Governor Monday Okpebholo and the All Progressives Congress, APC, have won round one in the series of petitions challenging their declaration as winners of the September 21, 2024, governorship election in Edo State.

A petition instituted against them by the Action Alliance (AA) and one Adekunle Rufai Omoaje was thrown out by the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal for lacking merit and being frivolous.

In the first judgment of the Tribunal on Wednesday, it was held that Adekunle Rufai Omoaje, who filed the joint petition, had no locus standi to institute the case, as his petition was not based on election-related matters.

Among other points, the Tribunal held that Omoaje did not participate in the governorship election and, as such, had no power to question the validity of the election.

The Tribunal also held that Omoaje’s grievance against the election was that he was not recognized as the National Chairman of the Action Alliance for the purpose of nominating candidates for the poll. However, it was held that his claims had no basis in the Electoral Act of 2022.

Omoaje had, in the petition, asked the Tribunal to declare the declaration of Okpebholo and APC as winners of the election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as illegal, unlawful, unconditional, and null and void due to non-compliance with the Electoral Act.

He also alleged corruption and that Okpebholo and APC did not win the majority of lawful votes in the election.

Omoaje further alleged that AA was not allowed to nominate a lawful governorship candidate for the election, having not signed the nomination form as the National Chairman of the party.

INEC had declared Okpebholo of the APC as the winner with 291,667 votes, defeating his closest rival, Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who polled 247,655 votes in the election.

Details later.

Tel Aviv [Israel], April 2 (ANI/TPS): At the directive of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Economy and Industry Minister Nir Barkat, Israel has cancelled all of the customs duties – tariffs – that have been levied until now on products from the US, Israel‘s largest trading partner.

After the approval of the Knesset Finance Committee and the Economy and Industry Minister’s signature on the order, the amendment to the order regarding trade levies and protective measure will take effect and customs duties on all imports from the US will be cancelled.

The US is Israel‘s closest ally and its most significant trading partner. In 2024, the export of goods to the US stood at USD 17.3 billion, while the export of services was estimated at USD 16.7 billion.

Israel‘s government explained that the 1985 free trade agreement with the US has led to the fact that the overwhelming majority (approximately 99 per cent) of goods imported from the US are already fully exempt from customs duties. Therefore, the reduction in customs duties will begin on a very limited number of products, in the category of imported food and agricultural products from the US.

“The reduction in customs duties will, in effect, expand the US-Israel trade agreement and strengthen bilateral strategic relations,” the Prime Minister’s Office, Finance Ministry and Economy and Industry Ministry said in a joint statement.

The reduction also entails an assurance to Israeli consumers in the form of a possible reduction in the cost of living with the anticipated expansion in imports of food and agricultural products from the US, which will benefit from a zero customs rate. (ANI/TPS)

Presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the last general election, Peter Obi, has revealed areas the country would have made significant progress in the last two years if he were the President.

According to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Peter Obi came third in the presidential election behind the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, candidates Bola Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar, respectively.

However, many Nigerians, especially his supporters till date believe the former Anambra State governor won the election.

Obi, during an interview on Arise Television on Tuesday, believes he would have turned around the country for the better, adding that his works would have been felt by Nigerians and not on the pages of newspapers.

He said, “If I were there [President] for two years, you could have seen considerable change in critical areas.

“I would have tackled corruption head-on, I would have reduced costs of governance, and you will see it, people would feel it.

“When you talk about improvement, they are no things you say; they are things people feel, they are things people see.

“I have listened to people say jobs are being created— where are the jobs? It’s not the question of saying, ‘Oh, the investors are coming back’; where are they investing?”