IOTA CRISIS DEEPENS: Council recommends delisting of ex-Registrar Battle-ground Shifts to High Court

The crisis that is rocking the Institute of Transport Administration (IOTA) of Nigeria is far from being over as its former registrar; Mr John Oparah has headed for the Federal High Court in pursuit of justice.
Although his case against the institute’s president, Mr Lucky Amiwero and three others was struck out by a Magistrate Court in Yaba, Lagos late last year, Mr Oparah told Shipping Position Weekly that he has already instructed his lawyers to go to the High Court.
However a source close to the institute told our correspondent that the embattled former registrar may suffer another fate as the institute’s national executive council has already recommended that his membership of the institute should be withdrawn.
It was confirmed that the decision to strip him of his membership of IOTA was reached at the institute’s recent council meting and that it would be implemented soon.
A ‘certified true copy’ of the court ruling which was sighted by Shipping Position Weekly showed that the Magistrate at the Yaba, Lagos who handled the case  acknowledge the  case of unlawful termination of the former registrar’s appointment could not be determined at the lower court, hence she  transferred it to the High Court.
Details of when the case will be coming up for hearing could not be ascertained as at press time, but Oparah confirmed that the case was already at the upper court, even though non of the executives of the institute could be reached for comments.
 The current crisis first came up shortly after Mr Lucky Amiwero emerged as the institute’s national president in April, 2008, degenerating into the legal action which was instituted by the former registrar.
At the onset of the face-off, the former registrar alleged that he was wrongly sacked from office and that he was detained by the Police on the prompting of the national president.
Mr Amiwero had also told our correspondent the he “(Oparah) was never a staff of IOTA, he was not appointed as a registrar. When I came in, we looked at the constitution, he was offered appointment as an administrative staff in 1991, we told him to reapply for the post of registrar, and he refused”.