suit no NICN/ABJ/28/2025. I have painstakingly, dissected the substance of the judgment of this honourable Court in that suit.
“While the claimants in the suit mentioned were seeking for the combined interpretation of the judgments of Oyewumi J. (as he then was), the claimant herein is seeking interpretion of the provisions of section 18(8) of the Police Act. That is the fundamental question.
“In light of the foregoing, I find that the order made on the 22nd day of September, 2026 was based on material non-disclosure.
“The jurisdiction of this Honourable Court in the order made is in question and the proper thing to do is to set side such order.
“The order made on the 22nd day of September, 2026 is hereby set aside. No order as to costs, parties to bear their respective costs.
“Matter hereby returned to the Registry for reassignment of the hearing of the motion on notice. Counsel will be contacted,” Justice Sani ruled.
