General
Land Grabbers Risk 15-Year Jail Term in Oyo
**As Ajimobi Signs Anti-Land Grabbing Law
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Forcible seizure of any landed property across Oyo State or an attempt to do so, otherwise known as land grabbing, has become a criminal offence that attracts a maximum of 15 years imprisonment or a fine of N500,000 or both.
This is one of the provisions of the new Real Properties Protection Law, 2016, which the Governor, Mr Abiola Ajimobi, signed into law, at the Executive Council Chambers, in Ibadan, on Friday.
The law is titled, “A law to protect the rights of property owners and prohibit forceful entry, illegal occupation, violent and fraudulent conducts, in relation to real properties in Oyo State and for purposes connected therewith.”
At the signing ceremony were the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Mr Michael Adeyemo; Commissioner for Lands, Housing, Survey and Urban Development; Mr Ajiboye Omodewu; and Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Seun Abimbola.
The law also prescribes ten years jail term or a fine of N500,000 upon conviction for illegal entry into any construction site “for the purpose of stopping, disturbing or otherwise” demand for any fee or levy in respect of construction activities.
Under the new law, any professional who in the conduct of his duties facilitates a contractual agreement between a land owning family and any other person knowing that such agreement will contravene the provisions of the new law is also liable to imprisonment for three years, a fine of N500,000 or both.
Similarly, anyone that writes whatever is deemed to be a frivolous and unwarranted petition, containing false claims, under the anti-land grabbing law is liable to imprisonment for 10 years on conviction.
Part of the law reads, “Any person who, without lawful authority, uses or threatens violence for the purpose of grabbing any real property for himself or for any other person commits an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment of 15 years or a fine of N500,000 or both.
“Any person who encroaches on any real property commits an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for 5 years or a fine not exceeding N500,000.
“Any person who is on any property as an encroacher and having with him any firearm, dangerous or offensive weapons commits an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for five years.
“Any person who offers for sale any property knowing that he has no lawful title to the property or authority of the owner or sells a property knowing that that he has no lawful title to the property or that the property has been previously sold by him or his privies is liable upon conviction to imprisonment for 5 years.”
At the ceremony, the Governor said that the law was meant to protect the rights of property owners and to stop the nefarious activities of land merchants who wilfully and violently seize people’s land.
Mr Ajimobi said, “We want to use this opportunity to allay the fears of property owners and investors across Oyo State that it will no longer be business as usual. Where there is no law, there is no offence, but now we have a law in place.
“We will ensure the full implementation of this law. I, therefore, advise those bent on encroaching on other people’s property, most times using violence, threats or imaginary connection with the powers that be to have a rethink.
“I salute our ever-reliable members of the House of Assembly, led by the distinguished speaker, Mr Michael Adeyemo, for the industry put into this holistic law that is meant to give property owners a new lease of life.”
By Dipo Olowookere
A $15 million debt facility has been obtained by Watt Renewable Corporation from the AfriGreen Debt Impact Fund to finance hybrid solar power plants to be built and operated by the former, especially in Nigeria.
WATT intends to use the projects to serve commercial and industrial clients in Nigeria, particularly in the telecommunication and financial services sectors.
By integrating solar hybrid solutions, the firm aims to significantly reduce diesel consumption and CO2 emissions, enabling its clients to achieve substantial energy cost savings while promoting environmental sustainability.
As a pioneer in renewable energy solutions, WATT continues to drive innovation in Nigeria’s energy sector.
The company’s robust roll-out plan includes deploying hundreds of hybrid solar power sites nationwide to meet the growing energy demands of commercial & industrial clients.
This strategic expansion aligns with WATT’s vision to revolutionize energy access across Africa, enabling sustainable development and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The funds from AfriGreen provide the critical capital needed to accelerate WATT’s ambitious projects, strengthening its market position and empowering businesses with reliable and affordable energy solutions.
Business Post gathered that to mitigate the currency risk for WATT in the event of devaluation of the Nigerian Naira, AfriGreen is offering a local currency facility that matches the payment structure of the power purchase agreements.
“We are thrilled to partner with AFRIGREEN on this transformative journey to expand reliable and sustainable energy solutions across Africa.
“With this support, it enables us to accelerate our shared mission of providing hybrid solar power to businesses, reducing carbon emissions, and supporting economic growth while enhancing energy security for our clients,” the Managing Director of WATT, Mr Oluwole Eweje, said.
“We are delighted to support WATT in rolling out hundreds of hybrid sites across the country.
“This represents another key transaction for AFRIGREEN in Nigeria. The combination of high energy prices, good solar irradiation, and strong demand from industrial and commercial energy users makes this market particularly attractive for companies like WATT.
“By leveraging these favourable market conditions alongside WATT’s exceptional operational performance and a well-structured financing solution, we are setting the stage for a strong and lasting business partnership,” the Managing Director of AfriGreen, Mr Alexandre Gilles, stated.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has denied issuing a directive that gas supply to power generating companies (GenCos) be halted.
In a statement on Wednesday, the authority also denied instructing wholesale gas suppliers to stop further supply of gas to companies due to failure in payment obligations.
The NMDPRA described reports stating that it has directed the stoppage of gas supply to GenCos over N2 trillion debt as “false and completely unfounded”.
“It has absolutely no bearing on the information shared at a recent stakeholders’ engagement held in Lagos between the Authority, the OPTS, IPPG and other stakeholders in the oil and gas industry,” the NMDPRA said.
“The purpose of the engagement was to sensitise stakeholders on the requirements, opportunities and benefits associated with the implementation of the wholesale supply license as provided by sections 142 and 197 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.
“It was a follow-up to an earlier stakeholder engagement held at the NMDPRA corporate headquarters in Abuja on November 27, 2024.
“The Authority wishes to reassure all our stakeholders and indeed the general public that at no time was the false statement made at that event and anywhere else, and are advised to completely disregard the publication as every effort is being made to ensure that the supply and distribution of natural gas and petroleum products to end users is seamless and unabated as we head into the festive season and indeed all through the coming year 2025.”
Recall that Nigeria’s national grid experienced another collapse on Wednesday, the 11th time in 2024 as Gencos couldn’t generate enough power, compounding issues facing the Nigerian power sector.
This was the first time in over a month as the last time the nation witnessed a nationwide shutdown in electricity supply was on November 7, 2024.
Before then, the country was experiencing an incessant collapse of the grid, which prompted the federal government to set up a team to address the issue.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Nigeria is currently experience a cut in power supply after the national grid collapsed for the 11th time in 2024.
This is the first time in over a month as the last time the nation witnessed a nationwide shut down in electricity supply was on November 7, 2024.
Before then, the country was experiencing an incessant collapse of the grid, which prompted the federal government to set up a team to address the issue.
However, just when Nigerians were thinking they will not witnessed another national grid collapse in the year, it issue reared its ugly head again.
On Wednesday afternoon, most of the energy distribution companies suffered power outage, prompting them to inform their customers of the situation.
One of the DisCos, Ikeja Electric Plc, in a message to electricity consumers under its franchise area, said, “Please be informed that we experienced a system outage today, December 11, 2024, at about 13:32 hours affecting supply within our network.
“Restoration of supply is ongoing in collaboration with our critical stakeholders. Kindly bear with us.”
Recall that on Tuesday, in a report, Google listed national grid as one of the top trending searches by Nigerians this year.
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