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Saudi Arabia to open first liquor store for diplomats to ‘curb illicit trade’

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Saudi Arabia is planning to open its first alcohol store exclusively for non-Muslim diplomats.

 

According to Reuters on Wednesday, a source familiar with the plans said the store will be located at Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter, a neighbourhood where embassies and diplomats reside.

 

The liquor store, expected to be opened in the coming weeks, will be “strictly restricted” to non-Muslims.

 

According to a document cited by the report, customers will have to register through a mobile application, get a clearance code from the foreign ministry, and subscribe to monthly quotas for their purchases.

 

Confirming the report, Saudi Arabia’s government spoke on the development in a statement via the Center of International Communication (CIC) — the Kingdom’s media organisation.

 

The agency said the government is imposing new restrictions on alcohol imports within diplomatic consignments.

 

The CIC said the new regulations had been introduced to counter the illicit trade of alcohol goods and products received by diplomatic missions.

 

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This new process will continue to grant and ensure that all diplomats of non-Muslim embassies have access to these products in specified quotas,” the statement reads.

 

Saudi Arabia has strict laws against alcohol consumption which is punishable by hundreds of lashes, deportation, fines, or imprisonment. 

 

As part of the reforms, whipping has largely been replaced by jail sentences and alcohol has been available only through diplomatic mail or on the black market.

 

A source also said the move is purely diplomatic, aimed at stemming illegal sales of alcoholic drinks.

 

“So the regulation is diplomatic. Diplomats have the right to bring alcohol into the country. What happens is they bring too much wine and they put it on the black market,” the source said.

 

“So when they get to the airports, no one fines or charges them. So the government just wants to control that and is restricted to only the diplomatic area. Those diplomats who sell have like a code and can’t sell a number of alcohol.”

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Although consumption is still under tight scrutiny, the Kingdom’s reform could mean that some Middle Eastern nations are shifting grounds from their conservative views about liquor intake.

 

On January 2, 2023, the government of Dubai cancelled its 30 percent alcohol tax to boost tourism in the emirate.

 

Dubai also scrapped the personal liquor licence fees, thereby making the acquisition of the permit free for alcohol consumers in the United Arab Emirates region.

 

The UAE government had said the move was to make the city more attractive to foreigners.

 

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No prophet in the Bible married only one wife, says Oshoffa’s son

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Olatosho Oshoffa, the son of the founder of the Celestial Church of Christ, Worldwide, Bilewu Oshoffa, has shared his thoughts concerning polygamy in the church, saying the church doesn’t forbid the practice.

The shepherd of CCC International Headquarters, Ketu, Lagos, while defending his late father’s large family declared that no prophets in the Bible had one wife.

 

“Can I tell you something… (sic)? You see, in that scripture, Paul was only advising. Tell me in the Bible, which prophet of God had only one wife? Do your research and tell me,” Oshoffa said.

 

The late Oshoffa left 13 wives and 53 children behind raising concern about his lifestyle even as the leader of one of Nigeria’s Christian congregations.

However, Tosho, as the younger Oshoffa is also called, dismissed such concern, saying that despite his late father already having three wives, God still gave him the vision to start his ministry 76 years ago.

“I am sure in 1947 if there was a better candidate to found CCC, Oshoffa wouldn’t have been chosen.

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“But because there wasn’t a better candidate, he was the only one that God found worthy to found CCC, despite having three wives. So those condemning my father should know that he never had any concubine.

 

“He married them (his wives), and they were all under his roof. But today, the so-called men of God with only one wife will have concubines outside.

 

“Which one is better? So, I will tell you that if God were to judge by the number of wives before sending a bishop or pastor on a mission, my father would have been disqualified because he had three wives before God called him,” he stated.

When asked how his father was able to keep his large family closely knitted, he said his father never trained the children from different mothers.

 

“Let me tell you something, my dear brother. Our father, while on earth, used to gather us together and tell us, never say you are a son or daughter to any of my wives. But tell yourself, you are a son of Oshoffa.

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“This means he used that girdle of love to tie us together. So we don’t see ourselves as children of our various mothers but as children of Oshoffa. That is the same way we related when he (Oshoffa) was still in this world and has been doing after his demise.

 

“Even today, the remaining Oshoffa wives that were younger than my mother, I still refer to them as my mother, because of the love that our father (Oshoffa) has used to bind us together. So, we all remain one as SBJ Oshoffa children,” he added.

 

On the leadership crisis rocking the celestial church, the cleric said such a crisis was expected after the departure of the founder. He was, however, hopeful that the problems would soon be resolved.

 

He, however, declared that his eldest brother, Rev. Emmanuel Oshoffa, is the leader of the church.

“Now, when the founder of this church departed, the same way Jesus Christ departed, there were troubles among the apostles about who would lead.

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“The same way as well that according to history, the Catholic Church at a time had multiple Popes. But today, they have only one Pope after so many centuries.

 

“This is the same situation with CCC. After the demise of its founder, there was so much trouble. The apostles also faced the same challenges on succession as those of the Catholic Church.

 

“…But as of today, the most acclaimed and accepted leader in CCC all over the world is the first son of the founder, my eldest brother, Rev. Emmanuel Oshoffa, who is based in Imeko, Ketu, and Makoko, the headquarters of the church,” he added

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How my father managed 13 wives, 53 children – Celestial Church founder, Oshoffa’s son

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Olatosho Oshoffa, son of the Founder, Celestial Church of Christ, Worldwide, Bilewu Oshoffa, has revealed how the late spiritual leader managed his 13 wives and 53 children during his lifetime.

The cleric, popularly known as Tosho, is the shepherd of CCC International Headquarters, Ketu, Lagos.

 

Tosho is the 10th son and the 20th child of the late CCC founder.

 

He stressed the love among the family members, including the wives and many children while noting that their late father used to tell them, “Never say you are a son or daughter to any of my wives. But tell yourself, you are a son of Oshoffa.”

 

Unlike it’s seen in some polygamous families where children see themselves from different mothers, Tosho said his father used the “girdle of love to tie us together. So we don’t see ourselves as children of our various mothers but as children of Oshoffa.”

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Tosho stated that the children related well while their father was alive, and even after his demise.

 

“And that is the same way we related when he (Oshoffa) was still in this world and has been doing after his demise. Even as of today, the remaining Oshoffa wives that were younger to my mother, I still refer to them as my mother, because of the love that our father (Oshoffa) has used to bind us together. So, we all remain one as SBJ Oshoffa children,” he said.

The shepherd of the CCC International Headquarters in the Ketu area of Lagos noted that the multitude of children in the family had never been a problem.

 

He said, “We, the children know ourselves, and up till now, I can tell you that we know the number of wives that gave birth to this number of children for my father. So, we know ourselves and relate very well.

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“There is one love in the family, no matter how many we are. The number of children is 53, but we are all in one love and one accord.”

 

Tosho equally quelled the controversy that Oshoffa had more than 53 children, saying, “He left behind 13 wives and 53 children. Many people have said he had 100 children and so on. But no.”

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Bobrisky donates chairs to Kirikiri prison

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Embattled crossdresser, Idris Okuneye, better known as Bobrisky, who was jailed for abuse of the Naira has reportedly donated plastic chairs to the National Correctional Service (NCoS) Kirikiri prison.

 

It would be recalled that Bobrisky entered a guilty plea in court and was sentenced to six months imprisonment without an option of fine.

 

The controversial crossdresser appears to have donated plastic chairs for the NCoS Kirikiri’s visitor area, according to recent reports circulating online.


The viral photo of the plastic chairs was captioned: “On behalf of Bobrisky for the National Correctional Service Kirikiri for the visiting area.”

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