The cleric posited that N8,000 palliative will be a total waste of time because it won’t work for its purpose due to corrupt practices that will mar the process.

‘’The N8,000 palliative is corruption, I see nothing in the palliative and it will not reach out to the poor masses. Despite the fact that Mr President has signed it, it will not make any impact. The governors will use it for their selfish needs. The poor will not enjoy it at all.

‘’It will not be a blessing to the majority, the palliative is just a waste of time and energy, it cannot work for its purpose,’’ he asserted.

On the alternative, he advised that minimum wage should be increased to N100,000 if indeed the government has the people at heart.

Primate Ayodele asserted that an increase in minimum wage will have a direct impact on the people.

‘’If truly the government is concerned about the masses, the minimum wage should be increased to N100,000. It will go a long way in cushioning the effects of subsidy removal and inflation. Minimum wage increase will have a direct impact on the people than N8,000 palliatives,’’ he said.

The take-home pays of civil servants in Ebonyi state will be subjected to upward review by the state government.

The salaries of the government workers in the southeastern state will be increased by N10,000, the state governor Francis Nwifuru announced on Friday.

The announcement was contained in a statement signed by the governor and shared on his verified Twitter handle.

Nwifuru said that the increase was ratified by the State Executive Council (EXCO) at its meeting on July 13, 2023.

The governor noted that the increment became imperative in light of the rising cost of living occasioned by the subsidy removal.

He said that the increase underscored his administration’s commitment to improving the welfare of civil servants.

Nwifuru also announced that EXCO had approved the employment of 1,454 new civil servants into the state’s civil service.

The statement reads:

EMPLOYMENT OF CIVIL SERVANTS AND INCREMENT OF WORKERS’ SALARIES

The State Executive Council Meeting of July 13, 2023 received a report from the Head of Service on areas we need to employ Ebonyians into various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies of the State Civil Service.

Accordingly, EXCO has approved the employment of 1,454 Ebonyians into the State Civil Service. Additionally, EXCO has as well approved the increase of salaries of our Civil Servants by Ten Thousand Naira (N10,000.00), each.

The governor’s announcement comes at a time when civil servants across the country are facing increasing financial hardship due to the removal of fuel subsidy.

The removal of fuel subsidy by the Bola Tinubu-led federal government has led to a sharp increase in the price of petrol, which has in turn led to an increase in the prices of other goods and services

Another FCT High Court sitting in Abuja has nullified the arrest, detention, and interrogation of the suspended CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele by the Department of State Services (DSS); barely 24hrs of similar judgement were delivered by another court.

In a judgment upon an Originating Motion on Notice brought before the Court by Mr Emefiele against Incorporated Trustees of Forum for Accountability and Good Leadership, the Attorney General of the Federation, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Inspector General of Police, State Security Service and the Central Bank of Nigeria, the presiding Judge held that the arrest, detention, and interrogation being in violation of the subsisting judgment and orders of Justice M. A. Hassan in Suit No. FCT/HC/GAR/CV/41/2022.

Mr Emefiele, through his Counsel, Mr Peter Abang, had asked the court to set aside, quash, invalidate, and nullify the arrest and detention of the Applicant for being illegal and a nullity in view of the subsisting judgment of Justice M A Hassan delivered on 29th December 2022.
In another prayer granted by Hon. Justice Bello Kawu, the Court made an order setting aside, voiding, quashing, invalidating, and nullifying any warrant of arrest obtained or procured by the respondents, especially the DSS for the arrest, detention, and/or interrogation of Mr. Emefiele in connection with the allegations of terrorism financing, fraudulent practices, money laundering, round tripping, threat to national security before or from any court since the date of the judgment of Justice M A Hassan.

Furthermore, the Court granted an injunction restraining the respondents, particularly the DSS, from arresting, detaining, further detaining or proceeding against, breaching, or interfering with Mr. Emefiele’s personal liberty and freedom of movement or taking any other steps against him in connection with any allegations of terrorism financing, fraudulent practices, money laundering, round tripping, threat to national security before or from any court since the date of the judgment of Justice M. A. Hassan.

The Court finally granted an order of injunction directing and mandating the respondents, particularly the DSS, to forthwith release and unfetter Mr Emefiele from any arrest, detention, custody, interrogation with regard to allegations of terrorism financing, fraudulent practices, money laundering, round-tripping, the threat to national security before or from any court in view of the subsisting judgment of Justice M A Hassan.

In his reaction to the judgement, Counsel to Mr Emefiele told newsmen that beyond the release of his client, Nigerians must celebrate the fact that Nigerian judges, despite several acts of intimidation by security agencies and some unfavourable conditions under which they work, are bold to dispense justice not minding whose ox is gored. He called on the DSS to immediately comply with the orders of the court and release his client so that he can go and look after his failing health, aggravated by over one month of illegal and unlawful arrest and detention.

This judgement is the third favourable judgment the former CBN helmsman is getting against the DSS yet he has remained in detention for over a month.

A fraud case against the former Governor of Imo State, Senator Rochas Okorocha, has been dismissed by a Federal Capital Territory High Court sitting in Abuja.

Naija News reports that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had filed a suit against the former Imo federal lawmaker.

Giving a judgement on Thursday, the presiding judge, Justice Yusuf Halilu described the EFCC’s charges of fraud and abuse of office as an abuse of the judicial process.

Justice Halilu premised his judgement on the fact that the EFCC had filed a similar charge against the former Imo State governor at the Federal high court, which case was decided upon in favour of the former governor in December last year.

NASCON Allied Industries Plc, the salt-making arm of the conglomerate Dangote Industries Limited, will contemplate a business combination with two other food companies in the group during a meeting of its directors’ board later this month.

The marriage is expected to unite the salt-maker with Dangote Sugar, owners of sub-Saharan Africa’s largest sugar refinery, and Dangote Rice into a single entity, according to a regulatory filing on Thursday.

Both NASCON and Dangote Sugar are listed in Lagos, while Dangote Rice is not quoted yet. Dangote Industries Limited is the holding company for a raft of firms majority-owned by Africa’s wealthiest man Aliko Dangote.

The planned merger is coming months after the group’s fiercest rival, BUA Group, announced a similar move consolidating its food businesses – rice, sugar, flour, edible oils and flour – into a new company known as BUA Foods.

BUA Foods would go on to list on the Nigerian Exchange and is currently Nigeria’s biggest consumer goods company by market value, worth over N2.4 trillion as of market open on Thursday and N649.6 billion in total assets as of 31 March.

BUA Group is controlled by Abdul Samad Rabiu, Nigeria’s second-richest person and Africa’s fourth-wealthiest.

Dangote Sugar and NASCON opened trade respectively on Thursday at a market capitalisation of N329.8 billion and N70.2 billion.

The two had total assets estimated at N558.9 billion and N59.2 billion as of the end of March.

Dangote Group’s biggest bet is the 650,000 barrels per day oil refinery in Lekki, Lagos, commissioned in May and said to have cost $19 billion.

BUA Group is also building a refinery in Akwa Ibom State with a capacity to process 200,000 barrels of crude daily, expected to come on board by 2025.

Organizers of the Big Brother Naija, BBNaija , reality TV show have announced that the 8th edition of the show will premiere on Sunday, July 23, 2023.

Tagged’ All Star season” the winner of the show will walk away with the grand prize pegged at N120 million Naira among other consolidation prizes.

According to the organizers, the housemates will battle for the grand prize in the next 70 days. The show ends on the ,1st of October.

Ebuka Obi- Uchendu is returning again as the host of the show.

As a reward for fans this seasons, 30 lucky fans will win one million each in the fan lock challenge where they have the opportunity to lock in their top three favorite housemates all through season.

The Federal Government has faulted the irregular practice of state governments establishing ministries and departments of Labour, and implementing parallel guidelines and policies to those developed at the federal level.

This was disclosed in a statement issued by the ministry’s Spokesperson, Olajide Oshundun.

According to the statement, the Permanent Secretary, the Labor Ministry, Kachallom Daju, criticized this trend by states while flagging off the 2023 Session of the National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC), taking place in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State from 13th to 14th July.

She said NLAC would critically discuss that emerging trend, which if left unchecked, could destabilize the already challenged Labour administration system in Nigeria.

Daju described that practice as counter-productive, and pointed out that it went against Section 34 of the Second Schedule of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), which placed labour matters on the Exclusive List, thereby reserving the power to legislate on labour-related matters exclusively to the Federal Government.

According to her, another crucial item for discussion by the Council would be the need for state governments to embrace a uniform implementation of the Minimum Wage Act, 2019.

She noted the need to align the minimum wage with the current economic realities, as well as the International Labour Standards that serve as the bedrock of the legal framework for labour administration in Nigeria.

Daju also remarked that Nigeria needed to develop strategies to bridge the gaps identified by the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations (CEARCR), on the application of Conventions No. 26 on Wage Fixing Machinery, 1928; and No. 95 on Protection of Wages, 1949.

She noted that this has become crucial in the face of the impact of the recent removal of subsidy on petrol on the Nigerian workers.

The Permanent Secretary disclosed that the Council was established in 1955 to offer advisory services to the Minister of Labour in the areas of Labour Administration, Employment Relations and Labour Productivity, and it also plays the critical role of promoting and ensuring a Labour Administration System in line with international best practice.

She added that the Council was inactive between 2013 and 2021, when it was revived, and a new Council was inaugurated.

Earlier, Director, Productivity Measurement and Labour Standards department of the Ministry, Juliana Adebambo, stated that the revival of the NLAC was evidence of Government’s political will to increase collaboration between social partners and governments (Federal and State) to ensure lasting industrial harmony, socio-economic development, as well as national growth.

Membership of the Council comprises the Federal, the thirty-six states and the FCT governments, Nigeria Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress, Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), the country representative of the International Labour Organisation, and other stakeholders.

Approves 35 Billion For National Judicial Council

The National Assembly, on Thursday, passed an amendment to the N819.5 billion 2022 supplementary budget, approving N70 billion to support the “working condition” of new lawmakers.

The amendment, among others, seeks to provide N500 billion palliatives to Nigerians to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal.

The amendment was passed in both the Senate and the House of Representatives a day after President Bola Tinubu sent the request to the parliament.

The breakdown of the amended N819.5 billion supplementary budget showed that N500 billion is for palliatives to cushion the effect of recent subsidy removal policy, which will be domiciled in Finance ministry.

The detail also showed that N185 billion is for Ministry of Works and Housing to alleviate the impact of the severe flooding experienced in the country in 2022 on road infrastructure across the six geopolitical zones.

The sum of N19.2 billion is allocated to Ministry of Agriculture to ameliorate the massive destruction to farmlands across the country during the severe flooding experienced last year; N35 billion to National Judicial Council; N10 billion to Federal Capital Territory Administration for critical projects and N70 billion to National Assembly to support the working conditions of new members.

Mr Tinubu, during his inauguration on 29 May, announced the removal of fuel subsidy, a decision that saw the price of petrol jump three-fold across the country.

Following the announcement, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) directed its outlets nationwide to sell fuel between N480 and N570 per litre, an over 200 per cent increase from the initial price below N200.

The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) had initially planned a nationwide strike to protest the removal. However, the planned strike was suspended following a parley between them and the government, with some agreements reached.

While the administration has been commended for taking swift action on petroleum subsidy, there are still concerns about the impact of the removal, especially as it relates to the increase in the price of petrol and its multiplier effect on almost every sector of the country’s economy and impoverished households.

An Umuahia Magistrate court on Wednesday found a 37-year-old HIV-Positive man, Mr. Chiemela Victor Ekeke guilty of defiling a 4-year-old girl in Umuahia, Abia State and has pleaded guilty to the three count charge bordering on defilement.

The prosecuting counsel, Mr. Okezuonu Obioma an official of the Ministry of Justice told newsmen that the accused person did not deny any of the 3-count charges.

According to the counsel, the facts were laid before the magistrate court in order to convince the court that the accused persons committed the crime.

The court presided over by Chief Magistrate N. Lekwa found the accused guilty and adjourned till July 21 for sentencing.

Upon interrogation, the accused person said his doctor told him he has a small load of HIV that has been flushed out of his system.

Ekeke who is a labourer and a farmer on Friday narrated how he had gone to the victim’s home in search of a woman that is related to the victim’s family to pay her the sum of N3,000 he had earlier borrowed from her.

He said upon arrival at the home of the victim located at Ogbulafor Street in Umuahia, he met the children playing in the parlour.

According to him, while two of the children left the parlour, he was left with the youngest one, the 4-year-old old girl, stating that he put her on his lap, playing with her.

He confessed that he laid her on the bed where his hand mistakenly touched her on the private part but denied having carnal knowledge of the victim despite blood stains around her legs.

“Maybe it’s through the touching”, he stated defending why the blood gushed out from the baby’s private organ.

“I only touched her for a while. When she said she wanted to go inside the room, I left her”, he stated.

Mr Ekeke who after committing the act went to the bedroom of the children’s mother to have a rest said he was weak and needed to rest.

The gathering of 32 European countries and their North American first cousins in Lithuania under the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, NATO, is the clearest indication yet, that they want to put humanity on the path to another World War.

British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, made a truthful summary of the July 11-12, 2023 NATO Summit in little Lithuania, one of the first bolts to loosen from the defunct Union of Soviet Socialist Republics which led to its collapse. He said what the summit achieved was to strengthen the military alliance, put it in its most combat-ready form since the Cold War, work out its “comprehensive war-fighting plans”, scale up defence production to “boost our stockpiles” of weapons and reaching a minimum defence spending of two per cent.

He also celebrated the full membership of Finland which has a 1,340-kilometre border with Russia, the longest by any European Union member. This means that NATO is fully peeping into Russia, and Finland would soon warehouse NATO weapons.

Sunak added with glee: “…And very soon we’ll be doing the same with Sweden. We are stronger with them by our side… and in time we will be stronger with Ukraine as a NATO ally too.”

In reiterating British commitment to the military defeat of Russia in the Ukraine War, the British leader announced: “Together with our G7 partners we have agreed to provide the long-term bilateral security commitments that Ukraine needs.”

The more recent commitments of the United States, US, for instance, was President Joe Biden’s Friday, July 7, 2023 announcement to provide Ukraine with cluster bombs which represents perhaps the most dangerous escalation in the war. This move, further shuts the doors against peaceful negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.

Cluster bombs are bombs that disperse and scatter huge number of mini- bomblets over wide areas some of which fail to explode on impact and thus become like landmines, lying in wait for years after a war, to explode when stepped upon by innocent civilians.

Since cluster bombs are ‘steel rain’ designed to fall on targets spread over wide areas, it means they do not have an accuracy and can therefore hit unintended targets such as civilian populations. The US military documents, reveal that the CBU-97 cluster bomb, for instance, “provides multiple kills per pass” against a wide range of tanks, armoured personnel carriers and other vehicles. Cluster bombs are weapons and crimes against humanity.

These bombs are so dangerous that 111 countries, including NATO members: Germany, UK and Canada, have signed and ratified the Convention on Cluster Munitions, banning its use, production and stockpiling.

The US last used them 20 years ago when in April 2003, in collaboration with the UK, it fired about two million cluster bombs, most of which were called Dual-Purpose Improved Conventional Munitions, in Iraq.

The outcry against the US was so much that on March 11, 2009 President Barack Obama signed into law a permanent ban on nearly all cluster bomb exports by the US.

Biden, this July 8, in rationalising his decision to supply Ukraine with cluster bombs said: “This is a war relating to munitions. And they’re running out of that ammunition, and we’re low on it and so, what I finally did, I took the recommendation of the defence department to – not permanently – but to allow for this transition period, while we get more 155 weapons, these shells, for the Ukrainians.” The logic in Biden’s argument is that if the US also runs low on cluster bombs, it can supply Ukraine with nuclear weapons.

Biden in this dangerous escalation of the war in Ukraine claims that Ukraine has assured him that the cluster bombs would not be used against Russian territory. So against what will it be used? Ukrainian territory? Does it make sense for Ukraine to use these dangerous weapons against its own territory when it knows that like mines, they can remain concealed and unexploded for years? If Biden thinks the rest of us are so thick headed as to believe such assurances are the Ukrainians so silly as to plant mines they would be unable to detect on their own territory?

In continuing in Biden’s illogical decision, his National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan, said: “We recognise that cluster munitions create a risk of civilian harm from unexploded ordnance… But there is also a massive risk of civilian harm if Russian troops and tanks roll over Ukrainian positions and take more Ukrainian territory and subjugate more Ukrainian civilians because Ukraine does not have enough artillery.” Silly rationalisation.

Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who is sure to liberally use the new weapons, responded excitedly that the new package is a “timely, broad and much-needed defense…that(would) bring Ukraine closer to victory over the enemy”. He added that: “The expansion of Ukraine’s defence capabilities will provide new tools for the de-occupation of our land and bringing peace closer.”

The tragedy in all these is that Russia will respond in like manner and the world will get closer to a new World War in which all, including nuclear weapons, would be game.

Sunak’s reminder that from all practical purposes, Sweden, the dove of Europe, has become a member of the hawkish NATO alliance following the successful bribing of Turkey to drop its objections, is a sad one.

Sweden has for centuries kept its head while others were losing theirs. Apart from building a humane society based on a wide range of social security measures and promotion of social justice, it had been a pacifist nation. Shedding its war-like garb after its July 27, 1814 war with neigbouring Norway, Sweden in 2014 celebrated 200 years of peace during which it did not take part in any war. Even during the madness of the First and Second World Wars, it refused to be drawn into conflicts. Despite this, it made it its duty to rescue Jews endangered by Nazism in Europe.

It also refused to be aligned during the Cold War. Most importantly for us in Africa, when big powers like the US and UK shored up the evil racist and Apartheid regimes that held down our people in Zimbabwe, Namibia and South Africa, Sweden stood by the oppressed. It also refused to join its European and American brothers in supporting the on-going Israeli genocide against the Palestinians. Equally, It supported the Saharawi against re-colonisation by their Moroccan neighbour.

The Swedes also gave humanity Olof Palme, one of the most compassionate, thoughtful and reliable leaders the world has ever produced. In his assassination on February 28, 1986 when he was Prime Minister, Olof Palme became a true martyr and symbol of peace in a highly fractured world. In Sweden joining NATO, Olof Palme will be turning in his grave.