Author: Lawbreed Limited

Olisa Agbakoba, a senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN), says the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has the power to regulate electoral processes. The national assembly had transmitted the electoral amendment bill to President Muhammadu Buhari on November 19, with recommendations on the electronic transmission of results and direct primaries for political parties. But in a letter addressed to the upper and lower legislative chambers, Buhari kicked against the recommendation of direct primaries for political parties on the grounds that it “violates the spirit of democracy”. The decision of the president generated mixed reactions from Nigerians, while some civil society organisations…

Barely 17 months to the end of his tenure, President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Doyin Salami as his chief economic adviser. Femi Adesina, special adviser on media and publicity to Buhari, announced Salami’s appointment in a statement on Tuesday. Currently, 58-year-old Salami is the chairperson of the presidential economic advisory council (PEAC). In the last six years, the country’s economy has always been a major challenge. The administration has witnessed two recessions. From high debt profile to double-digit inflation, troubled naira, what wonder will Salami perform? In his new role, Adesina said Salami will address all issues on the domestic economy and present views…

The federal government has introduced an excise duty of N10/litre on all non-alcoholic, carbonated and sweetened beverages. Excise duty is a form of tax imposed on the production, licensing and sale of goods. Zainab Ahmed, minister of finance, budget and national planning, said this during the public presentation of the 2022 Appropriation Act on Wednesday in Abuja. According to her, the new policy introduced is in the Finance Act signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari on December 31, 2021. With the policy, the prices of carbonated drinks may spike across the country. In 2019, Zainab Ahmed, the minister of…

The panel set up to investigate the Ikoyi building collapse has submitted its report to the Lagos government. On November 1, 2021, the 21-storey structure, which was being developed by Fourscore Homes, caved in. Femi Osibona, owner of Fourscore Homes, was one of the 43 persons who died in the collapse. Following the incident, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, governor of Lagos, had set up the panel to investigate the circumstances that led to the building collapse. Submitting the report on Wednesday, Toyin Ayinde, a town planner who chaired the panel, urged governments at all levels to ensure that ethics and due diligence…

Nigerians may have to pay more for digital services as the Federal Government has introduced a policy requiring foreign companies that provide digital services in the country to collect and remit Value Added Tax to the Federal Inland Revenue Service. The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, said this during the public presentation of the 2022 budget in Abuja on Wednesday. She said that the new policy is contained in Section 30 of the Finance Act which amended the provisions of Section 10, 31 and 14 on VAT obligations for non-resident digital companies. The Minister said, “Section…

82-year-old billionaire businessman, and former Chairman of First Bank PLC and UBA, Alhaji Umaru Abdul Mutallab, says he hopes to see his son, Farouk Abdul Mutallab, who is serving a life sentence in a United States prison over terrorism act, one day before his death. At age 23, Farouk fondly referred to as the “underwear bomber”, attempted to detonate plastic explosives hidden in his underwear while aboard a Northwest Airlines Flight 253, en route from Amsterdam to Detroit, Michigan, on Christmas Day, 2009. Mutallab while speaking in an interview on Trust TV, monitored in Kaduna on Wednesday, said he was…

The Federal Government has declared bandits as terrorists. After weeks of footdragging, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), gazetted a court judgement that ordered the government to declare bandits as terrorists. States in the North-West geopolitical zone including Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto and Kaduna have been ravaged by banditry in the last year. The nefarious activities of the marauders have also spilt into the North Central and other zones in the country. The bandits have killed hundreds of innocent persons, kidnapped several others including schoolchildren, with some still in their custody, while some are nursing…

Lagos State governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Friday swore-in 14 High Court judges, saying that all eyes are on them as they would have to justify their new position. Of the 14 judges who took oath, nine were females, bringing the total number of judges in the state to 70. Governor Sanwo-Olu, who spoke after the swearing ceremony, described the event as “building on a tradition of excellence which will increase our capacity to dispense justice, while also helping to raise a new generation of talents who will go on to do exploits in the highest courts of the land.” The…

The number of Judges in Lagos State Judiciary have increased to 70, following the addition of 14 new Judges who were, on Friday, sworn-in by Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu. The Judges were sworn in at an elaborate ceremony held at the Banquet Hall, Lagos House, Ikeja. Addressing the new Judges, the Governor reminded them of the enormous power they wield, and advised them to use it with integrity, without fear or favour. He also told them that all eyes will be on them as they discharge their duties, while urging them to speedily carry out all cases. “All…

The year 2021 tested the Bar and the Bench in their joint commitment to justice and defence of the Rule of Law, in various respects. Whereas the Covid-19 pandemic and its attendant lock-downs had crippled activities in the courts as with other segments of the Nigerian economy for the better part of 2020, the Nation saw the gates of our courts shut down again by the second quarter of 2021 for upwards of three months due to the strike action by the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (“JUSUN”) campaigning for full autonomy of the judiciary. Section 121(3) of the 1999…