The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed the Federal Government’s appeal to overturn the Court of Appeal’s decision which cleared former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godsday Orubebe, of false asset declaration. In 2015, Orubebe was arraigned for not disclosing his properties in the asset declaration forms submitted to the Code of Conduct Bureau during his tenure as a minister from 2007 to 2011. The offence was said to be contrary to Section 15 of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act Cap 15 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, and punishable under Section 23(2) of the same Act. He, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge preferred against him.   Orubebe said he did not declare the plot of land as his asset in 2011 because he had sold it to his landlord before he made the last asset declaration while leaving office. But the Code of Conduct Tribunal ordered that the property which the former minister failed to declare be forfeited to the Federal Government. Orubebe subsequently challenged the tribunal’s judgment at the Court of Appeal. The appellate court in its judgment upturned the decision of the tribunal which had earlier convicted the former minister and confiscated the undeclared asset. The Federal Government, not satisfied with the appellate court’s decision, filed an appeal at the apex court. Reading the lead judgment, Justice Emmanuel Agim, said the appeal was incompetent. He said, “The appeal is incompetent. Prior leave of court was not obtained to file a mixed fact of law. It is hereby struck out. “

  The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, on Friday, sealed Sahad Store, a popular supermarket in the Garki area of Abuja. The FCCPC said the store was sealed for lack of transparency in the way it is fixing prices for products. This is coming twenty-four hours after President Bola Tinubu unveiled plans to tackle factors responsible for the food crisis across the country. The Federal Government in collaboration with state governors had on Thursday agreed to set up a committee to tackle the issue of hoarding of products in the country. This, Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, disclosed after the meeting President Bola Tinubu held with governors, heads of Security Agencies and some ministers at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Thursday. Idris, who accused some traders of hoarding food products, stated that the security agencies had been mandated to liaise with governors to tackle the menace. “Mr. President has agreed to set up a committee to deepen the conversation that has happened at the just-concluded meeting. Of course, you know that it is impossible to complete most of the issues that were raised at the meeting so it is going to be a continuous one. ⁣ ⁣ “The National Security Adviser, the Director General of the state services, and the Inspector General of Police have been directed to coordinate with the state governors to look at the issue of those hoarding commodities. ⁣ “At this point, the nation requires foods to be brought out to the people so that we can control prices and put food on the table of most Nigerians. Other commodity traders are busy hoarding these commodities so that Nigerians will suffer or they will make more money as a result. ⁣ ⁣ “So the governors and Mr. President have taken this decision that security agencies will collaborate with the state governors to ensure that this ends.” However, the Federal Government has accused the management of Sahad Store of shortchanging customers by charging prices other than the price tag on the shelves. The enforcement team was led by FCCPC Acting Executive Vice Chairman, Adamu Ahmed Abdullahi. While briefing journalists after sealing the store, Abdullahi stated that the commission’s preliminary investigation revealed that the management of the supermarket was short-changing customers. The FCCPC noted that the store would remain sealed until the completion of further investigation, saying, “What we have found out that these people are doing is misleading pricing and lack of transparency in the pricing, which is against Section 115 (3) of the law that says a consumer is not required to pay a price for any good or service higher than the one that’s on display.” “Section 155 states that any corporate person that contravenes is liable to a fine of 100 million naira or even more and the directors of the company themselves are liable upon conviction payment of 10 million naira each or imprisonment of six months or both. “What we have done today is to make sure that they comply with the law. We initially called them to come and defend themselves but failed to show up. In the long run, they sent a lawyer whom we asked if he was familiar with the facts of the case. He said he wasn’t. “To unseal the store, they have to make sure that they do what is required to be done.” Details later…

  The leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has declared a two-day nationwide mass protest over the prevailing economic hardship faced by Nigerians. Joe Ajaero, president of the NLC, stated on Friday at a press briefing in Abuja that the protest would commence on February 27 and end on February 28. On February 8, the NLC, along with the Trade Union Congress (TUC), gave the Bola Tinubu administration two weeks to address the demands of hunger and insecurity in the country. Details later…

  The Greece parliament has approved a bill allowing same-sex marriage in the country. The bill which was passed on Thursday, received overwhelming support from lawmakers, with 176 votes for and 76 against in the 300-seat parliament, after a fiery debate that lasted two days. In addition to approving same-sex marriage, the lawmakers also granted LGBTQ couples permission to adopt children. It also hands same-sex couples the rights of a child’s legal guardian. Previously, such rights only applied to biological parents. After his re-election last year, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Greece prime minister, pledged to pass the new legislation. Mitsotakis, who has also been vocal about legalising same-sex unions, told his cabinet that it was a matter of equal rights and not a strange subject, citing similar legislations in other countries. He said his administration would ensure that there are no “second-class citizens” or “children of a lesser God”. Greece is one of Europe’s most socially conservative countries where the traditional family model holds sway. The heavily influential orthodox church views homosexuality as an anomaly, hence, the new laws have met some resistance. Many Christian conservatives held a protest rally in Athens, the Greek capital, displaying banners, holding crosses, reading prayers, and singing passages from the Bible in Syntagma Square. A statement from the church said the measure would “corrupt the homeland’s social cohesion”. However, the vote has been welcomed by LGBTQ organisations in Greece. The BBC reports that fifteen of the European Union’s 27 members have already legalised same-sex marriage, which is now permitted in 35 countries worldwide. Greece has until now been behind some of its European neighbours, largely because of opposition from the church. It is now the first country in south-eastern Europe to have marriage equality. The country had extended civil partnerships to same-sex couples in 2015, but stopped short of extending equal parental rights at the time. The development also comes amid deep divisions within the Catholic Church, following Pope Francis’ approval of blessings for queer couples. But in an interview last month, Francis said he was not bothered about the split in the church, saying “you have to let them go and pass… and look ahead”.

  A 36-year-old man, simply identified as Jamilu, was on Tuesday knocked down by a car while attempting to escape with a woman’s foodstuffs at the Kwali market in Kwali Area Council of the FCT. Witnesses said the incident happened around 11am when the suspect pretended to assist the woman to carry her foodstuffs from the market to board a vehicle by the road side. They said the woman, Mrs Patience Raphael, finished buying food items which comprised of rice, beans, garri, yam, among others which she packaged in a sack. A witness, Ibrahim Audu, said the woman was trying to get a truck pusher to carry the sack but that the suspect pretended to help her to the road side. Audu further said, “In fact, I was even the one that was trying to call a wheel barrow pusher to come and carry the foodstuffs for the woman when the man came to help carry the load. As he was rushing to cross the road in order to escape with the load he was knocked down.” He added that the suspect who sustained bruises and a fracture was taken to the hospital by vigilantes. Recall that City & Crime reported that a similar incident happened last week when a truck pusher escaped with a woman’s bag of rice and other food items at the same market.

  Ministers from Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger Republic plan to proceed with the establishment of a confederation, the Malian foreign ministry said on Thursday. This was as the three countries deepened ties via an alliance that threatened broader West African integration. The latest meeting comes just weeks after the neighbours in the impoverished Sahel region announced in January 2024 their withdrawal from the Economic Community of West African states- a decision the bloc has urged them to rethink, warning of the additional hardships this withdrawal would bring. All three were founding members of the regional bloc in 1975 but had been suspended following military coups that overthrew elected civilian governments. AFCON 2023: Super Eagles Battle Host Nation Ivory Coast To Lift Cup0.00 / 0.00 Burkina’s Defence Minister General Kassoum Coulibaly said the talks in Ouagadougou were an opportunity to pursue the implementation of “instruments, mechanisms and procedures” and the “legal architecture for the confederation” as quoted by Reuters. The procedures will “allow our alliance and the confederation to function efficiently and to the great joy” of the three countries’ populations, his Niger counterpart General Salifou Modi said. Last November, their finance ministers said they would weigh the option of setting up a monetary union and top officials from all three countries have, to varying degrees, voiced support for abandoning West Africa’s CFA franc common currency. The juntas have all severed long-standing military ties with former colonial ruler France, dealing a blow to France’s influence in the Sahel and complicating international efforts to fight the militants linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State.

  Friday 16 February 2024 Insecurity: Tinubu, Govs Mull State Police Man Knocked Down While Escaping With Woman’s Foodstuffs In FCT Truck Owners To Stop Lifting Petrol Monday Tinubu Appoints Son-In-Law As Managing Director Of FHA Nigeria’s inflation hits 29.9% as food prices rise Dantata backs transition to parliamentary system of govt Gov Adeleke disburses over N588m social safety funds Abia Govt blows hot on criminals, drug dealers Alleged brutalisation of minor: Enugu women place N1m bounty on Anambra woman CBN bars immediate repatriation of all IOCs forex earnings Terrorists invade mosque, kill three, abduct several others in Katsina OPS rejects food imports, backs clampdown on hoarders Wigwe: US deepens probe as senator, Kolade visit family Stakers reject Reps’ move to stop sports betting Tinubu Retains Adeyeye As NAFDAC DG, NCDC, Others Get New CEOs Implement 2014 Confab Report On Community Policing, Restructuring, Shekarau Urges Tinubu 2023 Polls: LP To Account For Campaign Funds, Audit Proceeds, Says Obi Petroleum Commission To Relocate Key Departments To Lagos #RevolutionNow: FG Discontinues Trial Of Sowore, Bakare 171,956 Police Applicants Shortlisted For Computer-Based Test NANS tackles ASUU on students loan scheme War against media: Soludo’s aides attack Sun, Nation, Vanguard newspapers Visit a newspaper stand this morning, buy and read a copy for yourself…

  The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has adjusted the foreign exchange rate for its tariffs and duties to N1,515 to a dollar. The new rates were reflected on the single window trade portal of the federal government. According to information on the portal, the NCS exchange rate has gone up by 59.15 percent or N563.15 to N1,515.09/$, as of Thursday — from the N951.94/$ it started with in February. Checks by TheCable show that CBN’s average rate aligns with the duty rate displayed on the customs’ trade portal at the time of filing this report. Meanwhile, on February 2, 2024, the CBN adjusted the exchange rate for calculating import duties from N951.941/$ to N1,356.883/$ — on February 3, it was raised to N1, 413.62/$. Also, on February 10, 2024, the rate was raised to N1,417.635/$; on February 12, it was reviewed to N1, 444.56/$ and on February 14, the rate was raised to N1, 481.482/$. According to the data, this is the sixth adjustment in February. The import duties are being set according to the value of the dollar. With this development, importers and manufacturers who rely on the country’s seaport to bring in essential production materials will be required to pay a higher amount to facilitate the customs clearance of their goods.