Judge: Do not mistreat people

By SAMUEL RAITANO
A NATIONAL Court judge in Waigani has raised concern over the use of powers and positions to mistreat and prejudice people’s rights and interests.
Justice Bernard Sakora said this yesterday while handing down a ruling on the findings of a wrongful termination of an employee by its employer, the National Capital District Commission, in 1999.
“This is not an isolated case and it is a serious indictment on what type of society we have created, what type of people we have become since the much-vaunted political independence 36 years ago,” Sakora said.
In May 1998, Robert Dademo, was appointed acting city administrator of NCD and signed a contract for a term of three years.
A little over a year, his employment was terminated.
He challenged the termination in court and in November 2002, the national court ruled that his termination was unlawful and that the allegations made against him were not true.
Dademo claimed the salary and other entitlements from the date of dismissal to December 24, 2001, when he started work with another company.
The NCDC paid him K52,164.79 but it was discovered that the amount was wrongly calculated. The NCDC owed Dademo a further K10,557.19.
Sakora said Dademo was given the run-around for more than six years by the NCDC when he sought to have his due entitlements paid.
“It is an attitude and mistreatment that I am not surprised with because that is how we treat people this days,” he said.
“We have degenerated into rude and uncivilised people, devoid of good manners and common courtesies.
“We use power and positions to mistreat people, prejudice people’s rights and interests.”
The NCDC was ordered to pay all legal costs.