One Mrs. Susan Ogbu has filed a $250,000 lawsuit against Promasidor Nigeria Ltd.; its parent company, Promasidor Holdings; and several others over the death of her 26-year-old son, Patrick Ogbu.

The suit, filed at the National Industrial Court in Lagos, alleged gross negligence and unsafe work practices.

Other defendants named in the case are Mr. Dapo Omolade (operating under the Dapo Omolade Empowerment Initiatives), Hybrid Group Limited, Hybrid HSE Limited, Bohlar Integrated Services, and the Minister of Labour and Employment.

In the suit marked NICN/LA/361/2024, Mrs. Ogbu, through her counsel David Kupolati, is demanding N300m in compensation, and N150m in general damages from the defendants, citing wrongful death due to negligence.

She is also seeking a court order for a 21 per cent annual interest on the judgment sum until it is fully paid, along with N5m, in legal costs.

Patrick Ogbu joined the HSE trainee program operated by Omolade and Hybrid Group on April 1, 2024, under an offer letter dated March 4, 2024.

The program promised technical skills training in health and safety and offered a monthly stipend of N65,000.

According to the claimant, her son, Patrick was, on August 9, 2024 assigned to Promasidor Nigeria?s factory through an arrangement between Bohlar Integrated Services and Promasidor.

A few hours after reporting to the factory, Patrick reportedly fell from a rooftop into a warehouse and died.

?Sadly a few hours after the claimant?s son left home to resume work at the Promasidor (fifth defendant) project site, she received the sad news that her son had fallen from the factory rooftop into the warehouse and died almost immediately.

?The unfortunate, sad and premature death of her son arose due to the gross negligence and unsafe practices of Dapo Omolade, Hybrid Group Limited, Hybrid HSE Limited, Bohlar Integrated Services and Promasidor Nigeria,? she said.

His mother blamed the accident on the ?gross negligence and unsafe work conditions? at the site, attributing responsibility to all the defendants.

Mrs. Ogbu is also requesting that the court compel the Minister of Labour and Employment to investigate the operations of the DOME initiative and impose sanctions on all responsible parties.

She further seeks an order for a full health and safety audit of Promasidor?s factories and a formal inquiry into the company?s labour practices across Lagos and Ogun states.

In response, the first to fourth defendants, represented by counsel Azeez Alaka, denied all allegations.

They claimed that Dapo Omolade is an independent entity and not a subsidiary of Hybrid Group.

According to them, the DOME initiative is a legitimate training program intended to boost youths? practical experience in health and safety.

The defence argued that Patrick Ogbu violated company safety protocols by allowing workers onto a rooftop without the required Permit to Work and following them despite lacking proper training for working at heights.

They stated that he had been tasked with enforcing the ?No Permit, No Work? policy and that his failure to do so caused the accident.

They also denied that the program was exploitative, insisting it was a fully sponsored initiative providing stipends and experience to young Nigerians.

The claimant also contends that the training program was a deceptive scheme designed to supply cheap labour to project sites across Nigeria. (The PUNCH)

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