Strict statutory appeal deadlines bar condonation beyond the express outer limit, leaving the late filing time-barred.

The appellate provision permitted an appeal within 45 days of service, with a further 15 days available only on sufficient cause, creating a strict 60-day outer limit. Because the appeal was received after that ceiling, the Tribunal held that it had no authority to condone the delay or invoke any inherent power to extend time beyond the express statutory limit. The filing was therefore treated as time-barred.

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Issues: Whether the Tribunal could condone delay in filing the appeal when the appeal was received beyond the maximum period of sixty days prescribed under the governing statute.

Analysis: The appellate provision allowed filing within forty-five days from service of the order and empowered the Tribunal to entertain the appeal only within a further period of fifteen days if sufficient cause was shown. The appellant himself stated that he received the order by 6 March 1995, making the outer limit expire on 5 May 1995. Since the appeal was received on 9 May 1995, it was beyond the statutory ceiling. The Tribunal held that, being a creature of statute, it had no authority to extend the period beyond the express limit, and no inherent power could be invoked to override that limitation.

Conclusion: The Tribunal had no power to condone the delay beyond sixty days, and the appeal was time-barred.

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