Osman B. Conteh v Sierra Leone Dock Workers Union (SC CIV APP 5 of 1984) [1994] SLSC 8 (8 July 1994)

F INTHE SUPREME COURT OF SIERRA LEONE j sc. CIV. APP. NO.S/84

| OSMAN B. CONTEH 7 APPELLANT. | vs. SIERRA LEONE DOCK WORKERS UNION - RESPONDENTS CORAM:- HON.MRJUSTICEC.A.HARDING - JSC. HON. MRS JUSTICE A.V.A. AWUNOR-RENNER - J.S.C. HON. MR JUSTICE S. BECCLES DAVIES -JS.C. HON. MR JUSTICE F.A. SHORT -JS.C. HON. MR JUSTICE MS. TURAY “JA. JUDGMENT DELIVERED ON THE gh DAY OF Jy 1994 AWUNOR-RENNER, J.S.C. : THIS IS THE JUDGMENT OF THE COURT WITH WHICH THE OTHER MEMBERS OF THE COURT AGREE WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE HONOURABLE JUSTICE F. A. SHORT WHO IS NOW DECEASED. This is an appeal from the Judgment of the Court of Appeal dated the 6th day of January, 1984 reversing a judgment of the High Court dated the 20th day of October, 1982. The facts on which the appeal turns are as follows: The Appellant Osman Borbor Conteh had been in the Service of the Sierra Leone Dock Workers Union (hereinafter known as the "Union"), the Respondent herein, for a number of years during which period he had been elected as Assistant General Secretary and finally in November, 1971 as full time General Secretary of theUnion,

, ae Ibo His salary at the time was Le4000.00 per annum plus other fringe benefits, On the 22nd day of May, 1979, the President of the Respondent Union one D.F. Kanu wrote to the Appellant as Secretary General asking him to convene a meeting of the Executive Council for Saturday the 26th day of May. The Appellant wrote back to say that that day was not convenient for him. Kanu wrote again asking him to convene the said meeting on Monday the 28th day of May, 1979 but the Meeting was not convened by the Appellant on that date, The President himself convened the ‘meeting and it was on that date that the Executive Council wrote to the Appellant to say that he had been suspended from office with effect from that date. He was neither present at the said meeting nor informed in writing that chargés would be preferred against him at that meeting. The Appellant was then ordered to make an inventory of the Unions' properties in his custody in the presence of the Trustees of the Union, this he refused to do and was subsequently dismissed from the office of Secretary General by the Executive Council of theUnion. The Appellant thereafter instituted this action against the Respondents asking the High Court for a declaration that the action taken by the Executive Council of the Respondent Union in suspending him on the 28th day of May, 1979 and in subsequently dismissing him on the 22nd day of September, 1979 from the Office of Secretary General of the Union were both contrary to the Rules of Natural Justice and therefore illegal and in the alternative were ultra vires the rules of the Respondent Union.

. -3- {ol The Appellant further claimed arrears of salary plus other fringe benefits which he alleged he was entitled to from the date of his Suspension on the 28th day of May, 1979 until the date of

Judgment

At the time of the suspension referred to, the Appellant stated that he was in receipt of a salary of”

(1) Le4000.00 per annum

(2) Transport Allowance of Le160 per month and

(3) Entertainment Allowance of Le60.00 per month. ‘The Respondent filed a Defence and Counterclaim against the Appellant. Judgment was however given in favour of the Appellant in the High Court but this was later reversed in the Court of Appeal substituting a Judgment in favour of the Respondent. Let me at this stage deviate and say that the Appellant's appointment and Conditions of Service were subject to the Rules of the Sierra Leone Dock Workers Union (hereinafter referred to as the "Rules") which were tendered in evidence. ‘The Rules govern the Union and bind everyone of its members and officials, itis therefore convenient at this stage to refer to the relevant Rules in so far as they affect the position of the Appellant in this matter: RULES (1) : "The government of the Union shall be the Annual Conference and Subject to that authority the Executive Council, RULEZ(s) : "The Executive Council may appoint organisers and such clerical staff as it , may consider necessary for the smooth working of the Union. It may suspend or dismiss any officer or member of staff

: -~uy- {62 for neglect of duty, dishonesty - incompetence, refusal to carry out the decisions of the Executive or for any other reasons which it deems good and sufficient in the interest of the Union. It shall decide the salary of the General Secretary, Office Staff and the amount of honoraria to be paid to other officers.

RULE8(2) ~The Officers of the Union shall be the President, General Secretary, Assistant Secretary, Financial Secretary, Treasurer ‘Trustees and Auditors.

RULE 8 (4) : The General Secretary shall be elected by a vote of the Annual Conference and shall hold office at the pleasure of the

"union ete.

RULE19(3) =: — Nomember or official shalll be suspended or expelled unless he has been given an opportunity to state his case personally at a meeting of the Executive Council of which he has received not less than seven days notice in writing.

‘The matter with which the official is charged shall be set out in such notice.

‘The Appellant has now appealed to this Court on the following

Grounds

(1) That the Learned Justices of Appeal wrongfully and unjustifiably usurped the functions of the Learned Trial Judge who had the advantage of seeing and hearing the witnesses in their oral testimony and had resolved violent conflicts in the evidence given by witnesses on both sides

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