The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Appeal court judgement

  • JUST IN: Osun NLC embarks on strike amid Appeal Court judgement on sacked LGAs executives

    JUST IN: Osun NLC embarks on strike amid Appeal Court judgement on sacked LGAs executives

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has declared an indefinite strike in protest against the planned resumption of sacked All Progressives Congress (APC) council executives, who were reinstated by a Court of Appeal verdict.

    According to The Nation, the Appeal Court ruling paved the way for the APC-backed council officials to reclaim leadership across Local Government Areas in the state. However, Governor Ademola Adeleke has vowed to resist their reinstatement.

    Amid the growing political tension, the NLC issued a memo on Sunday, signed by its Chairman, Comrade Christopher Arapasopo, titled “Safety of Our Members is Non-Negotiable.” The directive urged workers to stay away from council offices, citing concerns over their security.

    The memo, obtained by The Nation, stated that the NLC had observed rising agitation and fear among its members working in local government areas across Osun.

    “The NLC is apolitical, but we won’t allow our members to work in an atmosphere of insecurity. We urge all political parties and their members to abide by the rule of law. We insist on the rule of law to avoid a descent into anarchy.

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    “In furtherance to this, we hereby direct all our members working in all the LGAs in Osun State to withdraw their services effective Monday, 17th February 2025 by midnight.”

    He stressed that “We won’t allow our members to return until their safety at work can be assured and guaranteed, which is their constitutional right. We hereby call on all security agencies to ensure the safety of all lives and properties within Osun State Local Governments and the public in general.”

    Similarly, the leadership of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), Comrade Nathaniel Ogungbangbe also agreed with the stance of NLC in a memo with reference number NULGE/OSS/GEN/12/VOL170.

    Meanwhile, APC through its State Chairman, Tajudeen Lawal, warned the Osun State workers against being used against the progress of the state by the government of Ademola Adeleke. 

  • Peterside hails Appeal Court over dispute with NLNG

    Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Director-General Dr. Dakuku Peterside has hailed the Appeal Court judgement in the case between the agency and the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited over levies payable to the maritime regulator.

    Peterside said the verdict has reaffirmed confidence in the judiciary.

    The Court of Appeal in Lagos on Friday set aside an earlier judgment of the Federal High Court, which had exempted NLNG from the levies, on the grounds that NIMASA was not given fair hearing at the lower court. Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba, who delivered the judgment, ordered that the case be sent back to the high court for fresh trial under a different judge.

    Peterside, in a statement by the NIMASA Corporate Communications Department, said NIMASA remained law-abiding and would keep working closely with the judiciary in matters that need clarity and interpretation.

    He said: “This judgment has further shown that the judiciary is unbiased and remains a beacon of hope for Nigerians. On our part as a responsible government agency, we will continue to work closely with the judiciary and other stakeholders to ensure that we realise our mandate of creating a robust maritime sector in line with best global practices.

    “NIMASA and NLNG are neither foes nor competitors. We are corporate cousins working together for the common good of our great country. Judgments like this only serve to strengthen our institutions and ensure greater bonding.”

    The agency had in 2010 commenced an action against NLNG, wherein it sought for an interpretation of relevant provisions of the Nigerian LNG (Fiscal Incentives, Guarantees and Assurances) Act, CAP N87, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990, and the NIMASA Act of 2007. In January 2013, the action by NIMASA was withdrawn in a bid to amicably settle the dispute out of court.

    In May 2013, NIMASA requested NLNG to pay all statutory Levies accruable to the agency, including the three per cent levy on gross freight on inbound and outbound international cargo, two per cent Cabotage levy and Sea Protection levy.

    It stated that the NLNG was not exempted from payments of statutory levies after its tax holiday ended many years ago. Following the continued disregard of the provisions of the NIMASA Act and other relevant laws by the NLNG, their vessels were detained for non-compliance.

    Upon agreement between both parties, on July 12, 2013 before Justice Idris Mohammed of a Federal High Court in Lagos, NLNG agreed to pay outstanding levies attributable to the Free on Board (FOB) and cabotage vessels.

    The NLNG also agreed to keep paying all applicable levies in line with the NIMASA mandate. The court order also gave NIMASA liberty to collect levies directly from Free on Board (FOB) and cabotage vessels without recourse to NLNG.

    The agency received a pre-action Notice on June 18, 2013 from counsel to NLNG, giving a 30 days’ notice of their intention to begin legal action in accordance with Sections 53(2) of the NIMASA Act. Hearing of the substantive issue continues after which the Federal High Court ruled in favour of NLNG.

    Dissatisfied with the judgment of the Federal High Court by Justice M. B. Idris delivered in the case between NIMASA and NLNG, the agency appealed the matter in October 2017.

    NIMASA’s action, said its statement, is in line with its enabling law, the NIMASA Act 2007.

  • Court judgment a call for more service to Abians – Ikpeazu

    Court judgment a call for more service to Abians – Ikpeazu

    The governor of Abia state Dr Okezie Ikpeazu has described the Appeal Court judgment that reaffirmed him as governor as a vehicle that will reinvigorate him to offer more services to the people of the state.

    Reacting to the Appeal Court judgment in Umuahia, Ikpeazu said that the news before him and the people of the state is a pleasant one which has put to rest the issue of who has the mandate to govern the state.

    Ikpeazu said, “The news before us is a wonderful one, as our mandate has been reaffirmed by the Appeal Court sitting in Abuja, the judgment will reinvigorate our efforts in our service to Ndi Abia”.

    The Governor flanked by his Deputy Ude Okochukwu and Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Rt Hon Martins Azubuike, commended the judiciary for restoring the mandate of the people of the state.

    He said, “I want to thank those who prayed and are still praying for the victory, as the democratic gains this country has achieved are too precious to be thrown away at the wimps of a court judgment”.

    Ikpeazu; “I am confident that our tomorrow will be better that our today. We will serve Ndi Abia with the last drop of our energy, by ensuring that the mandate given to us will not be mishandled in any way”.

    In his speech the PDP BoT chairman Senator Waheed Jubril said the party hierarchy was confident that the governor would win the case and expressed confidence that Governor Ikpeazu would govern Abia well.

    Jubril said that they were in the state for the condolence of Chief Ojo Maduekwe and had been praying for his success of Ikpeazu at the court as they never entertained any fears that he would lose at the Court of Appeal.

  • Why Courts give conflicting judgments – Lawyer

    An Abuja-based lawyer, Mr Abdul Mohammed has said that two seemingly similar cases could get different judgments as a result of different facts made available to courts.

    Mohammed stated this on Sunday in Abuja in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on recent criticisms of the judiciary over conflicting decisions.

    “On the street, the way a case is viewed can be different because there may be some basic information that the court will or will not be privy to.

    “So, those outside might not be privy to these facts which will be the basis on which different decisions will be given in two seemingly similar cases.

    “Also, sometimes when the outcome of a case is different, it could be as a result of changing circumstances at the time,’’ he said.

    He said that judges could not determine a case with information outside of what was presented before them by parties to the case.

    Mohammed also noted that judges were not infallible adding that a judge could make mistakes.

    In criminal cases, the lawyer said it was imperative for the investigators to do a thorough job before bringing the defendant to court.

    He lamented that judges were working under very poor conditions with no infrastructure in the courts and inadequate prosecutors.

    “We need more manpower because in the entire country, we have only about 5, 000 judges and we are about 160 million people.

    “How do you expect the problems of 160 million people be solved by just 5,000 judges?

    “We need to massively increase the number of the judges to a commensurate number to make their work easier.

    “For instance, there are just three prosecutors from the NDLEA servicing 11 courts in the Federal High Court in respect to drug related offenses.

    How do we expect them to cope with the rising drug related cases,’’ he said.

    He expressed confidence that the enactment of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 will help to fast track justice.

    According to him, the law will go a long way in addressing some of the challenges facing the judiciary.

  • Abia election: APGA chieftain hails Appeal Court judgment

    Abia election: APGA chieftain hails Appeal Court judgment

    Dr David Onuoha-Bourdex, a member of the Board of Trustees of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), has hailed the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Owerri Division on Abia governorship election.

    A statement issued by Onuoha-Bourdex on Monday in Abuja, said the court `spoke peace and justice’ to the hearts of Abia people.

    Onuoha-Bourdex, who was also the candidate of APGA for the Abia North Senatorial seat in the last election, said that Abia people overwhelmingly voted for APGA.

    He commended Dr Alex Otti, the APGA governorship candidate for waging the principled battle for justice.

    “I also praised the five-member panel of Appeal Court judges, headed by Justice Oyebisi Omoleye, for taking judicial notice of the fact that the APGA candidate scored 164, 444 valid votes to trounce Ikpeazu of PDP, who scored 114, 444 votes.

    “Every living soul in Abia State who saw what happened on April 12, 2015 knew that the cancellation of the elections held in Obingwa, Osisioma Ngwa and Isiala Ngwa local government areas by the returning officers after the results were uploaded to INEC, was wrong.

    “The Court of Appeal by its declaration of Dr Otti as winner has wiped the tears on the faces of Abians, especially the young men that were killed for standing strong in the face of intimidation,’’ he said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the Court of Appeal sitting in Owerri, had on Dec 31, 2015 ordered the swearing in of Otti, as governor of Abia and asked Mr Okezie Ikpeazu to vacate the office.

    Ikpeazu indicated interest to challenge the judgment at the Supreme Court.