Business
Court dismisses NNPCL’s objection to Dangote Refinery’s suit on import licence
A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed the objection raised by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) against the competence of a suit filed by Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE (Dangote Refinery).
Dangote is seeking to void the licences issued by the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to some oil marketing companies to import refined petroleum products.
In its objection, the NNPCL challenged the jurisdiction of the court to hear the suit and urged the court to strike out its name from the suit on the grounds that it was not properly identified by the plaintiff.
It argued that the name, “Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited,” being its registered name with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), is not the one and the same entity the second defendant sued but the “Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation”.
Ruling yesterday, Justice Inyang Ekwo held that NNPCL’s objection was incompetent as it was filed in violation of Order 29 of the Federal High Court Civil Procedure Rules (FHCCPR), 2019.
Justice Ekwo also held that the NNPCL ought to have filed a defence in the form of a counter-affidavit to the plaintiff’s suit before raising an objection.
The judge averred that under the procedure in lieu of demurrer, any party is entitled to raise, by his pleading, any point of law, and that any point so raised may be disposed of by the trial court at trial or after the trial.
He explained that where a defendant seeks to challenge the jurisdiction of the court, it is the provision of Order 29 of the Federal High Court Civil Procedure Rules (FHCCPR), 2019, that would be applicable.Justice Ekwo added that the NNPCL failed to comply with the provision.
The judge held that the NNPCL, having not complied with the provisions of the FHCCPR 2019 could not be said to have filed a competent preliminary objection.
Business
Afreximbank wooing Nigeria’s rising culinary stars for participation in 2026 CANEX Junior Chef Competitions
The competition invites Nigeria’s most promising junior culinary talents, aged 16 to 21, to showcase their creativity, technical skills, and cultural storytelling at the CANEX WKND 2026, set to hold from 5 to 8, November 2026, in Lagos, Nigeria.
Photo: Winners of the CANEX Junior Chef Competition display their prizes during IATF2025 in Algeria.
The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), through its Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) programme, has opened applications for the 2026 edition of the CANEX WKND 2026 Junior Chef Competition.
The competition invites Nigeria’s most promising junior culinary talents, aged 16 to 21, to showcase their creativity, technical skills, and cultural storytelling at the CANEX WKND 2026, set to hold from 5 to 8, November 2026, in Lagos, Nigeria.
Now in its second edition, the competition builds on the landmark debut in Algiers, Algeria, during IATF2025, with Fatma Zohra Bendjelida crowned the inaugural winner.
This year, the spotlight turns to Nigeria’s next generation of culinary talents.
Eight aspiring young chefs will earn their place on the live stage at CANEX WKND in Lagos, where they will transform African culinary heritage into bold, signature creations; making dishes that honour the flavours, traditions, and stories of the continent while presenting a fresh, fearless voice in African gastronomy.
Business
Tech giant Oracle cuts 21,000 jobs as it embraces AI
The software and cloud computing firm says it had around 141,000 full-time employees as of 31 May 2026, down from about 162,000 workers at the same time last year.
Photo: Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison/ Getty images
Oracle shed about 21,000 roles globally in the last year as the US technology giant reshapes its business around artificial intelligence (AI), the firm’s latest annual report shows.
The software and cloud computing firm says it had around 141,000 full-time employees as of 31 May 2026, down from about 162,000 workers at the same time last year.
The “deployment of AI technologies across our operations have resulted, and may continue to result, in reductions to our workforce,” the report says.
The cuts, which amount to about 13% of Oracle’s workforce, are part of a wider trend among tech firms as they spend hundreds of billions of dollars on building AI infrastructure like data centres.
Business
Dettol apologises after ad to clean up ‘toxic men’ backfires in China
The advert sparked an uproar on the Chinese internet, with some users saying it objectifies women and others calling for a boycott of the brand.
British hygiene brand Dettol has apologised for an advert in China that it claims was meant to call out sexism, but has instead backfired.
The five-minute long advert for a multipurpose disinfectant, styled like a micro drama, starts out with a man looking for a partner who is “clean” and “not tainted by other men”.
A plot twist comes late in the advert when his new girlfriend calls him out for his misogyny and breaks up with him. Dettol is then presented as the solution against “toxic men [who] are just like bacteria”.
The advert sparked an uproar on the Chinese internet, with some users saying it objectifies women and others calling for a boycott of the brand.
Dettol said the advert, which has been removed following the backlash, was intended to criticise gender stereotypes, but that snippets of it that later circulated online distorted its core message.
“We recognise that it has offended many people, especially women. We take responsibility for any negligence in creating and reviewing the content of the advert,” Dettol said in a statement on Monday.
The company also said it would review its content moderation processes.
( BBC)
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