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Supreme Court affirms FG’s sole control over Nigerian inland waterways

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Supreme Court affirms FG’s sole control over Nigerian inland waterways
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The Supreme Court has held that the control of activities on the nation’s inland waterways, including levying and licensing operators in the sector belongs solely to the federal government.

The apex court, in a judgment on Friday, January 5, held that it was wrong for states to seek to control the sector and impose levies on businesses operating in the nation’s inland waterways.

The Supreme Court held that existing laws give exclusive control of activities in the nation’s inland waterways to the FG through its agencies – the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) and the Nigerian Maritime Standard and Safety Agency (NMSSA) – and no other tier of government.

The judgment, authored by Justice John Okoro, but read on Friday by Justice Emmanuel Agim, was on the appeal marked: SC/CV/17/2018, filed by the NIWA, NMSSA, the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, and the Minister of Transport.

Respondents to the appeal were the Lagos State Waterways, the state’s Commissioner for Waterfront Infrastructure Development, the state’s Attorney General, Governor of Lagos State, the Incorporated Trustees of Association of Tourist Boat Operators and Water Transportation of Nigeria (ATBOWTN) and the Incorporated Trustees of Dredgers Association of Nigeria (DAN).

The appeal filed in 2018 was prosecuted for the appellants by a team of lawyers led by Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), who was recently appointed as the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice.

The Supreme Court agreed with the appellants’  argument that NIWA is the only agency saddled with the responsibility to levy,  impose and charge rates utilization along the declared waters of Nigerian Inland Waterways.

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It added that NIWA is the rightful and legal agency of the Federal Government with the powers to exclusively manage, direct and control all activities on the navigable waters and its right of ways throughout the country for the purpose of inland navigation, pursuant to Sections 8 and 9 of NIWA Act.

The apex court equally agreed with the appellants that the activities of the Lagos government and its agencies constitute a flagrant usurpation and an illegal encroachment on the statutory functions of NIWA because the waterways of Lagos State, among others in Nigeria, fall under the Exclusive Legislative List set out in Part 1 of the Second Schedule to the 1999 Constitution.

It held that it is only the Federal Government, through the National Assembly that can validly legislate on Maritime Shipping and Navigation, adding that the power to legislate on any subject in the Exclusive Legislative List does not lie with the Lagos State Government.

The appellants had also argued that the activities of the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA) created by the Lagos Government, though the enactment of LASWA Law No. 14 of 2008 (LASWA 2008) by the state’s House of Assembly, to regulate, develop and manage all aspects of the waterways in Lagos State  is unconstitutional.

The apex court noted that existing laws do not favour Lagos government’s arguments on resource control, but that political stakeholders, including the Legislature could work on ways to amend the law to address the concern raised by Lagos and others on the issue.

The Supreme Court restored the judgment delivered on March 28, 2014 by Justice John Tsoho of the Federal High Court in Lagos and reversed the July 18, 2017 judgment of the Court of Appeal (Lagos division), which set aside the Federal High Court judgment.

The Court of Appeal had, among others, held that the inland waterways within Lagos State, not captured by the National Inland Waterways Act, are within the legislative competence of the state’s Legislature and that the state could collect taxes/levies on businesses on waterways which start and terminate in the state.

Confronted with a regime of multiple charges by the agencies of both the FG and Lagos govt, ATBOWTN and DAN in 2012 filed a suit, marked FHC/L/CS/543/2012 at the Federal High Court, Lagos to determine which tier of government was empowered by extant laws to license and levy business operators on the nation’s inland waterways.

In his judgment on the case, Justice Tsoho  held among others, that NIWA and NMSSA are the proper and lawful agencies with authority in matters relating to the commercial activities of ATBOWTN and DAN, who are involved in water tourism, water transportation and sand dredging within the national inland waterways.

Justice Tsoho restrained the Lagos State Waterways Authority and the state’s Commissioner for Waterfront Infrastructural Development from further seeking to control the commercial activities of the plaintiffs – ATBOWTN and DAN.

It is the decision by Justice Tsoho that the Court of Appeal set aside in its July 18, 2017 judgment on the appeal, marked: CA/L/886/2014 filed by the Governor of  Lagos State and three others.

NIWA and three others challenged the Appeal Court’s decision at the Supreme Court, which in the January 5 judgment reversed the decision of the lower court and affirmed the March 28, 2014 judgment by Justice Tsoho.

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Enugu Lawyer rejects paternity claim after DNA Test results

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A legal practitioner, Barrister Chinedu Ifeanyi Iloeje, has publicly declared that a man previously believed to be his son is not biologically related to him, following the outcome of a DNA test.

In a public notice published in a newspaper, Iloeje stated that he was allegedly misled by the man’s mother into believing that the individual, identified as Chinedu Francis Iloeje, was his biological son.

According to the notice, DNA testing conducted on the matter established “beyond any doubt” that the man is not his son.

The lawyer further clarified that he never legally adopted the individual, despite the latter bearing the name Chinedu Francis Iloeje.

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Barrister Iloeje explained that the man’s original name is Chinedu Francis Onwualu and stressed that he has no legal or biological relationship with him.

The notice also informed members of the public, the Greater Iloeje Family, the Umuodu Village Union, Uwani Amokwe Town Union, St. Theresa’s Catholic Church Amokwe, Udi Local Government Council, and other stakeholders of his declaration.

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He stated that the disclaimer was made in good faith and while of sound mind, urging the public to take note of the clarification.

The publication has sparked discussions on paternity disputes and the increasing reliance on DNA testing to resolve questions of biological parentage.

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Obi donates N10 million to burnt hospital in Enugu

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Mr Peter Obi presenting a cheque of 10 Million Naira to assist in the renovation of the burnt Mother of Christ Specialist Hospital, Enugu State.
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Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) in the forthcoming 2027 general election, Mr. Peter Obi, has donated N10 million to assist in the renovation of the burnt Mother of Christ Specialist Hospital, Enugu State.

The former Anambra State governor handed over the cheque for the donation to the hospital management team when he visited the hospital yesterday.

The hospital belongs to the Reverend Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of the Catholic Church.

Mr Peter Obi inspecting the burnt hospital

Addressing the hospital management team after inspecting parts of the burnt hospital, the NDC presidential candidate commended them for their efforts in contributing to healthcare delivery services.

Telling them that even though they might feel that they were not being appreciated for what they were doing, Obi, however, described healthcare delivery services and education as among the “most critical needs of society” and urged them not to relent in what they were doing.

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Accompanied during the visit by his Chief of Staff, Commissioner for Housing, as well as Special Adviser on Media when he was Anambra State governor, Prof. Stella Okunna, Prof. Patrick Obi, and Dr. Valentine Obienyem respectively, Obi assured the hospital management team that he would continue to support them.

Part of the hospital gutted by the inferno and inspected by Obi was the Children’s Ward.

Expressing gratitude on behalf of the hospital management, the Chief Medical Director of Immaculate Heart Hospital, Nkpor, Anambra State, Rev. Sister Dr. Maria Nkiruka Okafor, eulogised Obi for his sacrifices and selfless contributions to humanity.

Disclosing that Obi had already credited the hospital’s accountant with the N10 million donation and that he was even the person who called her to inform her that he had received the sad news of the inferno and promised to donate towards the renovation, Rev. Sister Okafor described him as a rare politician.

She prayed that God would grant him his ambition to become President of the country and enable him to achieve his desire to transform it.

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FG, Enugu State target direct China-Enugu Cargo flights by December – Keyamo

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Aviation Minister, Festus Keyamo
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The Federal Government and Enugu State Government are in talks to ensure the commencement of direct cargo flight operations between Enugu and Guangzhou, China, before the end of the year.

The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Barr Festus Keyamo, disclosed this in Lagos during the launch of the United Air’s newly acquired airplanes on Thursday.

The Minister added said the FG had affected a structural management overhaul at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, also bringing the airport under a privately run operational framework.

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“One of our prides in the South is the Enugu International Airport. The Enugu governor approached Mr. President, noting that the airport was not maximising its economic potential under standard bureaucratic structures, and requested to bring in private investors to run it. Mr. President gave the green light.

“As I speak with you, Enugu is now fully privately owned and fully supported by state government, with the clear objective of also turning it into a dedicated cargo hub for the entire Southeast.”

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To this effect, therefore, Keyamo said that a high-level bilateral trade negotiations were ongoing with a view to securing direct logistics flights between China and the Southeast by the end of 2026.

“Just two days ago, the Enugu governor and I were actively negotiating the first direct cargo flight from Guangzhou, China, straight into Enugu.

“We are targeting December for the maiden flight. This will allow our Southeast merchants and traders in China to consolidate their goods into unified cargo accounts twice a week, flying straight into Enugu for seamless delivery to hubs like Onitsha and Aba,” he concluded.

It is recalled that Governor Mbah had in July 2025 launched Enugu Air, a state-owned airline, as part of the administration’s integrated blueprint for a modern, multimodal transport ecosystem and the vision to make Enugu a major aviation and logistics hub.

Since then, Enugu Air has grown its fleet from three at inception to six planes with plans to further increase it as it prepares to commence operations to regional destinations like Accra, Libreville, Abidjan in next few months and long haul flight operations to various destinations around the world by the end of the year.

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