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Norwegian Airline To Provide Crew, Aircraft For Air Peace’s Lagos-London Flights

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Norwegian Airline To Provide Crew, Aircraft For Air Peace’s Lagos-London Flights

A Norwegian low-cost airline called Norse Atlantic will provide crew and aircraft to Air Peace for its Lagos-London operations.

Norse Atlantic will link Lagos to London – an unusual service for the Nigerian airline, which usually flies from Europe to the United States and the Caribbean.

On February 20, 2024, Air Peace, Nigeria’s flag carrier, announced that it would commence direct flight operations from Lagos to Gatwick airport in London, from March 30, 2024.

According to a Skift report, Norse will operate as a charter as an ‘ACMI’ contract.

ACMI stands for aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance.

An ACIM contract also known as wet or damp leasing, is an agreement between two airlines, where the lessor agrees to provide an aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance (ACMI) to the lessee – in return for payment on the number of block hours operated.

Norse will also provide maintenance and insurance to Air Peace

The move has been described by Norse as marking “the beginning of a strategic partnership” between the two companies.

Aside from Air Peace, Norse has entered into various sub-leasing deals, including with Spanish operator, Air Europa, to better leverage its assets.

The carrier signed a long-term aircraft leasing contract on very favourable terms during the peak of the pandemic.

Norse said its low-cost base allows the company to be more nimble and park planes during quieter periods.

Also, Norse recently trimmed back its flying program, with cuts to some transatlantic destinations and a renewed focus on core markets such as New York and Florida.

However, the Lagos-London link will mark Air Peace’s first foray into the European market, as the airline currently flies within Africa as well as select routes to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), China, and India.

Although Norse is already a major operator at Gatwick, it will be using new slots allocated to Air Peace for the route.

The development will put the Nigerian carrier in competition with British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, which already operate from London Heathrow to Lagos.

UAE Lifts Visa Bans On Nigerians – Travel

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UAE Lifts Visa Bans On Nigerians – Travel

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has lifted the visa restriction on Nigerian travellers after a two-year diplomatic row.

UAE Embassy in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city, and the Nigerian government in a statement said their agreement shows a “shared commitment to strengthening ties, enhancing cultural exchanges, and fostering opportunities for economic and social collaboration.”

Following meetings between Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu, and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Embassy said a new verification process has been introduced for Nigerian visa applications.

“All Nigerian applicants for UAE visas are required to first obtain a Document Verification Number. This essential step is to be completed by visiting the dedicated online Document Verification Hub platform (official link https://documentverficationhub.com,” the UAE Embassy said.

UAE Ambassador to Nigeria, Saleem Saeed Al-Shamsi, said the introduction of the Document Verification Number will enhance the integrity of the application process and ensure prompt processing for applicants.

“We encourage all prospective travellers to adhere to the guidelines and initiate the applications promptly, ensuring and smooth transition to the new system,” Al-Shamsi said.

Nigeria and UAE authorities were enmeshed in a diplomatic row that culminated in UAE’s Emirates Airline halt its flight operations to the West African country due to trapped funds since 2022. Emirates Airlines puts the figure at $85 million.

Nigeria’s leader at the time Muhammadu Buhari had a phone call with UAE’s President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, where he appealed for lifting the travel ban on Nigerians.

Buhari told Nahyan that he had directed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to increase foreign exchange allocation to the airline while all concerned government officials were working on the trapped funds.

The Nigerian government thereafter said it released $265 million to airlines operating in the country to settle outstanding ticket sales. The CBN also promised to release another $120 million to the international carriers to offset part of the trapped funds by the end of October 2022.

One month later, Emirates Airlines announced the suspension of inbound and outbound Nigerian flight operations “to mitigate against further losses moving forward”. The airline has since not resumed operations in Nigeria.

However, the UAE Embassy said there are still “ongoing efforts” for stronger ties with Nigeria. It is unknown if the potential resumption of the airline was part of the discussions.

https://guardian.ng/breakingnews/uae-lifts-travel-visa-restriction-on-nigerians-after-diplomatic-row

Rotimi Amaechi Called To Nigerian Bar (photos)

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Rotimi Amaechi Called To Nigerian Bar (photos)
A former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi CON has been called to the Nigerian Bar.

The event took place today……

Amaechi is a former Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, a 2-time Governor of the oil-rich State and was Director-General of the Buhari/Osinbajo Campaign Organisation in both 2014/15 and 2018/2019.

The former ‘Super Minister’ was born on May 27, 1965 in Ubima, Ikwerre LGA and studied English Studies and Literature at the University of Port Harcourt, graduating in 1987.

On 19th November 2022, he announced he had graduated from the Baze University with a second class honours upper division in Law.

Congrats, the Lion of Ubima

Industrial Court voids suspension of FADAMA Director, awards N5m damages

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Industrial Court voids suspension of FADAMA Director, awards N5m damages

The Presiding Judge, Ebonyi Judicial Division of the National Industrial Court, Hon. Justice Oluwakayode Arowosegbe has declared the purported resolution of the Ebonyi State Executive Council and the approval of the Governor of Ebonyi State suspending Dr. Cletus as FADAMA Coordinator of Ebonyi State ultra vires the powers and functions of the State Executive Council and the Governor of Ebonyi State.

Justice Arowosegbe ordered the Government of Ebonyi State, its Attorney-General and 5 others to immediately pay Dr. Cletus Chukwuma all his arrears of salaries, remunerations, emoluments and all other entitlements accruing to him as FADAMA Director throughout the period of his unlawful suspension with the sum of Five Million Naira as damages.

The Court declared that the purported resolution of the Ebonyi State Executive Council and the approval of the Governor on the indefinite suspension of Dr. Cletus since 14th July 2020 from his confirmed and pensionable employment by the Government of Ebonyi State as a civil servant are contrary to the rules of natural justice, unlawful, unconstitutional, null, void and of no effect whatsoever.

From facts, the claimant- Dr. Cletus Chukwuma had pleaded that he was a civil servant on GL 16 and Director in charge of Rural Institutions Development of Ebonyi State Agricultural Development Program [ESADP] and he was appointed by the Ebonyi State Governor in 2007, as the State Coordinator of FADAMA III and served in this capacity till 14th July 2020 when he was unlawfully suspended, while his salary as a civil servant was also stopped.

He pleaded that his suspension did not follow due process as laid down for public officers, and his application dated September 26, 2019 for transfer of service to Ebonyi State University, as the FADAMA III was winding up, was frustrated by the Government of Ebonyi State’s letter to the University not to renew his appointment as adjunct lecturer or recruit him until the issue of his suspension was sorted out.

The defendants- Government of Ebonyi State, Attorney-General and 5 others counterpleaded that Dr. Cletus was given fair hearing and his suspension followed due process and urged the Court to dismiss the case with punitive cost.

The learned counsel to the Ebonyi State Government argued that Dr. Cletus was merely suspended as the State Coordinator of FADAMA III and was not suspended as a civil servant. He argued that, though Dr. Cletus is now retired, the fact remained that, his appointment was neither terminated as Coordinator of FADAMA III nor as a civil servant but merely suspended indefinitely under the power of the State Government, and urged the court to dismiss the case.

In opposition, the learned counsel to Dr. Cletus argued that his client’s employment as a civil servant was statutory and not master-servant and his position as FADAMA III Coordinator goes hand-in-hand with his status as a civil servant and urged the court to grant the reliefs sought.

Delivering judgment after careful evaluation of the submission of both parties, the presiding Judge, Hon. Justice Oluwakayode Arowosegbe held that Dr. Cletus’s appointment as FADAMA III Coordinator has no statutory flavor, that it is purely a contract appointment, and no statutory provision gives the Governor or any authority within the facts of the case, the right to indefinitely suspend Dr. Cletus without the payment of wages.

Justice Arowosegbe held that Dr. Cletus’s unlawful indefinite suspension for allegations of misconduct is deemed as constructive dismissal, and the attempted further disciplinary actions against Dr. Cletus by the State Head of Service was medicine after death, as the letter of suspension was clearly that of suspension as punishment, as it did not say that the suspension was for the purposes of further investigation.

The Court faulted the indefinite suspension of Dr. Cletus since July 14, 2020 without pay, and held that the modern jurisprudence of labour law in Nigeria defines constructive dismissal as unfair labour practice.

Justice Arowosegbe also declared the recommendations of the Ebonyi State Fiscal Responsibility Commission, which is the foundation of the disciplinary action of indefinite suspension of Dr. Cletus from work and stoppage of his salaries and emolument as a senior and confirmed public servant as unlawful, ultra vires the functions and powers of the said Commission and therefore, null, void and of no legal effect whatsoever.

 

Visit the judgment portal for full details www.nicnadr.gov.ng/judgement

Enugu Government Shuts ShopRite, SPAR, Other Malls Over Failure To Remit Taxes

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Enugu Government Shuts ShopRite, SPAR, Other Malls Over Failure To Remit Taxes

The Enugu State Government has sealed Enugu ShopRite and SPAR for alleged non-remittances purchase tax in their malls to the government after being served several warning notices.

The State Internal Revenue Service (ESiRS), enforcement team carried out the sealing of the malls on Tuesday morning.

Other malls and businesses closed include – Roban, Mama Onyinye restaurant among others.

The Enugu State Internal Revenue Service(ESIRS) HOD eateries, bars, hotels, and shopping malls, Egwuonwu Perpetual said the agency has visited the sealed malls and businesses on several occasions to request for the purchase tax but they failed to remit such.

She added they have also pleaded with the concerned individuals to be remitting their taxes when due, but “have been recalcitrant and till now they have not done anything concerning these instructions.”

“It is worthy of note that after we met with the Roban store they displayed our sticker and have complied with remitting their purchase tax to the IRS. On the other hand, ShopRite has frustrated all our efforts to get them to do the needful.

“It is always one story or another eventually they promised us that before the end of February, they would do something but we are in March and the ESIRS have not heard from them,” she said.

Egwuonwu stressed that the malls would remain closed until the issues at hand were resolved.

Speaking to journalists on the incident, the spokesperson for the service, Nnamdi Eneh explained that the agency had gone on air to enlighten and educate the people on the need to remit their taxes.

“Our public enlightenment programme has been ongoing for a while now. We have been sensitizing the people and pleading with them to pay their taxes so as not to fall victim during enforcement, but most of them remained adamant.

“The objective here is not to disrupt anybody’s business but since pleading did not work, this is the only way to compel them to do what they are supposed to do.”

The End Of Naira, NGN, On Binance

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The End Of Naira, NGN, On Binance

Binance has announced that it will delist NGN from It’s platform on 2024-03-07.

How will this affect Naira/Dollar movement?

Power Outage disrupts Senate plenary

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Power Outage disrupts Senate plenary

As Nigeria continues to grapple with the epileptic power supply, an outage on Tuesday disrupted the Senate Plenary session.

Meanwhile, the Senators have reportedly suspended plenary till the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) restored the electricity supply.

SaharaReporters reported that the power problem in Nigeria had been made worse with the removal of fuel subsidy which escalated the pump price of petroleum otherwise known as Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and AGO known as gas to all time high in the history of the country.

SaharaReporters also reported that national grid collapse had become a regular feature in the country in the last nine months.

While the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and Electricity Distribution Companies had recently absorbed themselves of the epileptic power supply, it blamed the problem on generation.

Ghana’s Central Bank Suspends FX Licenses Of GT Bank And First Bank

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Ghana’s Central Bank Suspends FX Licenses Of GT Bank And First Bank

Ghana’s Central Bank Suspends Forex Licences Of GT Bank, First Bank Over Alleged Fraudulent Documents

The Ghanaian Central Bank on Tuesday suspended the foreign exchange licence of Guaranty Trust Bank and FBN Bank for one month.

In a statement issued by the apex bank, the suspension will commence on March 18 and this comes barely three months after it barred eight money transfer organisations (MTOs) from offering remittance services without regulatory approval as the apex bank seeks to regulate the foreign exchange market.

The statement added that the affected commercial banks committed various breaches of the foreign exchange market regulations, including submitting fraudulent documentation in their forex operations.

Reacting via a statement issued on Tuesday, Guaranty Trust Bank said it is “actively collaborating with the Bank of Ghana to swiftly address the trade-related issues leading to the suspension.”

The bank also reassured customers that all other business operations remained unaffected as the suspension was limited to its foreign exchange segment.

The suspension is in line with Section 11 (2) of the Foreign Exchange Act 2006, which gives the Bank of Ghana the power to suspend a licence for a period instead of revoking it.

The Bank of Ghana said in a statement that it would restore the banks’ licences after one month if it is satisfied that the banks “put in place effective controls” to ensure strict adherence to regulations. The apex bank also warned other financial institutions and called for strict adherence to forex market regulations and guidelines.

Last week, the Central Bank of Nigeria revoked the licence of more than 4,000 Bureau De Change operators (BDCs) for failing to pay necessary fees, render returns or comply with anti-money laundering and terrorism financing regulations.

The Nigerian government has also been taking several actions to clamp down on Binance, a global cryptocurrency trading platform for alleged fraud which resulted in the devaluation of the country’s currency, Naira.

Warehouse Looting: Hungry People Can’t Remove Doors, Windows – Mariya Mahmoud

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Warehouse Looting: Hungry People Can’t Remove Doors, Windows – Mariya Mahmoud

The Minister of State of the Federal Capital Territory, Dr Mariya Mahmoud, made this known in a statement issued on Monday by her Special Adviser on Media, Austin Elemue.

The decision followed Sunday’s invasion of a warehouse located in Gwagwa-Tasha, belonging to the Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat of the FCTA, by hoodlums.

The incident took place amid the ongoing food crisis ravaging the nation.

Mahmoud, during her visit to the warehouse on Monday, expressed disappointment with the incident, describing it as not driven by hunger but criminal minds.

“This is really a bad situation. And it is not something that the Administration will take lightly. All those that are involved must be brought to book. We have to do something. And also, this is a sign that we need to reinforce the security situation around all our warehouses because you just have to keep food.

“But the way this thing happened is beyond hunger. This is a criminal act. Somebody who is hungry cannot move out to remove all the roofings that are here. All the doors, all the windows, and also the gates.

“As you have heard from people around, the youth of the environment or the community, are suspected to have instigated this incident. So, this is a very sad event. And we are not happy about it”, she said.

Mahmoud explained that the incident occurred when the administration was restocking its warehouse to meet up with the directive of President Bola Tinubu to distribute palliatives to all six area councils in the FCT.

She further stated that the FCTA would find and prosecute those behind the ugly incident, noting that the administration would renovate the warehouse in due time.

“We did distribution about twice. And then about to do the third one, where these trucks were here to offload these food items, and then they were attacked, even injured some people on duty.

“This is not showing that we are good ambassadors of the nation. So definitely we are going to take action about this event that has happened. We have to reconstruct, not even renovate this warehouse, all the offices, and then the gates that are damaged”, she stated.

Floating Of Naira Worst Economic Decision – PENGASSAN

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Floating Of Naira Worst Economic Decision – PENGASSAN

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, has said the decision to float the nation’s currency is the major cause of the hardship, mass suffering, and other economic woes confronting the country, describing it as the worst economic decision-taking by the government.

President of PENGASSAN, Engineer Felix Osifo, in a chat with Vanguard, said people are already projecting that one Dollar will be exchanged for N4,000 before the end of the year because currency speculators are having a free day, contending that no country anywhere in the world floats its currency 100 percent in US Dollars.

According to him, “The removal of the fuel subsidy came with mixed feelings. As of then, our greatest concern was that it was done hastily. We were challenged by the fact that there was no plan in place to cushion the effects of its removal. One of the sectors impacted is the transportation sector. Before going into such a venture, it is right to proliferate everywhere with buses so that the Nigerian masses and students can use such buses for free.

“It would have reduced the high cost of transportation suffered by the people. Today, we can see where we are as a country. The reason why we are facing this difficulty is really not because the fuel subsidy was removed, it is mainly because of the exchange rate. In the last three years, we have shouted that the greatest policy that would affect us greatly if not well-managed is the exchange rate.

“When the exchange rate was N450, if crude oil price was around $75 to a barrel, the landing cost of PMS would have been about N350. That is half of where we find ourselves today and it could have also been better. We are challenged today because that exchange rate keeps increasing over time

“As we speak, everywhere is in chaos. The country is really going south and everywhere, it has been a problem. No country in the world floats its currency 100 percent in US Dollars. That is the worst economic decision-making. Today, we do not earn 100 percent and we have floated our currency. If it is left to supply and demand, speculators will come in. If not for the run around the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, operatives are also doing, which is also not sustainable, we could have got to N2,000. A lot of people are already projecting N4,000 before the end of the year. Currency speculators should not be allowed a free day.

“When a nation floats its currency, it is looking at the parallel or the black market, which has no fundamentals. When somebody has $5,000,000, he decides how much to sell it when another person is there to buy. The CBN or the official rate should not be chasing the parallel market. Those in the parallel market can do whatever they want, but the official rate should be maintained at a single rate. Another thing we can do is increase the supply side. Nigeria is an oil-dependent country.

“Over 90 percent of our foreign exchange earnings is from crude. We must curtail the issue of crude oil theft. We must create incentives for the International Oil Companies, IOCs, to increase their production for the indigenous producers to increase their production and stimulate more production. This is the quickest way for us to earn petrol dollars. When this comes in, it will shore up the supply and we will be able to meet the demand. Speculators cannot be eliminated, they will still be there.

“We should look at those critical items that we are importing for the manufacturing industry – spare parts, raw materials. We should look at all of them and reduce their duties.

Look at what the Customs is collecting for you to clear spare parts or any goods.

“They have adjusted their exchange rate to about N1, 600 and that would impede business. Food prices are expensive. People keep asking how it is related to the exchange rate; the question there is that the exchange rate is what is also affecting Automotive Gas Oil, AGO, popularly called Diesel. Before now, AGO was around N260. Last year it was around N700 to N800 naira. As we speak, AGO per litre is somewhere around N1,400.

“So, the woman that goes to Maiduguri market to buy tomatoes and bring them to Port Harcourt market or Lagos is going to ply the road with a vehicle which will be fuelled by AGO. That same woman, the house she lives in, the landlord increases the rent. She also has children in school and the school management would also increase the fee because the cost of running the school is high and teachers are demanding for more salaries.

Customs are meant to facilitate trade, they are not revenue collectors. If the target is for customs to collect N2 trillion, it will hinder the manufacturing sector and businesses. However, if the target is to facilitate businesses, they will still bring in revenue which may not be much but taxes can be made from the businesses.”

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