A middle-aged man, simply identified as Alfa Ahmed, has reportedly slaughtered his grandfather and uncle in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, for an alleged money ritual.

Investigations by The PUNCH revealed that the incident happened at the back of a popular market in Apete, in the Ido Local Government Area of the state, on Sunday evening.

It was further learnt that the late grandfather was visually impaired before the incident occurred.

An eyewitness told our correspondent, “The suspect, popularly called Alfa Ahmed in the area took advantage of his grandfather’s condition because the man was visually impaired, while his uncle too was not feeling fine when the incident occurred.”

Unconfirmed reports added that the mission of the suspect was to use parts of their bodies for money ritual.

Another source said, “The victims reside in the same place with the suspect at the back of popular market in Apete when the incident happened around 6.pm to 6.30pm yesterday (Sunday). And people alerted the police about the unfortunate incident because the whole place was tensed.”

When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Adewale Osifeso, confirmed the incident.

He said investigations had commenced on the incident, and an update would be provided.

“Investigation has commenced into the matter. Updates will be provided accordingly, please,” he stated.

The federal government of Nigeria spent a total of $2.78 billion on debt servicing in the first seven months of 2024, data released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revealed.

These figures were disclosed in the CBN’s recent ‘International Payments Data’ report, which also showed that Nigeria recorded $1.18 billion in total direct remittances from January to July 2024.

Analysis of the CBN data showed that in January, the government allocated $560.52 million to debt servicing, setting the tone for the year. This was followed by a reduction in February, where $283.22 million was spent, marking a 49.5 per cent decrease from January’s expenditure. March saw a slight decline, with $276.17 million allocated to debt servicing, representing a 2.5 per cent decrease from February. The trend of decreasing expenditures continued in April where $215.20 million was spent, reflecting a 22.1 per cent reduction compared to March.

In May, there was a sharp reversal of this downward trend, with debt servicing costs soaring to $854.37 million. This marked a significant 297 per cent increase from April’s expenditure, making May the month with the highest debt servicing outlay during this period. However, June experienced a dramatic drop in spending, with only $50.82 million allocated to debt servicing, a 94 per cent decrease from May. This was the lowest monthly expenditure recorded in the seven-month span. The spending picked up again in July, with $542.50 million spent on debt servicing, marking a substantial 967 per cent increase from June’s low point.

Also, a month-by-month analysis on the total direct remittances showed varying levels of remittance inflows throughout the seven months showed that A breakdown showed that in January, Nigeria received $138.56 million in direct remittances. However, February saw a sharp decline, with inflows dropping to $39.15 million, a 71.7 per cent decrease from January’s figure. March witnessed a rebound, with remittances increasing to $104.91 million, marking a 168 per cent rise from February.

The upward trend continued in April, where $193.31 million was received, a significant 84.3 per cent increase from March. The month of May saw the highest remittance inflow during this period, with $365.44 million recorded. This represents an 89 per cent increase from April, highlighting a strong surge in remittances, potentially driven by improved global economic conditions or favorable exchange rates. In June, however, remittances declined to $270.52 million, a 26 per cent decrease from May’s peak. Despite this drop, June’s inflow remained robust compared to earlier months. The downward trend continued into July, where remittances further decreased to $72.29 million, marking a 73.3 per cent decline from June.

Former Super Eagles head coach, Finidi George says Victor Osimhen has yet to apologise for the viral social media tirade that disrespected him.


Finidi, who is now in charge of Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) side, Rivers United, revealed he reached out to the forward to resolve the issue.

“I sent him a message that it was not the best way, just someone telling you that coach said that and you’re talking about me like I said it in an interview,” Finidi told Nigeria Info FM.


“From that point I didn’t hear from him, I moved on and I wish everybody well, only God will judge”. Finidi also refused to comment on suggestions Osimhen should have been sanctioned with a ban from the Super Eagles.

“I don’t know, he is there already, let him be,” he added.

“We cannot crucify him, he has made a mistake, we have moved on and life goes on.”

Former Super Eagles and Chelsea midfielder Mikel Obi has dismissed reports that Victor Osimhen’s wage demand was the reason the deal with the English side fell through.

Chelsea made a last-minute effort to sign the Super Eagles forward during the final hours of the summer transfer window, but the Premier League side could not finalise the deal.

According to reports, Napoli had accepted an €80 million ($88.5 million) offer from Saudi Pro League side Al Ahli on deadline day, but Osimhen expressed doubts about leaving European football.

Mikel, who was involved in the deal with Osimhen, has revealed that the transfer was just ‘hours away’ from being finalized and noted that the forward was ‘disappointed’ when the move fell through.

“I know what Victor wanted, I know what the club offered him, I know where we got to; we finally got to a compromise; both sides had to compromise, I was just some little things here and there, paperwork, medical, and a few issues we just couldn’t get over the line, and we didn’t have much time,” Mikel revealed on The Obi One Podcast.

“Both sides really played their part in terms of getting the deal done, and I commend Chelsea for that because I can see their ambition of where they want to take this club now and also on Victor’s side, how much he really wanted to come to the club.

“He was disappointed it didn’t happen. I spoke to him when the transfer window shut. I gave him a call. We spent 20 minutes talking, I said, ‘Listen, I’m always here for you. You need to keep your head down. You need to keep working hard. Keep training. I know it’s not the best situation right now, but I know you’re strong.’

“You know, Victor’s a strong character; he’s a bit like Didier Drogba and Diego Costa, and that’s something we’re missing at the club—strikers who have that edge, who have that bite who can intimidate defenders, and Victor definitely has that.”

Speaking further, Mikel dismissed reports of issues between Osimhen and Chelsea over the failed transfer.

“Definitely, there are no issues. I think if we have to pick this back up again like I said, whenever it is, January or next summer, we know where we are, we know where we’ve stopped, and it’s just little details that need to be finalised and the deal will be done.

“So for me, the club is in a very happy place with Victor, and Victor is in a very happy place with the club.

“I want to make sure; I’m not going to rest; I want to make sure I get him to the club because I know, not because he’s my friend, or he’s like my younger brother, or he’s Nigerian; no, he is one of the best strikers in the world right now; he’s Africa’s best player; I know what he can bring to the club, and I’m sure a lot of Chelsea fans know what Victor can bring to the club.”

The reigning African Footballer of the Year has since sealed a season-long loan deal to Galatasaray.

Following the arrest of the national president of the Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC, Joe Ajaero, the union has placed all Nigerians workers and affiliated unions on red alert.

DAILY POST earlier reported that operatives of the Department of State Services, DSS, arrested Ajaero on Monday morning.

He was picked up at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, while boarding a flight to the United Kingdom, UK, for an official assignment when DSS operatives picked him up.

In a post on its official X handle, NLC demanded immediate release of its national president.

“We demand the immediate and unconditional release of Congress President, Comrade Joe Ajaero,” it wrote.

The union further urged “all affiliate unions, state councils, civil society allies and all patriotic Nigerians should be on red alert”.

DAILY POST recalls that the NLC president was recently invited by the Nigeria Police Force for questioning over alleged link to terrorism financing and other related offences.

The union, after the invitation, vowed to shut down the nation’s economy if Ajaero is arrested.

The faction of the Labour Party (LP), under the leadership of Julius Abure as its National Chairman, has ruled out an automatic ticket for Peter Obi as the party’s candidate for the 2027 presidential election.

The faction also ruled out an automatic second-term ticket for the current Governor of Abia State, Alex Otti, on the party’s platform.

The developments were announced during a press briefing on Monday by the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC). The NEC has now announced that these nominations, and all others for which the party would contest, will be open to all candidates.

Also speaking during the press briefing, Abure, in what appears to be a direct response to the stakeholders’s meeting convened by Governor Otti last week in which a caretaker committee for the party was appointed, said no governor can harass them out of office.

In his words, “No governor that we gave ticket can harass us out of office; no governor, no matter how highly placed, will come and with a fiat, dissolve the NWC, dissolve state councils, or dissolve LG councils; even a military government would not do that.”

Abure argued that the mandate given to him and his team as leaders of the Labour Party at the convention of the party held on the 27th day of March 2024, will be defended.

Naija News recalls the Labour Party (LP), at its stakeholders meeting held in Umuahia, Abia State capital, last week Wednesday, appointed Senator Esther Nenadi Usman, the Chairman of the Caretaker Committee of the party.

Usman, a former Minister of Finance, represented Kaduna South senatorial district from 2011 to 2015.

Immediate-past Senate Minority Deputy Leader, Senator Darlington Nwokocha from Abia Central, was picked as the Secretary of the 29-member committee, expected to complete its assignment in 90 days.

The Nigerian Army says that voluntary retirement, discharge of personnel is routine and in line with laid down procedures as contained in the Harmonised Terms and Conditions of Service (Officers/Soldiers) alike.

The Director, Army Public Relations, Maj.-Gen. Onyema Nwachukwu, gave the clarification in a statement on Sunday in Abuja.

Mr Nwachukwu faulted the recent publication by some media platforms, alleging mass resignation of soldiers over corruption, low morale and the like.

He said the publication was not only misleading, but also a deliberate attempt to sow the seeds of disaffection and acrimony, as well as denigrate the patriotic service of personnel and reputation of the Nigerian army.

According to him, it is crucial to clarify that service in the Nigerian Army, like most militaries the world over, is voluntary and not conscription.

“This, therefore, provides that individuals are free and at liberty to disengage at will. The situation is the same as the Nigerian Army.

“Personnel are at liberty to disengage from time to time in accordance with laid down procedures

“Discharge from the Nigerian Army is routine and in line with laid down procedures.

“Only in an unorganised army would the discharge of personnel be handled haphazardly; hence, the compilation and release of names routinely, as must have been observed in the case of the Nigerian Army over the years.

“This process allows for personnel who are about to either mandatorily or voluntarily disengage to adequately prepare and process entitlements, emoluments, pensions, and gratuity for the period of service to the nation,” he said.

Mr Nwachukwu described the report as hasty and haphazard, adding that due diligence was not taken to ascertain reasons for the discharge of the personnel, other than the spurious allegation of low morale and corruption.

He said that reasons for the discharge of personnel were confidential, as they range from voluntary disengagements, medical grounds, and pursuit of other professions of interest and endeavours, and community service, amongst others.

According to him, the notion that soldiers are resigning en masse due to welfare issues is a gross misrepresentation of reality and certainly not the true picture.

“Instead, Nigerian Army recruitments are highly competitive and even oversubscribed.

“Contrary to the insinuations in the report, Nigerian Army personnel are highly motivated, and their welfare is top priority under the visionary leadership of the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja.

“Suffice to state that within one year of the current leadership, significant strides have been made to improve the standards of living and the overall well-being of personnel and their families.

“A prime example is the Affordable Housing Option for All Soldiers Scheme, aka AHOOAS, which has been inaugurated across the nation, allowing personnel to choose where to live and own decent post service accommodation.

“This initiative underscores the Nigerian Army’s commitment to ensuring that personnel enjoy dignified post-service life,” he said.

The Army spokesman said the army was currently undertaking massive rehabilitation of existing and construction of new infrastructure across formations, units, and barracks in the country to ensure conducive working and living atmosphere for troops and their families.

He added that allowances had been regularly paid as and when due for soldiers deployed in operational theaters.

“This is aside the regular free airlifting of troops proceeding on leaves and passes, as well as free medical evacuation of injured troops for both local and foreign treatments.

“Military hospitals and medical centres are equally receiving remodeling and upgrading of equipment for efficient service delivery to personnel and their families.

“These are in addition to combat enablers injected into all theatres of operations across the country to enhance troops’ operational effectiveness and ensure adequate force protection.

“Personnel capacity development is also receiving adequate attention, as both officers and soldiers are engaged regularly in training activities to build their capabilities in consonance with global best practice,” he added.

Mr Nwachukwu said the allegation of widespread resignation due to poor welfare was unfounded and irrational, urging media organisations to avoid being tools of disinformation.

He said the army would continue to prioritise the welfare and morale of its personnel and ensure that they remain motivated and fully equipped to carry out their duties in defense of the nation.

NAN

…Says Ajaero’s arrest not connected to police invitation

Human Rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has reacted to the arrest of the president of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Joe Ajaero.

The human right activist on Monday said secret service that arrested Ajaero has not given any reason for his arrest, noting that Ajaero’s arrest had no connection to police invitation.

I spent 24 years in prison for refusing to join in murder, money ritual plot — Ismaila Lasisi0:00 / 0:00

Vanguard had reported how Falana, Maxwell Opara, Deji Adeyanju accompanied Ajaero to Force headquarters for questioning over allegation of terrorism financing among others.

However, reacting to his arrest Falana opined: “The invitation to Comrade Joe Ajaero by the police was rescheduled last week. I have contacted the police authorities. The arrest is not related to the police invitation.

“Comrade Ajaero was on his way to London to attend the ongoing TUC conference when he was arrested at the airport this morning by the SSS. No reason has been provided for the arrest by the SSS.”

Oil marketers may begin the importation of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, following the recent declaration by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited that it would only fully offtake the product from the Dangote Petroleum Refinery if the market prices of the commodity were higher than the pump prices in Nigeria.

NNPC also declared that Dangote and other domestic refineries were free to sell directly to any marketer on a willing buyer, willing seller basis, adding that it had no desire or intention to become the distributor for any entity in a free market environment.

This is, however, contrary to what the President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, stated last week. The owner of the $20bn refinery had stated that the refinery was waiting for NNPC, adding that the national oil company would be the only off-taker of its petrol domestically.

Reacting to the slowdown in discussions between Dangote and NNPC, oil marketers stated that they would only source the product from wherever they found it cheaper, as this could be through importation.

Commenting on the price of Dangote petrol, the National Operations Controller, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Mustapha Zarma, said, “We have not contacted Dangote for now, but we may contact the refinery’s sales department this week to find out the price.

“If the price is competitive enough for one to buy and get his return on investment and the required margin, then we wouldn’t mind purchasing directly from him to complement what NNPC is bringing in or what NNPC would buy from Dangote.”

Zarma confirmed that since the Federal Government and NNPC had said the Dangote refinery would sell its product at the market price, this implied that the government would not intervene in the pricing of the commodity from the plant through subsidy.

Based on this, he noted that other dealers now had the opportunity to source the product from any producer at a cheaper price, whether locally or internationally.

He noted that some oil marketers currently imported diesel, while others bought the product from Dangote, adding that a similar situation would play out in the purchase of petrol, going by NNPC’s recent position on Dangote petrol.

“I believe that we are going to analyse the price of Dangote petrol and see the advantages of buying from Dangote viz-a-viz importation. Whichever we feel is cheaper will automatically attract everybody, especially if importation is cheaper.

“That will bring about competition and I don’t think the government will allow price monopoly. They would want a competitive market where the laws of demand and supply would determine the local price of refined petroleum products, just like diesel is right now.

“And with that, there is going to be some kind of equilibrium in the pricing and there is going to be guaranteed sustainability of supply,” the IPMAN official stated.

Industry observers say the Federal Government seems not ready to stop fuel importation following the refusal of NNPC to be the off-taker of Dangote’s petrol.

They, however, noted that with the recent hike in the pump prices of petrol, the government was systematically stopping subsidies on the commodity, following the recent revelation by NNPC that it spent over N7.8tn subsidising petrol.

At the presentation of the audited report and accounts of NNPC for the 2023 business year in Abuja last month, NNPC’s Chief Financial Officer, Umar Ajiya, admitted that the oil firm was shouldering a heavy subsidy burden on petrol imports.

He said the government directed NNPC to sell the petrol it imported at a price that is half the landing price.  According to him, at times the Federal Government paid the money and it could as well net off for it.

While the official pump price of petrol is about N600/litre, the average landing cost is about N1,200/litre. Ajiya said the company covered about N7.8tn in “shortfall” in the first seven months of this year.

“What has been happening is that we have been importing PMS, landing at a certain price, and the government is telling us to sell it at half price. So, that gap between that landed price and the half price is what we call shortfall or we call it a subsidy,” the CFO had stated.

Foreign producers

Also speaking on the development, the National Publicity Secretary of IPMAN, Ukadike Chinedu, said though marketers were ready to buy from Dangote, the revelation from NNPC showed that dealers were free to source their products from any cheaper source.

“From what is happening now, it means that the Petroleum Industry Act is being implemented, the removal of subsidies has come to stay and the price of petrol is to be determined by the economics of demand and supply.

“Now that NNPC has said they are not the sole off-taker of Dangote petrol, it then means that the price of the product would determine where we are going to buy it. If NNPC imports the product and its price is cheaper than that of Dangote, we will buy from NNPC. If Dangote’s price is cheaper than that of NNPC, then we will buy from Dangote. So, right now, competition will set in. Remember that diesel price rose as high as N1,600/litre and Dangote came in with his own at N1,200/litre, and the importers reduced their price to N1,100/litre.

“It further dropped to about N950 and now revolves between N950 and N1,100 for both the imported ones and the ones produced locally. By the time competition sets in, the product will sell cheaper,” Ukadike stated.

On whether marketers had started making plans to import if the imported product would be cheaper, he replied, “Our National President, Alhaji Abubakar Maigandi, has commenced discussions with some investors who are now in the process of securing funds going by the current trend in the business.

“So, we are talking with some foreign partners because you need to understand that independent marketers are the highest buyers of diesel from Dangote refinery because we control about 80 per cent of the filling stations nationwide. So, if Dangote PMS is cheaper we will buy it, but if importation is cheaper, we will go for it.”

President Bola Tinubu recently directed that NNPC should sell crude to Dangote and other domestic refineries in naira.

The President’s Special Adviser on Revenue, Zacch Adedeji, who also serves as Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service, explained that the move would mitigate Nigeria’s heavy reliance on foreign exchange for crude oil imports, accounting for roughly 30 to 40 per cent of its forex expenditure.

The revenue chief said that by denominating crude oil transactions in naira, the government expected to significantly lighten its forex burden, with estimated annual savings of $7.3bn. It is also expected to reduce monthly forex expenditure on petroleum products to $50m from approximately $660m.

“Monthly, we spend roughly $660m in these exercises, and if you analyse that, that will give us $7.92bn savings annually,” he stated.

Earlier, the President stated that Nigeria spent N2tn monthly on fuel importation.

The PUNCH reports that while licensed individuals have been importing diesel into Nigeria, NNPC remains the sole importer of petrol under the current administration.

Despite being the largest oil producer in Africa, Nigeria depends on imported petroleum products due to low refining capacity.

In May, Dangote said Nigeria would no longer import fuel the moment his refinery commenced production of petrol.

But unless there is an intervention from the President, Dangote’s plan to end fuel importation may not be achieved anytime soon, even as the $20bn refinery unveiled its PMS last week.

The NNPC, in a statement by its spokesman, Olufemi Soneye, said on Saturday that it would not buy Dangote PMS unless it was cheaper than that of the international market.

This is contrary to claims by Dangote that the refinery was waiting for the NNPC to roll out its product.

On Saturday, NNPC stated that it would only fully offtake petrol from the Dangote refinery if the market prices of PMS were higher than the pump prices in Nigeria.

The NNPC also declared that Dangote and any other domestic refineries are free to sell directly to any marketer on a willing buyer, willing seller basis, saying it had no desire or intention to become the distributor for any entity in a free market environment.

“The recent changes in PMS prices have no impact on the DRL or any other domestic refinery’s access to the Nigerian market. In fact, if current prices are perceived as high, it presents an ideal opportunity for the refinery to sell its products at lower prices in the Nigerian market,” Soneye stated.

Soneye added that Dangote refinery could lower its price if it felt the new prices were too high.

“We emphasise that there is no guarantee of lower prices associated with domestic refining compared to any global parity pricing framework, as confirmed by the DRL. The NNPC Ltd will only fully off-take PMS from the DRL if the market prices of PMS are higher than the pump prices in Nigeria,” the NNPC said.

This statement from the NNPC could be an indication that the NNPC was not ready to stop importation, especially as its refineries ere yet to become operational.

Since the unveiling of its PMS, the NNPC appeared to have turned its back against the Dangote refinery.

While unveiling the 650,000-capacity refinery, Dangote stated that the facility would roll out petrol whenever NNPC was ready.

Dangote disclosed that the petrol would get to the filling stations in the next 48 hours (from Tuesday) after all arrangements with NNPC were concluded, saying the queues would be over soon.

He emphasised that the NNPC would sell and distribute the product, under the current naira crude sale arrangement.

“Once the NNPC is ready, we roll,” Dangote said.

But it seems that talks between the two companies have collapsed and this means fuel importation might continue.

In the past few days, the NNPC has in different statements denied that it would fix the price for Dangote or be its sole distributor.

This was after the state-owned energy firm said it was given a September 15 timeline by the refinery to lift its petrol

‘NNPC evading responsibilities’

A reliable source close to Dangote refinery expressed concerns over the turn of events.

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because she was not authorised to speak on the matter, said NNPC had been the one fixing petrol prices over the years, wondering why it was trying to relinquish that duty now.

The source also denied that Dangote refinery gave NNPC a September 15 deadline to lift its fuel.

She added that those making money from fuel importation were the forces trying to stop the sale of Dangote PMS locally.

“Dangote is not a regulator, those in NNPC are just trying to be clever, they want to shift the blame to somebody else. This is something they have been doing for many years.

“Some people are embittered, this is what they have been doing over the years, embezzling money,” our source said.

On pricing, she added, “I don’t know if there is any price for now. We all know what is going on. These is propaganda from these NNPC people. They know what they have done and they want to cover up. Very soon, everybody will know the actual quantity of fuel we consume in this country.”

IPMAN awaits loading

IPMAN president Abubakar Maigandi told one of our correspondents that the independent marketers were waiting for PMS from NNPC Retail.

“We are still collaborating with NNPC. I’ve called their officials and my marketers are supposed to have started loading. They said they would start loading them. So, we are still waiting.

“According to the information from the NNPC, we learnt that there is enough supply. So, we are waiting for them if they truly have enough supply because we already paid,” Maigandi stated.

The Federal Government, through the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons, will today (Monday) arraign 10 suspects for terrorism over their alleged connection with the N4bn illegal firearms and ammunition imported into the country in June.

The PUNCH learnt on Sunday that the arms centre had concluded its investigation into the large cache of arms and ammunition intercepted by the Nigerian Customs Service in Port Harcourt in June.

The Nigerian Customs had, during one of its operations in June, intercepted a 40-foot container loaded with 844 rifles and 112,500 live ammunition at the Onne Port in Port Harcourt.

The arms and ammunition were said to have been skillfully concealed within items such as doors, furniture, plumbing fittings and leather bags.

The intercepted container was also reported to have originated from Turkey and its duty-paid value was put at N4bn.

A top source at the centre told our correspondent that 10 suspects arrested in Abuja in connection with the importation of arms and ammunition would be charged in court today (Monday).

The source added that the matter had been assigned to  Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

The source said, “Investigation has been concluded on the matter. Ten suspects were arrested while others are at large. The suspects will be taken to court on Monday. The case is before Justice Emeka Nwite in Abuja.’’

In the copy of the charge sheet sighted by a correspondent on Sunday, the defendants are Ali Ofoma; Okechukwu Charles; Kingsley Chinasa; Oroghodo Maxwell; Akinkuade Segun; Augustine Elechi; Osumini Kennedy; Ajala Ojo; Faboro Oluwatimilehin and Tolulope Ogundepo.

In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CR /463/ 2024, four charges, bordering on acts of terrorism, illegal importation of prohibited firearms, and forgery, among others, were preferred against the defendants.

The defendants were accused of intentionally conspiring with others at large to illegally import prohibited 844 firearms and 112,500 rounds of cartridges concealed in plumbing materials and other items loaded inside a 1 x 40ft container with Registration Number MAEU- 9165396.

The offence is said to be contrary to Section 3(6) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act Cap M17 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.

The FG also accused the defendants of altering a bill of lading of the consignment from Ola Gold Maratine Services to read Dan Autos Limited and diverted the movement of the container from the West African Container Terminal to WAX Logistics Limited to cover up their illegal intention to import prohibited arms and ammunitions.

By doing this, the FG said the defendants committed “an act of uttering of the forged document with the intent that it may anyway be used or acted upon as genuine contrary to Section 1(2)(c) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act Cap M17 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.”

“That you  Ofoma, Charles and others at large on or about June 20, 2024, at Onne Port Terminal and your subsequent arrest in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court did, knowingly and intentionally with others now at large, commit an act of terrorism to wit: you transported prohibited weapons and other dangerous substance on board a Maersk Vigo Ship with a bill of lading number 238921355 conveying a container number MAEU-9165396 into the country thereby committing an act prejudicial to national security and in violation of ECOWAS Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons and you thereby committed-an offence punishable under Section 39(1) (a) (i) of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022,” the charge sheet added.

Ofoma, Charles and others at large were accused of importing the arms and ammunition into the country without the required license or authority, contrary to Section 18 of the Firearms Act Cap F28 Laws of Federation of Nigeria 2004 and punishable under section 27 (a) (iii) of the same Act.