The senate and house of representatives have embarked on their annual recess.

The two chambers of the national assembly commenced the recess after passing some crucial bills.

Some bills passed by the national assembly include the amendment to the minimum wage law, President Bola Tinubu’s request to increase the 2024 budget by N6.2 trillion, and an amendment to the 2023 Finance Act, among others.

Speaking on Tuesday, Senate President Godswill Akpabio said Tinubu may sign the minimum wage bill before Friday.

“We are hoping that Mr. President signs the minimum wage bill before Friday,” Akpabio said.

The national assembly also passed a bill seeking to impose a one-time windfall tax on banks for foreign exchange earnings.

However, some committees of the national assembly are scheduled to meet this week and next, while both chambers will resume on September 17.

The Presiding Judge, Portharcourt Judicial Division of the National Industrial Court, Hon. Justice Faustina Kola-Olalere has ordered Asphalt and Construction Company to pay Mr. Olocha the sum of N533,200.00 (Five Hundred and Thirty-Three Thousand, Two Hundred Naira) unpaid salaries from August to November 3, 2017, and the sum of N600,000.00 cost of action within 30 days.

However, Justice Kola-Olalere stated that Mr. Olocha has not proved before the Court that he suffered any injustice, psychological and emotional trauma, neither has he satisfied the Court that he was inconvenienced in any way as a result of his employer’s failure to pay his salaries from August to November 3, 2017 when the company formally determined his employment.

From facts, the claimant- Mr. Olocha had submitted that he was an employee of the Construction Company and served diligently and discharged all assigned roles and responsibility to the very best of his ability until the alleged wrongful termination of salaries in June 2017.

Mr. Olocha sought for the sum of N4,142,400.00 (Four Million, One Hundred and Forty-Two Thousand, Four Hundred Naira) unpaid salaries from June 2017 – June 2019 at the rate of N172,600.00 (One Hundred and Seventy-Two Thousand, Six Hundred Naira), and the sum of N5,000,000.00 (Five Million Naira) only being general damage for the unjust, psychological and emotional trauma and inconveniences suffered as a result of the Defendant’s acts.

In defence, the defendant- Asphalt and Construction Company stated that Mr. Olocha was not entitled to any salary from it after the determination of his employment, and counter-claimed for the sum of N124,000,000(One hundred and Twenty-Four Million Naira) only being the total sum of the value of the company’s properties and items allegedly vandalized by Mr. Olocha, and the sum of N10,000,000 (Ten Million) Naira as damages.

Asphalt and Construction Company further averred that upholding the claims for damages for Mr. Olocha will amount to Mr. Olocha benefiting from his own wrong, and urged the court to grant reliefs sought.

In opposition, the learned counsel to Mr. Olocha averred that the issue of the alleged termination of his employment is clearly an afterthought because the issue of dismissal was not mentioned in the company’s letter which was made over 1 month after the alleged dismissal.

Counsel contended that Construction Company had not proved its special damages claim, and the allegations contained in the petition had not been concluded and therefore remain mere allegations.

In a well-considered judgment, the presiding Judge, Justice Faustina Kola-Olalere held that Mr. Olocha’s reply to the Asphalt and Construction Company’s defence and defence to counter-claim together with his evidence in support of the pleadings tendered did not deny the dismissal specifically which amounts to the admission of the fact that the company dismissed Mr. Olocha from its employment with effect from November 3, 2017.

The Court held that Mr. Olocha was paid his salaries up to July 2017 and his employment was determined on November 3, 2017; which means that Mr. Olocha is no longer entitled to salary from the defendant as he has stopped working for the company with effect from November 3, 2017.

On Mr. Olocha’s claim for N5m damages, Justice Kola-Olalere stated that the claimant had not proved before the Court that he suffered any injustice, psychological and emotional trauma, neither had he satisfied the Court that he was inconvenienced in any way as a result of the Defendant’s failure to pay his salaries from August to November 3, 2017, when the defendant formally determined his employment.

Lastly, the Court dismissed the Asphalt and Construction Company counter-claims for lack of proof as no property was proved at all either satisfactorily or even poorly to be vandalized by the claimant before the Court.

Visit the judgment portal for full details

The truce meeting brokered by the Minister of State for Petroleum (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, to resolve the heated dispute between the Dangote Refinery on one hand and state-run entities, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Agency (NMDPRA), has failed to resolve the contentious issue of crude supply to the former’s new 650, 000bpd refinery, THEWILL can report.

Africa’s richest man and industrialist, Aliko Dangote and his company had alleged sabotage and conspiracy against the $20bn Dangote Refinery by key officials in the NNPC, international oil companies and the regulatory agencies, who they claimed would rather continue their corruption-ridden importation of poorly refined petroleum products into the country instead of ensuring that the Dangote Refinery gets adequate crude oil for its plant, which started producing and selling very low sulphur diesel and Jet fuel some weeks ago to both local and international buyers.

THEWILL’s authoritative source, who was privy to the deliberations at the meeting, which was held at the Minister’s office in Abuja on Monday, said, “The summary of what transpired is that the meeting was a waste of time. The NNPC, NMDPRA, NURPC said they do not have crude oil to supply the Dangote Refinery and appear not to be interested in doing so under any arrangement anytime soon. They would rather continue their imports at the expense of the Nigerian people.”

“It appeared they just wanted a photo ops to douse the anger of the Nigerian people following the damaging revelations that have emerged since the dispute became public,” the source who spoke to THEWILL on the condition of being anonymous, added.

Mr. Dangote represented his group at the meeting, while Mr. Farouk Ahmed, the CEO of the NMDPRA, who falsely claimed the Dangote Refinery produces poor quality products without evidence, represented his agency. Mr. Gbenga Komolafe, the Chief Executive Officer of the NUPRC and Mr. Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPCL represented their entities.

It is unclear when the parties would meet again as both the Senate and the House of Representatives have commissioned an investigation into the quality of diesel imported into the country by the NNPC after tests at the Dangote Refinery chemical laboratory revealed that the diesel were of very poor quality with sulphur levels reaching 2, 000ppm (parts per million).