A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has adjourned until October 15, 2026, further hearing in a suit instituted by pensioners of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, over the implementation of court judgments on their retirement benefits.
Justice Alexander Owoeye adjourned the matter on Thursday after informing parties that he would not entertain any contentious case for the day.
The pensioners are seeking enforcement of judgments delivered by the Federal High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court on the harmonisation of their retirement benefits in line with a 1997 Federal Government policy.
They alleged that the apex bank had failed to fully implement the judgments and pay outstanding pension arrears arising from the court-ordered adjustments.
Fresh application for joinder
Meanwhile, a separate group of CBN pensioners has applied to be joined as parties to the proceedings.
The applicants alleged that they were excluded from a 15 per cent pension increase approved by the Federal Government after they declined to sign an out-of-court settlement agreement presented by the CBN.
They also told the court that some of the original litigants had died, while others had grown elderly, without receiving their full retirement benefits.
In their application, the pensioners are asking the court to determine, among other issues, whether the CBN was entitled to issue and administer the purported settlement agreement and whether its terms were consistent with the subsisting judgments.
They are also asking the court to determine the legality of the bank’s alleged insistence that pensioners acknowledge its purported compliance with the earlier judgment as a condition for benefiting from subsequent pension reviews.
The applicants further want the court to determine whether pensioners who declined to make such an admission could lawfully be excluded from subsequent pension increases.
Dispute dates back to 2000
The dispute has its roots in judgments obtained by the pensioners over the harmonisation of their retirement benefits.
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The pensioners secured judgment at the Federal High Court in 2000, followed by a Court of Appeal judgment in 2006 and, ultimately, a Supreme Court decision in 2010.
Following what they described as unsuccessful efforts to secure full compliance, the pensioners commenced enforcement proceedings against the CBN in 2022.
They alleged that the bank had failed to comply with specific orders contained in the earlier judgments.
The CBN, however, maintained that it had complied with the judgment and challenged, among other issues, the legal standing of the pensioners to commence the enforcement proceedings. The bank subsequently filed a preliminary objection.
During the enforcement proceedings, the court issued subpoenas directing the CBN to produce documents relating to pension payments and reviews.
Following the bank’s alleged failure to comply with the subpoenas, the court cited the CBN for contempt.
The apex bank appealed against the contempt proceedings and related orders.
While the appeal was pending before the Court of Appeal, the CBN subsequently issued and administered what was described as a “Settlement Agreement” to the pensioners.
According to the pensioners, the agreement required them to acknowledge the bank’s purported compliance with the earlier judgment and allegedly excluded those who declined to sign from a subsequent general 15 per cent marginal pension increase.
The matter was eventually remitted to the Federal High Court for determination of the CBN’s preliminary objection.
It was at this stage that the separate group of pensioners filed the application seeking to be joined in the proceedings.
At Thursday’s hearing, the pensioners were represented by a legal team comprising Adebayo Oyagbola and E. Oghagbon, while the CBN and other defendants were represented by E. Omoboriowo, Ekuma Chinanso and another counsel.
The matter has now been adjourned to October 15, for further proceedings.
