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Groups Urge Supreme Court To Review Judgment In Multi-million Dollar Contractual Dispute
A consortium of civil society organizations have appealed to the Supreme Court to review its judgment in a multi-million dollar contractual dispute between an indigenous company, Owigs and Obigs Nig. Ltd and the Zenith Bank Plc.
The groups anchored by the Empowerment for Unemployed Youths Initiative, Independent Public Service Accountability Watch, among others, made the call Tuesday in Abuja at a press conference
The convener of the groups, Stephen Ebira, while speaking on the matter faulted the judgment of the apex court, insisting it was punctuated by decisions and misrepresentation of facts, contrary to the evidence adduced before the trial court.
He noted that the said judgment sought to be reviewed which was in favour of Zenith bank, which amounted to a miscarriage of justice as the wrongdoer was declared innocent and rewarded, while the victim of the said contract gone awry was held liable and punished.
While restating that the Supreme Court should be a place for the restoration of hope for the ordinary and aggrieved persons and not where truth is strangulated, as was the case in the judgment under reference, the groups insisted that the judgment cast a terrible slur on the presumed integrity of the apex court.
They also said it has dealt a lethal blow on the integrity of the nation’s banking sector when playing any role in international businesses.
“The judgment in appeals no: SC.709/2020 delivered on May 24, 2024, is a broad-day robbery of justice.
“The Supreme Court should be a place where justice is birthed, not assassinated and buried.
“It raised a red flag for investors and tarnished the surviving fragment of the nation’s reputation before the international communities, and should be quickly reviewed,” the statement emphasised.
Our correspondents gathered from the court processes that the law suit bother on a breach of an international commercial contract for the export of solid minerals on a 100% credit basis, with letter of credit confirmation by the confirming bank (Zenith Bank) as required by the fundamental credit term of the contract.
The main contract, according to the claimant’s, Owing and Obigs Nig Ltd, in the contract marked: JYOONL-OO1/ KTTA 140415, is a quadrilateral agreement between the buyer, seller, LC issuing bank, and LC confirming bank, comprising four interdependent and interrelated autonomous contracts.
Sadly, it noted, the confirming bank (Zenith bank Plc) was alleged to have maliciously breached the critical fundamental credit term without any reason whatsoever, thereby, activating the contract’s default clause, triggering off specific damages without remedy amounting to millions of dollars.
The appellant argued that the judgment of the apex court curiously created a fake irrevocable documentary letter of credit with SWIFT MT 700, without a confirming bank, contradicting the original document and making a mockery of international trade standards and practices.
“This false irrevocable documentary letter of credit with SWIFT MT 700 is issued for contract agents and facilitators instead of the buyer-seller contract,” the NGOs states.
They also alleged that the judgment altered parties in the case by the misconceived irrevocable documentary letter of credit which listed only three parties, excluding the confirming bank/respondent, instead of the four parties as contained in the processes filed in the court.
They claimed that “in the judgment, the Supreme Court re-wrote an international contract for the parties in favour of the breaching party by subsisting a non-party with the actual party, and removed the liabilities of the legitimate party to a non-party contrary to the evidence on record and protocol upheld by Uniform Trade Customs and Practice which ruled and governed the contract.- A treaty to which Nigeria is a signatory.
The seller’s bank (Zenith bank PLC) was declared the issuing bank instead of confirming bank, contrary to the evidence on record and serial admissions by the bank, in order to absolve the confirming bank as the breaching party from it’s default liabilities, they stated.
The appellant’s claimed that “it’s fundamental right to generate/earn revenue and profits through legitimate business transactions as established by the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria was maliciously breached due to the malicious violation of contract No JYOONL-OO1/KTTA 140415”.
The appellant explained that “it’s decision to approach the apex court was not to seek special damages or rights, as misconstrued by the court, but rather it was to enforce the specific remedies outlined in the contract’s default and liability clause; which specifically warned against breach of contract and consequences including the appellant’s right to generate revenue, which the breaching bank violated under the sales contract.
“The case of the appellant is that after securing an export licence to export solid minerals sometimes in 2014, Zenith bank Plc agreed to offer export finance facility if it could secure an export trade contract backed by an acceptable letter of credit from foreign entity/company.
“Following discussions with the bank, the appellant engaged the services of an international agent, Eglone Group Asia Pte Limited based in Singapore, to help it broker/secure foreign buyers for tin Ore, tantalite ore and columbite ore.
“Eglone Group Asia Pte Limited eventually succeeded in getting two buyers for the appellant (Owigs and Obigs Nig. Ltd) in March and April 2014.
“The first contract that was secured is contract No. Jy-OONL-001, dated March 5, 2014, which was executed between the appellant and Guangdong Jiayuan Metals Co. Ltd of China for the supply of Tin ore; while the second contract with contract No. KTTA 140145, dated April 15, 2014, was executed between the appellant and King-Tan Tantalum Industry Ltd of China for the supply of Columbite ore and tantalite ore.
“However, due to the failure of the appellant (Owigs and Obigs Nig.Ltd) to execute the contract on time, the contracts were cancelled, and penalty fees were deducted by Zenith bank from the appellant’s account”.
According to the appellant, “the cancellation of the contracts was because Zenith bank failed/neglected to confirm letters of credit issued by the buyer’s bank, the Industrial and Commerce Bank of China (ICBC).
“It was based on this that the appellant commenced legal actions against the bank, claiming monetary damages for the negligence”.
Amupitan gave the assurance during a courtesy visit to former Head of State and Chairman of the National Peace Committee, General Abdulsalam Abubakar (retd.), at his residence in Minna, Niger State, on Friday.
The commission’s chairman led a delegation comprising National Commissioners, the Secretary to the Commission, directors and his technical aides.
Amupitan described Abubakar as “the father of democracy in Nigeria”, noting that his transition to civilian rule in 1999 marked a defining moment in the country’s democratic history.
The INEC chairman said the commission regarded the former Head of State “not merely as a statesman but as a pillar of support for INEC.”
He also commended Abubakar’s role as Chairman of the National Peace Committee, describing its Peace Accord initiative as “a moralising influence on Nigeria’s political ecosystem.”
According to INEC, Amupitan said the initiative had provided political actors with a platform to commit to non-violence, thereby strengthening “the sovereignty of the will of the Nigerian people.”
The INEC chairman told Abubakar that, regardless of the pressures confronting the commission, it remained committed to ensuring that the will of Nigerians as expressed at the polls would prevail.
He said, “The Commission’s determination under my leadership was to see ordinary Nigerians go out and vote, confident that their votes would be duly counted and reflected in the outcome of elections,” describing this as “the core assurance INEC owed the electorate.”
Amupitan also formally confirmed the dates for the 2027 general elections.
According to INEC, the Presidential and National Assembly elections will hold on January 16, 2027, while the Governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections will take place on February 6, 2027.
Abubakar, in turn, called on Nigerians to support INEC ahead of the 2027 general elections.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, has approved the expansion of the Nigerian Army’s structure from eight to twelve divisions—a landmark move to enhance the country’s security architecture and improve the operational effectiveness of the Nigerian Army.
In a statement, Special Adviser to the President on (Information & Strategy) Bayo Onanuga says, “this approval underscores the President’s unwavering commitment to equipping the Armed Forces to address Nigeria’s evolving security challenges effectively and to strengthen national defence capabilities further.”According to the statement, “the expansion builds on the Administration’s sustained investments in the Armed Forces, including approval for the recruitment of 28,000 additional personnel, acquisition of critical military platforms and equipment, improvements in troop welfare, and ongoing support for operational readiness and force modernisation.”Under the new structure, the Nigerian Army will operate twelve divisions, strategically positioned across the country as follows:1. 1 Division Headquarters – Kaduna (Kaduna, Kano, Katsina and Jigawa States)2. 2 Division Headquarters – Ibadan (Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo States)3. 3 Division Headquarters – Jos (Plateau, Bauchi and Gombe States)4. 5 Division Headquarters – Makurdi (Benue, Nasarawa and Kogi States)5. 6 Division Headquarters – Port Harcourt (Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River States)6. 7 Division Headquarters – Maiduguri (Borno and Yobe States)7. 8 Division Headquarters – Sokoto (Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara States)8. 9 Division Headquarters – Ilorin (Kwara and Niger States)9. 10 Division Headquarters – Jalingo (Taraba and Adamawa States)10. 81 Division Headquarters – Lagos (Lagos and Ogun States)11. 82 Division Headquarters – Enugu (Enugu, Anambra, Abia, Ebonyi and Imo States)12. 83 Division Headquarters – Benin City (Edo, Delta and Bayelsa States).The establishment of the new Divisions in Makurdi, Ilorin, Jalingo and Benin City will significantly improve command and control, decentralise operational decision-making, strengthen border security, enhance the protection of critical national infrastructure, improve counter-insurgency and internal security operations, and ensure faster military response to emerging threats nationwide.Implementation of the new force structure will be done in two phases.
The Ndigbo Unity Forum (NUF) worldwide, a pan-Igbo socioeconomic pressure group, has urged the Federal Government to direct the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) to supply Dangote Petroleum Refinery adequate crude.
The Chairman of NUF, Chief Augustine Chukwudum, made the call on Wednesday in Enugu while reacting to Dangote Petroleum Refinery’s move to start direct sales of refined Petroleum products in dollars.
It would be recalled that a top management official of the Dangote Group said that its refinery was receiving just four million barrels of crude oil monthly under the arrangement, instead of about 13 million barrels envisaged after President Bola Tinubu’s 2024 directive.
The refinery had attributed its decision to switch from naira-denominated fuel sales domestically to dollar transactions to the crude supply shortfall, saying it would also increase exports of refined petroleum products to earn foreign exchange.
Chukwudum called on the Federal Government to intervene urgently before things get out of hand and Nigerians suffer the more.
According to him, fuel price remains major determinant of prices of other commodities and services in the country as transport cost depends on.
“Things are bound to get worst if the Federal Government neglect to take immediate and decisive actions meant to better the life of the citizens.
“NUF is rasing this alarm because this administration is behaving as if they are not answerable to the people their are supposed to be serving.
“The Federal Government should direct NNPCL to supply all the crude oil needed by Dangote Refinery since the company has the capacity to meet local or domestic petroleum needs of the country.
“The government must stop all forms of fuel importation because that money been used for importation is a waste and put a pressure on our fragile foreign reserve as a nation,” he said.
The NUF boss noted that the refinery company must be allowed to pay in naira with this move, suffering of citizens would be curtailed.
Chukwudum also reiterated the call of the group for the Federal Government to set up judicial panel of inquiry to look into the account of NNPCL for some years now.
A commotion reportedly erupted at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office in Onitsha South Local Government Area of Anambra State after some officials were accused of demanding ₦2,000 from applicants before processing voter registration and Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).
The allegation surfaced in a video circulating on social media, which showed what appeared to be a heated confrontation between applicants and officials at the electoral commission’s office.
According to a resident who narrated the incident in the video, some INEC officials allegedly insisted that applicants pay ₦2,000 before their voter registration or PVC processing could be completed.
The situation reportedly escalated when one of the applicants challenged the alleged demand, insisting that voter registration and PVC-related services are free and should not attract any payment.
The applicant was said to have confronted the officials and attempted to record the exchange with a mobile phone, triggering a heated argument that attracted other applicants and bystanders.
Although raised voices and a commotion could be heard in the footage, the circumstances surrounding the incident could not be independently verified.
The video has since sparked reactions on social media, with many Nigerians condemning the alleged extortion and calling on INEC to investigate the incident and sanction anyone found culpable.
INEC has consistently maintained that voter registration services are free of charge. These include fresh registration, collection of PVCs, transfer of voter information, correction of personal details, and replacement of lost or damaged PVCs.
The commission has also repeatedly urged members of the public to report any cases of extortion, bribery or illegal charges involving its permanent or ad hoc staff during voter registration and PVC distribution.
As of the time of filing this report, INEC had not issued an official statement specifically addressing the allegations involving its Onitsha South Local Government Area office.
The incident comes as the electoral commission continues its nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise ahead of the 2027 general elections.
INEC has also introduced an online self-service platform to enable prospective voters and existing registrants to complete several registration-related processes conveniently, while reiterating that voter registration services remain free of charge.
MainPower Electricity Distribution Limited (MEDL) has restored power supply to parts of Enugu metropolis, which witnessed darkness.
Some parts of Enugu metropolis, under the Band A tariff regime, during the weekend witnessed three consecutive days of blackout.
The Head, Communications of MainPower, Mr Emeka Ezeh, disclosed this in a statement he issued on Tuesday in Enugu.
According to him, MainPower wishes to inform its esteemed customers that power supply to the Gariki Injection Substation was successfully restored on Monday, July 20, at about 8:30p.m.
“This is following the successful resolution of a major fault involving the indoor 11kV breaker at the station.
“The fault, which occurred on Friday, July 17, affected electricity supply to customers served by the Army and Gariki 11kV feeders.
“Consequently, normal electricity supply has now been restored to all affected areas,” he said.
Ezeh appreciated residents and customers for their patience, understanding and cooperation throughout the outage.
He noted that the company remained committed to delivering safe, reliable, and improved electricity services to its customers and residents of the state.
It would be recalled that MainPower, which is a subsidiary of the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC), is in-charge of electricity distribution in Enugu State.
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