The Nation Newspaper

Tag: breach

  • NSC to importers, exporters: don’t breach palletisation policy

    NSC to importers, exporters: don’t breach palletisation policy

    The Executive Secretary, Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC), Hassan Bello, has urged importers to obey the cargo palletisation policy of the Federal Government or face sanctions. The policy, Bello said, has come to stay.

    Speaking at a stakeholders’ forum in Lagos on the need for seamless operations at the Inland Dry Ports, he warned any importer against violating the order.

    The NSC helmsman said: “The palletisation issue is already on, there is no going back on it and the concerns of the critical stakeholders would always be noted and we will ensure that some of the issues are addressed,” Bello said.

    He urged stakeholders in the export and import trade value chains to be  acquainted with the export and import guidelines to avoid sanction.

    The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, had said the palletisation of cargoes coming into the country would aid manual examination of consignment, while the country awaits the acquisition and installation of functional scanners at the seaports and land borders.

    She gave January 1, 2018 as the take-off date for the new policy.

    ”In order to ensure quick clearance of import at the Nigerian ports and borders, the additional responsibilities assigned to the relevant government agencies would be carried out in a well-coordinated and collaborated manner, while the sanctions specified for non-compliance with the provisions of the guidelines would be strictly and impartially applied across board,” Mrs Adeosun said.

    Bello urged stakeholders to work together for effective operations of the Kaduna Inland Dry Port (KIDP).

    He said that such synergy would complement the Federal Government’s efforts on the Ease of Doing Business.

    According to Bello, “if we do not work together, there is no how we can achieve the benefits of the IDP.

    “Over 10 years ago, we have been on the issue of the dry ports, including railways.

    “All efforts actually come to reality with the support of President Muhammadu Buhari who told the private sector to synergise to achieve effective dry port in the country.

    “We have been working with operators and the idea is to establish modern inland dry ports and the ease of doing business must be instituted in the ports,’’ he said.

    Also speaking at the event, the Chairman of the Kaduna Inland Day Port; Mr. Tope Borishade, pleaded for stakeholders’ cooperation for him to achieve his mandate as a dry port operator.

    Borishade said that the KIDP would not compete with sea ports, but will collaborate to improve the ease of doing business.

    He said that Nigeria was already losing cargo to neighbouring countries and promised that KIDP would improve government’s revenue by attracting more cargo into the country.

    “Over the past decades, there have been ICNL, Kaduna State government, the Nigerian Shippers Council and the stakeholders have been working in developing this dry port. We can only take it forward with our support and cooperation. So after this, I believe we are going to have feedback from stakeholders so that we can make this work for everybody. We are not in competition with the seaports”, he said.

    The ICNL Port Manager, Mr Rotimi Rahimi, urged  the Customs to secure the recognition of dry ports by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) through inclusion in the list of ports of origin and destination on the Form ‘M’ e-platform.

    “The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) should develop invoice rating models for seaports and terminals as well as shipping companies that would encourage use of dry ports.

    “NPA should also engage seaport concessionaires to provide separate access for both inward and outward movement of dry port cargo.

    “Shipping companies should operate through Bill of Lading from ports of Origin to ports of Destination to process shipping documents for import and export release at the dry ports.

    “Shipping companies must have their presence in Kaduna to provide shipping services to shippers, while the terminal operators should allow shipping companies to move cargo from the ports without hindrance.

    “The concessionaires should allow 30-day rent passage for dry port cargo and should also grant priority terminal access for trucks hauling dry port cargo,” Rahimi said.

    The Managing Director, Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC), Mr Freeborn Okhiria, said that all efforts must be geared toward improving cargo delivery.

    Okhiria urged importers and exporters to make adequate use of the dry port to boost economy.

    He expressed the commitment of the NRC to ensure 24-hour cargo delivery service at the dry port

    Okhiria said that the corporation would purchase about 10 container wagons before June to facilitate the smooth operations of the IDP, adding that the NRC would ensure that “importer and exporters enjoy the services they pay for’’.

  • US regulator fines JPMorgan $2.8m over asset breach

    JPMorgan Chase & Co, has been fined $2.8 million by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for violating United States rules on securities trading by customer.

    According to settlement papers, JPMorgan failed to properly segregate customer securities from its own assets because of systematic coding and design flaws and a lack of supervision.

    The bank will settle charges that a broker-dealer unit lacked sufficient controls to safeguard customer securities from several countries over more than eight years, a U.S. regulator said on yesterday.

    The FINRA said the violations occurred from March 2008 to June 2016, and stemmed in part from defective electronic systems that JPMorgan inherited from Bear Stearns Cos, the investment bank it bought in May 2008 in a government-arranged fire sale.

    JPMorgan did not admit or deny wrongdoing in agreeing to settle. Brian Marchiony, a spokesman for the New York-based bank, in an email report to Reuters said there were no findings that any client accounts were harmed.

    FINRA cited as examples how the improper safeguarding of Italian securities for nearly two years and Nigerian securities for four years created respective deficits of $146 million and $120 million. The fine reflected JPMorgan’s “extraordinary” cooperation in addressing the violations, and its practice of setting aside excess deposits to protect customers from losses, FINRA said.

  • Security breach: NCC summons telecom chief executives to Abuja

    Security breach: NCC summons telecom chief executives to Abuja

    The Nigerian Communications Commission ( NCC ) has invited chief executive officers of major telecommunications companies to an emergency meeting in Abuja over persistent breach of national security with pre-registered SIM cards.

    The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) is calling the meeting, following incidents of the sale of pre-registered SIM cards by mobile network operators.

    The NCC has been under pressure to help stop  crimes committed with such SIM cards,  a source told The Nation last night.

    “As a first step under the stricter regime, NCC has summoned an emergency meeting of operators, on Monday, October 30th, when the executives of the big mobile network operators gather at the NCC headquarters in Abuja,”  the source added.

    “It is expected that they will be issued a riot act by NCC Executive Vice Chairman Prof.  Umar Garba Danbatta to rein in pre-registered SIM card sale across the country,”  the source, who spoke in confidence, noted.

    Invitations sent to the chief executive officers of the operators noted that the NCC “has continued to receive complaints of pre-registered and fraudulently registered SIMs being used for acts amounting to serious breach of national security, criminality and fraud”.

    The commission is believed to be bothered by  the grave security implications and the distortions that may occur in the 149 million SIM data base.  It is set to impose not only the MTN type sanctions but will now go after the executives of culprit operators, who might face prosecution.

    It was gathered that since the beginning of this year the NCC through its Compliance, Monitoring and Enforcement has vigorously pursued agents selling pre-registered SIM cards and imposed sanctions and fines on operators.

    Several joint raids with the security agents were carried out on pre-registered SIM cards selling points in Kano, Jigawa, Abuja, Lagos and others.

    Apart from the huge fine slammed on MTN in October 2015, NCC has continued to sanction the MNOs for poor compliance with SIM cards registration requirement.

    Documents sighted by The Nation showed that the commission last week slammed N11 million fine on Airtel, N10 million on 9Mobile, N10 million on MTN and N5.8 million on Glo for “improperly registered and fully activated Subscription Media (SIM cards)”.

    NCC late last year turned its SIM registration data base to the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) towards building a national data base of biometrics that can serve security operations.

    The commission said it recognises the importance of having a complete data base of registered SIM cards to aid the work of the security outfits, hence the renewed effort to ensure they are properly registered.

  • CBN: Banks breach forex borrowing limit

    CBN: Banks breach forex borrowing limit

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday said some commercial lenders have breached its regulatory limit of foreign currency borrowings due to the recent fall in the value of the naira.

    In a remedial action, the regulator increased the foreign currency borrowing limit for lenders to 125 per cent of their respective shareholders’ fund from 75 per cent previously, it said in a new circular quoted by Reuters.

    The apex bank also said that banks failed to take all $100 million foreign exchange (forex) allocations it offered.

    The demand for forex by authorized dealers seems to have slumped, as the dealers were only able to pick $45 million out of the $100 million offered by the apex bank on wholesale spot.

    Industry experts have attributed the slump in demand to the rate of forex liquidity being pumped into the system by the CBN, noting that it is only a matter of time before the dollar begins another round of crash. The experts also attributed the new trend to the general cash crunch in the financial system.

    The dollar has also crashed against major currencies since US President Donald Trump’s surprising declaration that China is not manipulating the value of the yuan.

    In a chat with newsmen, the Acting Director of Corporate Communications at the CBN, Isaac Okorafor, said the major injections made by the Bank in the course of the week were aimed at providing access to all stakeholders with legitimate need for forex.

    “The CBN remains upbeat that the forex market will remain liquid and that Nigerians who genuinely require the forex will get ample access to the currency,” Okorafor noted.

  • Senate frowns at gas flaring law breach

    The Senate yesterday frowned at what it described as the blatant flouting of gas flaring law in the country by oil companies.

    The Upper Chamber said it has resolved to ensure that stakeholders adhered to the law on gas flaring.

    Chairman, Senate Committee on Gas, Senator Bassey Albert Akpan, who spoke at the inaugural meeting of the committee in Abuja, insisted that the Nigerian Gas Supply and Pricing Act, 2008 must be respected by stakeholders.

    Akpan who represents Akwa Ibom Northeast Senatorial District said the committee would engage stakeholders in the oil and gas sector and the regulators to ensure that the right thing was done in the sector.

    He noted that since law is not the respecter of any person, group or an entity those who flout the law should be punished accordingly.

    Members of the committee, he said, have discovered that the law guiding gas flaring is not being enforced by the regulators.

    He said, “For this committee, there is an Act of the National Assembly that was enacted in 2008 which is called the Nigerian Gas Supply and Pricing Act, 2008.

    “That Act actually stipulates what the domestic gas supply obligation of every single international oil company operating on the soil of Nigeria should do; the law also stipulates the penalty on the issue of gas flaring.

    “We will be engaging the various stakeholders. We will first of all talk to the regulators, the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.

    “We will talk to the NNPC, Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) and we will also talk to the gas aggregator.

    “We should first of all come to terms with the fact that there is a law guiding the gas sector and then we begin to look at the areas where we can enforce the law, because what we have found out here is that the law is not being enforced.

    “One thing is to have a law, another is for you to ensure that every stakeholder, every operator adheres strictly to the conditions of the law.

    “So, we will be looking at the law because this is an era of the rule of law. The president believes in the rule of law.

    “The president believes that the oil and gas sector must be completely sanitised and that is what we are all here to do.

    “We are going to carry out a very robust oversight and we will not compromise in terms of international best practices.”

    Akpan said members of the committee will work to ensure that the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) received speedy passage.

    The passage of the bill, he said, will assist the country to increase investment in the sector.

    The lawmaker noted that there was no doubt that increase in investment would translate to increase in revenue for the country.

  • ‘Small’ demolition of a ‘giant’ legal breach

    The culture of demolition of houses in Nigeria since 1999 has left citizens in a vain search for an answer to a constitutionally reprehensible question of whether democracy is actually a better system of government than the various other systems. The practice of democracy in some nations may be a mockery of the much cherished system of government yet to the majority of the civilized nations of the world democracy remains the best system.

    Democracy, especially representative democracy endorsed by the Nigerian State, gives every citizen a voice through his elected representatives at all tiers of government. The bedrock of democracy is the rule of law which abhors the rule of force and any act which does not conform to the due process of law. The constitution which is the grundnorm donates a right to citizens and all persons in section 44(1) thus:-

    “No moveable property or any interest in an immoveable property shall be taken possession of compulsorily and no right over or interest in any such property shall be acquired compulsorily in any part of Nigeria except in the manner and for the purposes prescribed by law that, among other things-

    (a) Requires the prompt payment of compensation therefor, and

    (b) Gives to any person claiming such compensation a right of access for the determination of his interest in the property and the amount of compensation to a court of law or tribunal or body having jurisdiction in that part of Nigeria.”

    Whether our political office holders are mindful of the rights guaranteed by chapter IV of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and the freedom attached to the rights which are only circumscribed by the constitution is yet to be seen. It appears that in Nigeria might is still right and “Their Excellencies” believe that government can do no wrong or perhaps they are too busy to even look at our laws including the constitution of Nigeria the provisions of which they swore to uphold.

    The consistent demolition of buildings in Nigeria without recourse to the due process of the law is a violent violation of the social contract our political office holders have with the people. Many atimes, the demolition gang will not even allow owners or occupiers of houses to evacuate their moveable belongings from the buildings before pulling them down. Demolition has sent so many souls to their early graves, rendered thousands of families homeless and created serious apprehension in the minds of many as to what will become the fate of their house any time at the pleasure of the public chief executive officer.

    Between 2003 and 2007 the Federal Capital Territory witnessed the worst litany of cases of demolition of buildings under the then government. The government gave plausible reasons, such as clearing structures from sewage lines, to maintain the statutory distance from electricity high tension, to remove structures from road corridors, to remove structures not approved by the development control authority among other reasons. Sadly, the victims of the demolition were not accorded fair hearing before their houses were pulled down. Those who went to court had their houses pulled down irrespective of the pendency of their suits and it was a huge frustration of station for the victims. Judgments of court of competent jurisdiction were not obeyed and it was a situation of anarchy in the Federal Capital Territory but the big men never gave a hoot.

    The situation in Abuja went the way it did then because of the legal status of Abuja. From the enactment of the Federal Capital Territory Act on the 4th of February, 1976 the area comprising the Federal Capital Territory absolutely vests in the Federal Government of Nigeria. Section 1 (3) of the Federal Capital Territory Act provides:-

    “The area contained in the Capital Territory shall, as from the commencement of this Act, cease to be a portion of the States concerned and shall henceforth be governed and administered by or under the control of the Government of the Federation to the exclusion of any other person or authority whatsoever and the ownership of the lands comprised in the Federal Capital Territory shall likewise vest absolutely in the Government of the Federation.”

    With the above provision, the Federal Capital Territory became for everybody and for nobody. (Credit to PMB). It then follows that the sentimental and emotional attachment to states by indigenes of the states became inapplicable to Abuja. Those whose houses were demolished in Abuja at the time, painful as it was, took solace in the fact that they had other houses in their states and those who did not, began to erect structures in the states believing that they would be more secured. Taking the demolition culture to the states the same way it plagued Abuja may not be as easy as in nobody’s Abuja, but to Kaduna goes the demolition bulldozer.

    The just concluded election saw the APC come into power with a ‘change’ slogan that rocked Nigeria like a wildfire culminating in a near total victory for the party in the North of Nigeria. The enthusiasm that greeted the victory of the APC in the centre and the states was unprecedented.

  • ‘Breach of contract’: Court fines Australian bank, firms 1.63b euro

    ‘Breach of contract’: Court fines Australian bank, firms 1.63b euro

    For allegedly reneging on a partnership agreement to establish a polymer currency printing plant in Nigeria, the Reserve Bank of Australia and two other firms, Securency Private Ltd and Innovia Films Ltd, based in Australia, may pay damages up to 4billion euro to a Nigerian firm.

    They are to pay 126 million euro for failing to establish a local polymer plant and an additional 1.5 billion euro for breach of contract to transfer to a Nigerian entity or establish a polymer plant in the country.

    This is the value of what would have been saved if the Australian institution, through its subsidiary firms, had transferred and domesticated the technology in the country.

    The Australian apex bank and the firms are to face legal charges, as an Abuja High Court ruling has granted order to their Nigerian partners, Global Secure Currency, to serve them summons.

    Justice O.O. Goodluck of the High Court, Maitama, in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, in a July 2 ruling, granted Benoy Berry and Global Secure Currency Ltd an order to serve the summons on the three Australian-based firms, including Securency Private Ltd, Reserve Bank of Australia and Innovia Films Ltd, to appear in court.

    At the resumed hearing, Justice Goodluck dismissed the application of the foreign firms asking it to set aside its  ex-parte order of February 2, 2012 against Reserve Bank of Australia on the grounds that the order was made outside its jurisdiction.

    According to the plaintiff, Dr. Benoy Berry, the Australian apex bank agreed, through its subsidiary, Securency, Australia, to set up a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to facilitate the transfer of Polymer Technology, including a 0-pacification facility (Substrate Plant) in Nigeria; and that the marketing of the 1st defendant’s imported polymer products incidental to the general investment in  the local market would be undertaken ahead of the establishment of local production.

    On the strength of the agreement, Dr. Berry claimed that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) awarded the first contract for the printing of polymer notes to the firms, but  the Australian companies reneged on the  terms and insisted on supplying orders and demands from polymer plants abroad rather than set up a plant in the country.

    Accusing the foreign partners of unfair business ethics, which included “vicious and malicious international campaigns of misrepresentation and harassment,”  Dr. Berry  alleged that the firms have “subjected Nigeria to perpetual import dependency and colossal haemorrhage of foreign exchange,”

    The defendants’ counsel, Mr. Dindam D.Killi, prayed for an order discharging the exparte order of the court, dated February 2, 2012, whereby leave was granted to the plaintiffs to issue and serve the summons and other originating process, on the defendant herein outside the jurisdiction of the court.

    This, according to the defence counsel, is on the grounds that the plaintiff acted mala fide their ex-parte application dated November 9, 2011 failed to make a full and frank disclosure of the true contractual relationship between parties that would have aided “this court in exercising its discretion to grant leave to issue and serve the originating processes outside jurisdiction.”

    Mr. Killi also argued that “this court was misled in granting the order of issuance and service on the defendant by the non-disclosure of the jurisdiction clause in the agency agreement.

    Justice Goodluck held that “upon the ex-facie examination of the plaintiff’s pleadings, this court is of the view that it validly made the order for the issuance of the summons outside the jurisdiction of this court in the absence of any fact in support of the defendants’ contention,” noting also “that there is nothing in the plaintiffs’ pleadings that could have made this court to decide otherwise than to have allowed the application.”

    She ruled that the order directing the plaintiffs/applicants to issue and serve the summons on the defendants “outside the jurisdiction of this court is valid and subsisting.”

    Justice Goodluck upheld the arguments by Mrs. Gloria Zakka Onen, lead counsel to the plaintiffs from the firm of Messrs Adewole Adebayo Esq. and ruled that her order directing them to issue and serve the summons on the defendants outside the jurisdiction of the court was still valid and disallowed the Australian firms’ motion. She accordingly dismissed it.

  • Breach of contract: Passenger sues Aero in the wrong court

    The Appellant as Plaintiff at the Edo State High Court, Benin Judicial Division filed an action, by way of a writ of summons, dated July 23, 2008. The Appellant, in her evidence before the trial Court, narrated that she procured a return ticket No.LB 041681E for Benin-Lagos-Benin flight, from the Defendants/Respondents on April 7, 2008.

    The following day, she was to travel from the Lagos airport to Benin airport, but instead, the Appellant was taken to Warri, contrary to the agreement contained in her ticket and boarding pass. Consequently, the Appellant incurred costs and suffered damages, having missed all her engagements and appointments in Benin City on that day. Wherefore she claimed against the Defendants/Respondents general damages for breach of contract by taking the plaintiff to Warri as against the contractual obligation to take her to Benin City and special damages for the shock, psychological trauma and hardship suffered by the plaintiff as a result of the delay and for not been able to meet up with her important appointments.

    The Defendants/Respondents at the trial Court filed a statement of defence dated May 5, 2009, and nine months later, filed a motion on notice asking the court to strike out the suit for lack of jurisdiction. The Learned Judge after taking arguments from both parties, ruled in favour of the Respondents to the effect that the proper Court to hear the suit is the Federal High Court, and struck out the suit for want of jurisdiction.

    It is against this ruling of the Court, that the Appellant now appeals to the Court of Appeal by way of a notice of appeal dated  June 1, 2010, containing two grounds of appeal; seeking an order of the Court setting aside the ruling/decision of the trial Court delivered on the 19/5/2010, and remitting the suit to the Edo State High Court to be determined on its merits by a different judge. On the 11th of June, 2014, both parties adopted their written briefs. The Appellant by their brief of argument formulated two issues for the resolution of the appeal. They are as follows:

    “1. Whether the learned trial Judge was right when he held that the appellant’s claim does not border on breach of contractual obligation but relates to matters arising from aviation and safety of aircraft, under S.251(1)(k) of the 1999 CFRN, or pertaining to carriage of passengers and Goods under S.2 of the Federal High Court (Amendment) Decree No.60 of 1991.

    2. Whether the learned trial Judge was right when he held that the claim of the Plaintiff is not the major determinant factor for the jurisdiction of the Court.”

    The Court adopted the issues formulated by the Appellant in the determination of the appeal.

    On the first issue, Counsel to the Appellant submitted that the trial court was in error, when he held that the Appellant’s claim was principally in relation to matters arising from aviation and safety of aircraft under Section 251(1) (k) of the 1999 Constitution and pertains to carriage of passengers and goods under Section 2 of the Federal High Court (Amendment) Decree No. 60 of 1991. He went on to submit that the Appellant’s claim is based on breach of contract by the Respondent, for being unable to airlift the Appellant from Lagos to Benin as expressly shown on the flight ticket and boarding pass issued to the Appellant. He argued that the ticket confirms that the nature of the transaction between the parties was one of contract as indicated on the top left hand corner of the ticket. Counsel argued that Decree No. 60 of 1991 is not applicable to the Appellant’s case.

    On his second issue, Appellant’s Counsel posited that the jurisdiction of a Court is determined mainly by the nature of the claim as settled by numerous cases. Referring to the case of Oloruntoba-Oju vs. Abdul Raheem (2009) 26 WRN 1 at 15; (2009) LPELR-2596(SC), Counsel submitted that jurisdiction of a Court is determined by the nature of the claim as against the event that gave rise to the claim. Finally, Counsel submitted that the jurisdiction of a Court is determined by the pleadings and not the statement of defence.

    The Learned Counsel for the Respondent arguing the appeal submitted that it is the Plaintiff’s claim that determines whether the Court has jurisdiction or not. Counsel referred to Section 48(2) of the Civil Aviation Act, 2006, which implements the conventions for the unification of certain rules relating to international carriage by air signed at Montreal on 28/5/1999 as modified, and submitted that the Appellant’s claim is governed by the convention. Referring to the case of Patkun Industries Ltd. vs. Niger Shoe Manufacturing Company Ltd. (1988) 5 NWLR (Pt. 93) 138 at 152; (1988) LPELR-2906(SC), Counsel submitted that the trial Court was right to hold that Appellant’s claim was that of carriage of passengers by air.  On whether the High Court had jurisdiction to entertain the claim, Counsel argued that Section 272(1) of the Constitution confers jurisdiction on State High Courts; subject to the provision of Section 251(1), and other provisions in the Constitution. He submitted also that Section 251(1) allows for additional jurisdiction by an act of the National Assembly, and the Federal High Court Act as amended by Decree No. 60 of 1991, conferred additional jurisdiction on the Federal High Court, to include the carriage of goods and passengers by air. Counsel cited Sections 2(7)(1), to 2(7)(5) and submitted that by the combined provisions of Section 251(1) of the Constitution and S.7(1) of the Federal High Court Act, as amended by Decree 60 of 1991, the Federal High Court has exclusive jurisdiction pertaining to carriage of passengers and goods by air and meteorology. He argued that by the limitation in Section 272(1) the State High Court lacks the jurisdiction to hear the Appellant’s claim.

    In determining the appeal, the Court stated the trite position of the law that determination of a matter, by a Court is null and void if done without jurisdiction, and it does not matter whether the proceedings were well conducted or the resolution well decided. And consequently it is usually considered expedient to resolve same first before proceeding further to decide the matter on the merit. The Court stated that the fact as narrated is not what is in dispute and the vexed question is whether the State High Court (to which the Appellant approached for relief) had the requisite jurisdiction to hear and determine the case before it. The Court further stated that in the cases of KLM Airline vs. Kumzhi (2004) 8 NWLR (Pt.875) 231; Kabo Air Ltd vs. Oladipo (1999) 10 NWLR (Pt.624) 517, it was held that the combined understanding of the provisions of the Federal High Court Act 1973, as amended by Decree No. 60 of 1991, is to oust the jurisdiction of the State High Court, in matters relating to matters covered under Section 251 (1) (k) as amended by the Federal High Court Act, 1973 as supplemented by Decree No.60 of 1991; and aimed at increasing the scope of the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court in respect of the subject matter specified therein. On the other hand it removed from the State High Court, the hitherto concurrent jurisdiction in respect of the affected subject matters or actions: Egypt Air vs. Alh. Abdullahi (1997) 11 NWLR (pt.528) 179 at 187 – 188; (1997) LPELR-6287(CA).

    The Court resolved the issues in favour of the Respondent, and held that the trial judge was right when he agreed with the Respondent, that the Appellant’s claim was not anchored on simple contractual relationship, but that founded on a contract for the carrying of passengers by air, and for which the State High Court lacks jurisdiction to entertain. Consequently, the Court held that the appeal lacks merit and it was thereby dismissed.

    Edited by LawPavilion

    LawPavilion Citation: (2014) LPELR-23319(CA)

  • Banks, govt agencies, others risk IT security breach

    An information technology (IT) expert has warned that banks, other financial institutions, government agencies, universities and other corporate organisations may become targets of young people with IT skills if unemployment persists.

    Tim Akano, vicechairman, WiniGroup Incorporation, an America-based IT security and business solutions company, warned that brilliant young hackers will attack on the data banks of these organisations and sell to others.

    “IT security is already a major concern globally which threat will become more serious in 2013 and beyond. In Nigeria, IT security is usually handled with levity. With more young people acquiring IT skills and with little opportunity to earn a decent income due to poor infrastructure that will make them transit to technopreneure, these youths will turn to vulnerable banks, universities, government agencies and other corporate organisations to earn huge income by hacking into their database and sell(ing) it for handsome fees in the online booming black market,” Akano who is also chief executive officer of New Horizons Nigeria Limited, said.

    According to him, organisations will have to embrace encryption to stave off attacks. “The way out of this pending hacking- earthquake is for organisation to embrace encryption. Organisation that will go unhurt, un-embarrassed and stand protected this year and beyond will need what I call:’’7-Layer IT-Security Sweater’’ to cover its origination’s body. Fortunately, this 7-Layer IT-Security Sweater’’ already exists in Nigeria,” he said, warning that the recent news about the hacking of the Federal Reserve’s and Wall Street Journal’s and Twitter accounts in the America is a tip of an iceberg as to what will come this year.