Like similar mega cities, such as New York, New Delhi,Tokyo and Beijing, Lagos  equally has to grapple with enormous challenges as it relates to maintenance of law and order. Lagos’ rising population brings with it, huge socio-economic challenges which make governance a tough call in the state.

It is a known fact that the Lagos State Government has continued to make massive investment into the upgrading of existing infrastructure across the state. However, being a cosmopolitan city with a growing population, the attitude of recalcitrant motorists as well as a penchant for environmental abuse among residents are some of the factors that pose serious threat to the whole-some growth and development of the city-state.

Road traffic offences, in particular, are quite prevalent in Lagos. Flagrant disobedience of traffic rules and regulations is especially widespread among recalcitrant commercial bus drivers, ‘Okada’ riders and motorists. Despite provision of designated bus stops and lay byes constructed all over the state by government. Commercial bus drivers with no regard for the law, continue to pick and drop passengers as they so desire, thereby impeding the free flow of traffic. This consequently leads to needless traffic gridlocks on our roads and loss of man-hours, with resultant effects on the socio-economic lives of the residents.

Similarly, indiscriminate waste disposal is another common environmental challenge in Lagos. It is still a common sight to see undisciplined residents empty huge sacks of waste in the drainage whenever it rains. Despite the efficient manner in which the state waste disposal outfit, LAWMA now operates, it is amazing that some residents still utilise the services of cart pushers in dispensing of waste. This, eventually, has grievous implications on free flow of drains, especially during rainy season.

Universally, no society thrives on disorderliness and other such irresponsible acts. Any society that disregards law and order cannot attain much growth and development. It is the responsibility of every government to enforce law and order in the society. This helps to prevent anarchy and provides for a peaceful and just society.

It is on this basis that the Mobile Courts, five (5) in all, were inaugurated in Lagos State on Friday, February 5, 2016 by the State Attorney General, Mr Adeniji Kazeem and the Chief Judge, Justice Olufunmilayo Atilade. The introduction of the Mobile Courts is one of the ways the State Government planned to ensure the preservation of civility, as a culture in the society. The Courts were inaugurated with a mandate to carry out on- the- spot trial of traffic as well as environmental offenders and mete out immediate punishments to those convicted. This also forms part of the reform agenda of Government to fast track Justice Delivery and in the long run, decongest the Courts and the Lagos Prisons.

The operation of the Mobile Court as the name connotes, is a court on the move. For now, there are five Mobile Court Buses in operation with five different Magistrates presiding over the Courts. Aside the Magistrates, the Mobile Courts have other personnel who work together as a team. These are the Court Registrar, a Prosecutor from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP), a Defence Counsel from Office of the Public Defender(OPD), an Accountant and 2 Police Officers, for the protection of the Court while on the move and while sitting at any location. The Mobile Court sits or adjudicates on cases/matters brought before it by Officials of the Special Offences Task Force.

Before the Mobile Court moves out on its daily operation, a detachment of policemen from the State Task Force with Paramilitaries and LASTMA Officers are deployed to the Mobile Court for enforcement of the Road Traffic Law, Illegal street trading and other laws contained in the Schedule to the Special Offences Court Law Caps S8 Laws of Lagos State 2015. The main goal of having the compliment of these security agents is to ensure the safety and protection of the Mobile Court officials.

After each Court sitting, where fines are awarded the offender (defendant), proceeds to the designated Bank for payment and if it is community service, Offender is directed to the Officers from the Community Service Department of the Ministry of Justice.

The Mobile Court has no doubt contributed to making Lagos metropolis a sane and orderly City to live in. According to the State Commissioner for Justice, Mr Adeniji Kazeem, the Court since inception has had Four Thousand, Four Hundred and Twenty–Six (4,426) offenders arraigned before it. The Court, working in partnership with other enforcement agencies like KAI and LASTMA has been able to successfully reduce street trading and traffic gridlocks, occasioned by unethical / anti-social conducts of recalcitrant motorists and Commercial bus drivers as well as environmental nuisances, thereby improving the socio-economic well-being of the residents of Lagos State.

However, it must be stressed that the Lagos State Mobile Court initiative is by no means meant to dehumanise law abiding residents as it was initially misunderstood by some members of the public. It was essentially a creation of necessity created to make life more meaningful and comfortable for all residents of the state.

It is true that there have been complaints by some aggrieved individuals on the mode of operation of the Mobile Court and the over bearing attitude of a few of its officials. However, members of the public need to be reassured that such complaints have not gone unattended. In fact, such feedback from residents is most welcome, as it would serve to further deepen the fine tuning of the operational system in order to provide better service delivery to the people of Lagos State.

To build an orderly society that we all can be proud of, Lagosians, and indeed Nigerians must come to term with the need to respect and uphold the laws of the land. Circumventing rules that are meant to entrench orderliness in the society is, to say the least, counterproductive and will do no one, any good.

The urgent task before every Lagos resident, therefore, particularly at this time, when Lagos State is celebrating its 50th year anniversary since it was created, is to ensure that our “Centre of Excellence”, the State of Aquatic Splendour does not become a centre of anarchy. The time for all to embrace attitudinal change is now!

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Ope Olugasa is the Managing Director of Grace Infotech Limited (GIL), an Information Technology firm and publishers of Lawpavilion a leadng legal IT research tools provider. He spoke with reporters  as  part of activities marking the firm’s 10th anniversary. Legal Editor John Austin Unachukwu was there.

HOW would you appraise the last 10 years of firm’s performance?

Looking back, our achievements are so numerous, however, I will highlight a few. From available statistics, the average Nigerian business usually fails within the first five years, so we are pleased that we are not part of that statistic. Celebrating our 10th year in business is definitely a significant milestone. In terms of our achievement in the legal services industry in Nigeria, oh! it has been quite an adventure. I can never forget our first outing at the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA)  2007 Conference in Ilorin Kwara State where lawyers came to our exhibition stand and laughed at us

Why did they laugh at you?

They told us that no Nigerian court would permit a counsel to cite electronic law reports in open court or in written submissions. In fact, a particular judge was mentioned as not being receptive to such “disruptive practices”. But our testimony is that this particular Judge is one of our subscribers today, with electronic law reports being a permanent fixture on the landscape of legal practice in Nigeria.

How did you achieve this?

For several years we have traversed the length and breadth of Nigeria, preaching the “gospel “ of technology adoption in legal practice. So, we feel immense satisfaction to see the wide acceptability from the industry now. More recently, we have been focusing on using technology to solve local problems, especially within the legal services industry. For example, a couple of years ago, we got the opportunity to work with the leadership of the NBA to re-introduce online registration for the biggest gathering of lawyers in the world, that is the Annual General Conference of the NBA. Using software developers trained in Nigerian universities and polytechnics, we were able to design, develop and deploy a registration portal which contained the list of all legal practitioners called to Bar in Nigeria and particularly those who have been verified. Deploying that solution has helped the leadership and administration of the NBA to better plan and prepare for this annual gathering. Furthermore, deploying technology as we did checkmated the incidents of a handful of legal practitioners not paying the correct fees for the Conference as was obtainable before our involvement.

What is the impact of LawPavilion products on the Legal Services Industry in Nigeria?

We believe our biggest impact for our subscribers has been to afford them the confidence to do what they do best. Time and time again, we hear and receive testimonials from our subscribers about how much ease using LawPavilion has brought into their practice. We have several good reports about the speed with which Judges now deliver rulings because with the tap of a button, authorities are called up though our search engine which in turn aids the speed of dispensing justice. Furthermore, our boldness in being Headline Sponsor for international conferences such as the IBA Investing in Africa Conference and regularly showcasing our products at international exhibitions has cemented the confidence our subscribers place in our products. For the general public, we believe our impact will be felt even more through our public-education tools, one of which is the “Know My Rights” app that I mentioned earlier. As we continue to use technology to solve local problems, we have no doubt that our country will move several positions forward on global indexes such as the World Bank sponsored Doing Business Index and the World Justice Index.

In the  judiciary in particular, what has been the impact of adopting LawPavilion?

We take a special sense of pride that even the judiciary is now at the fore front of the drive for using technology in the adjudication process in our courts. Nowadays, it is commonplace to hear “electronic filing and service”, “electronic case management”. We have truly moved forward from campaigning for adoption of technology, now we are using technology to solve salient and lingering problems. We feel so blessed and grateful indeed for what we have been able to accomplish in the industry. Today, you will find subscribers to LawPavilion electronic legal research software in the Judiciary, in big and small Law Firms, in Faculties of Law, among law school students, and more recently in neighbouring countries and outside the shores of our great country. Indeed, we can say we have started exporting technology. It is now acceptable to see the citation of “LPELR” in judgments from the highest courts in our country to the pages of treatise by erudite scholars and authors. It certainly has been a very rewarding and gratifying journey for us as a corporate organisation operating in this space.

So, what is your anniversary gift your subscribers?

As part of our celebrations, we will be making our latest product,  a legal analytics software which we have named “LawPavilion Prime” commercially available for our teeming subscribers. We unveiled the prototype of LawPavilion Prime containing only about 5,000 Supreme Court Judgments sometime last year along with our Judicial Appreciation Awards Ceremony, the Words in Gold Awards where we recognised and celebrated Justices of the Supreme Court of Nigeria through a compilation of their pronouncements through the years. We went as far back as the very first set of Justices who sat in the hallowed Chambers of the Supreme Court and we enjoyed the rare privilege of having the Keynote Address delivered by  the Acting President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN)

What is so special about the new edition?

After this, we felt our subscribers deserved the very best at all times, so we went back to the drawing board to ensure that we included Court of Appeal judgments into LawPavilion Prime to give it the edge over mere electronic law reports. We are pleased to announce that work is now complete on the software for PC and Android versions with iOS following very quickly and we are poised to deploy this solution commercially at the 2017 NBA Conference. Through our patented technology for analytics, we are set to provide Legal Practitioners with over 13,000 reported cases with analytical ratings to ensure that at all times, a LawPavilion subscriber is relying on the best and highest ranked authority on a principle of Law.

Why did you say LawPavilion Prime remains the most sophisticated product on legal analytics in Nigeria or even African legal services market today.

With the introduction of Legal Analytics, what we are providing for legal practitioners is not just a compilation of reported cases. We have further to highlight locus classicus on any issue of law inputed into the search engine. Also based on the search results, the LawPavilion Prime using a unique algorithm calculates the precedential value of each case and then collates all relevant cases on that issue or principle of Law as pronounced by the courts especially at the appellate levels. In fact, LawPavilion Prime is best experienced as mere words do not do sufficient justice to the ingenuity that has gone into creating this new product. It is truly an excellent example of showcasing the growth and development of Nigerian jurisprudence and we are very proud to have raised the bar again in electronic law reporting by introducing analytics into law reports. We really look forward to showcasing the unique product to our subscribers at the NBA Conference 2017 as they join us to felicitate our 10th year anniversary and we are positive that as they begin to use this product as we head into a new legal year, their legal practices would improve significantly and become even more profitable.

How do you feel getting involved in NBA programmes?

We derived a great sense of pleasure of making that enormous contribution to NBA Conferences since 2014. It is important to state that the registration portal and overseeing the registration process including printing the name tags were our small contributions as part of our sponsorship towards the NBA Conferences, we never billed or charged a penny for it.

Any discounted rate for lawyers at the AGC?

Yes, we also have amazing discounts and loads of freebies for our teeming subscribers at the NBA Conference holding at the Landmark Event Centre, Oniru, Lagos. We look forward especially to welcoming our subscribers who live and practice outside Lagos State to the Centre of Excellence.  It is going to be a beautiful celebration with lots and lots of gifts and prizes. On the other hand, we will also be celebrating with Nigerians as we have developed a new Android App called “Know My Rights”. As a company that invests heavily in research and development, we observed that people are reluctant to consult legal practitioners due to a myriad of factors such as ignorance, perception that legal services are expensive and time-consuming amongst others. But we know that the services of lawyers are indispensable for us to have a sane society where the rule of Law prevails.

What is unique about “ Know My Rights” product?

Based on our research, we realised that while English is the official language, there is a language that transcends all tribal divides of our country and that language is “PIDGIN”. So through the “Know My Rights” app, we have brought together the best of culture through language and technology. Working with renowned language scholars, we are pleased to present our “Know My Rights” App which contains the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), easy to understand presentation of Child’s Right Act, the Domestic Violence Law of Lagos State, Legal Issues on Interaction with the Police, the Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIO)  and Federal Road Safety Corps Acts and several others.  We have included the English and Pidgin language versions of these salient Laws in the app so that anyone can read them, understand them and be properly guided. We have even translated the Nigerian Constitution into Pidgin Language. As more people become aware of the position of the Law, the agitations against the Judiciary and Legal Practitioners would be put in proper perspective by the public. We also firmly believe that access to and usage of this app would serve as a marketing tool for Lawyers because the need for lawyers would be very clear and conspicuous.

Our continued survival is predicated on our clients and subscribers’ businesses, so we will explore opportunities to use technology to move our subscribers’ businesses forward. The app is already available for download free of charge on the Google Play Store and we will encourage many Nigerians to take advantage of its availability. As time progresses, we will add other relevant and far-reaching Laws to the App. We look forward to the App becoming a learning tool in our primary and secondary schools so that the Nigerian child or citizen is aware of his rights and responsibilities which are a sine qua non for growth and development of our great nation

You have partnered the NBA to enhance service delivery to Nigerian lawyers for some time now.  How do you feel about your partnership with the NBA

First, we would like to seize this medium to express our immense gratitude to the leadership of the NBA and the TCCP for considering us worthy partners to the association of the noblest profession. To us, it is a testament to all we have been able to accomplish these past years. Over the years, we have enjoyed the opportunity to act as ICT Partner to the NBA-AGC and indeed it has been a worthwhile partnership for us, having the stamp of approval from the industry that we serve

It is widely believed among lawyers that you did not deliver at previous NBA  conferences because you failed to make conference materials available to conferees what actually happened?

Yes, a number of participants had erroneously thought we failed to make conference materials available.  I think its important to clarify at this juncture that we were never in charge of production of conference materials, NBA handled it themselves. We always seek for ways to add value to the legal services industry in Nigeria and we do not intend to relent anytime soon, in spite of previous mistakes and challenges. We are a value-oriented and value-driven company and it has been working for us from inception till date. Based on the success recorded with online registration for the NBA-AGC, we feel a sense of elation that the industry has now also recognized electronic voting, which was the means of voting used for last year’s election into the National Executive Officers of the NBA and which we were opportuned to have worked in conjunction with the leadership of the NBA to provide the portal and voting mechanisms in 2016.

What is your package for conferees at the 2017 Annual General Conference of the NBA holding in Lagos?

Due to the fact that we enjoyed such excellent rapport with the NBA, there were discussions for us to collaborate with the NBA-AGC through the TCCP for the 2017 Conference. However, we couldn’t afford to meet the request made of us, which was to avail Conference attendees of our flagship product free of charge for one year. Based on our financial projections for the year and beyond, acceding to that request would have signalled the death knell for our business because we invest heavily in research and development. Bearing in mind such costs incurred and to be incurred on research and development, we were unwilling to sacrifice quality on the altar of making a quick buck or scoring cheap points.As a company, our passion and dedication to the Nigerian legal community and the NBA is unflinching, and there is no going back in serving Nigerian Lawyers with integrity and excellence. Hence we were left with no option than to seek other avenues of partnership with the NBA for the 2017 AGC. So while our products are not being given for free at the Conference, we have various huge discounts and other freebies to give our teeming, loyal subscribers and those who visit our exhibition stand at the Conference.

The post ‘How we got lawyers, judges to embrace electronic law reports’ appeared first on The Nation Nigeria.

A number of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), acting under the aegis of the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room (NCSSR), met in Abuja on July 10 to examine the electoral process. They analysed the activities before, during and after the 2015 general elections. They noted the progress made so far and suggest ways of improving the success achieved. Eric Ikhilae was there.

The popular view, on July 10, this year, was that the country made progress in its democratic experiment with the conduct of the last general elections in 2015.

It was noted that, beyond the fact that the 2015 general elections were the fifth of such rituals since the country’s return to democratic governance in 1999, the exercise was greatly helped by some remarkable innovations initiated and craftily deployed by the electoral body, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) under Prof Attahiru Jega.

Despite the verdict that the 2015 general elections were an improvement on the previous four, many believe there is need for constant improvement. And that managers of the nation’s electoral process should be driven by the sole urged to ensure perfection.

These were part of issues thrown up by speakers at a session in Abuja on July 10 organised by a coalition of about 60 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) acting under the aegis of the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room (NCSSR). The event also featured the presentation of NCSSR’s compendium of petitions arising from the 2015 general elections.

According INEC’s 2015 General Election Report, the 2015 general elections, held on March 28 and April 11, cost N114,058,943,747.48, with N108,851,683,313.93 sourced from budgetary allocation, while development partners assisted with the balance of N5, 207,260,433.55.

No fewer than 27 out of the 28 registered political parties participated in the elections held in 119,973 polling units across the country’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). 14 parties sponsored candidates for the presidential election, 371 candidates stood for the governorship election, 746 for the Senate; 1766 for House of Representatives and 5,278 for the state assemblies.

That the twin innovations of the Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC) and Smart Card Reader (SMR) had positive impact on the outcome of the election was reflective on the reduction in the number of petitions taken, by aggrieved contestants, before the various election tribunals.

According to INEC, 560 petitions were filed after the 2003 general elections. The number rose to 1,290 at the conclusion of the 2007 general elections. In 2011, the number of post-election petitions filed stood at 732, while 611 was filed after the 2015 elections.

NCSSR’s coordinator and Executive Director, Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC), Clement Nwankwo said the success of the 2015 elections resulted from a combination of factors, including the determination of INEC’s leadership, the resolve by the two main presidential candidates – Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari – to ensure peace, and enhanced citizens’ involvement through the activities of CSOs such as the NCSSR.

He however identified some inadequacies, which he classified as incidences of violations by INEC and politicians. These violations, he noted, accounted for large number of post-election disputes recorded after the last general elections

Such identified violations by INEC included the cancellation of election after declaration of results (act the Supreme Court condemned in the case of Okezie Ikpeazu v. Alex Otti in SC/18/2016); making declaration of return when collation has not been concluded (the Court of Appeal, Makurdi, in the case of Daniel Onjeh v. David Mark, nullified Senator Mark’s election on the grounds that election results were declared by INEC while collation was still on in seven out of the nine Local Governments in Benue South Senatorial District.

There were also incidents of INEC’s failure to declare elections inconclusive. The Court of Appeal, in the case of Ekeleme Chima Ikeje v. Ugboala Theophilus, held that INEC acted in violation of the Electoral Act and the Manual for Election Officials 2015 when it failed to declare the election inconclusive, given that the margin of win between the two leading candidates was less than the total number of disenfranchised registered voters in the 35 disputed pulling units.

Nwankwo noted that INEC was found to be partisan in some cases. He observed that there was the integrity and neutrality questions on the conduct of a number of INEC’s staff, who ought to be impartial umpires at the elections.

He noted that in many of the appeals arising from the judgments of the election tribunals, the Appeal Court and Supreme Court raised this issue and advised INEC to always play the role of an impartial umpire.

In the case of INEC v. Alex Otti in SC /22/2016, Justice Suleiman Galadima, of the Supreme Court, said; “My lords, permit me to make this comment in the light of what has been the recent trends in respect of the stance of INEC.

“In an election petition, they readily take over the case of a party, who lost at the court below to prosecute the appeal. This appeal is one of such example. Is INEC not expected to be neutral and discharge its statutory responsibility in all election matters? Does it want to cry itself hoarse more than the bereaved?”

He blamed politicains and political parties for not playing by the rules and engaging in all forms of unlawful conduct, including imposing and supplanting candidates, disregard for internal party democracy among others.

Nwankwo frowned at the practice were political office holders ignore court’s decisions on election disputes. He said the development was worrisome and urged the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and House of Representatives Speaker, Yakubu Dogara to allow those who have won their cases in court to be sworn-in, in place of those currently sacked, but still holding on to the seats on the pretext that they have appealed.

He  said: “We do have, at this moment, specific cases of persons, particularly in legislative elections, where the tribunals have given judgments and annulled the elections of persons, who had already been sworn-in, and asked the Senate or House of Reps to swear in new persons, and the legislative houses are not swearing in these persons on the ostensible reasons that they are waiting for the final court to reach a decision on this.

Catherine Angai of the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA), praised NCSSR for the initiative and urged its members not to relent in their effort in sensitising Nigerian electorate on the need to be involved in the electoral process.

Professor Mohammed Kuna (Special Assistant to the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Mahmood Yakubu) said the observation on the weakness of the political parties is apt, but worrisome, because the parties exploit the electorate ignorance as against enlightening them to make right choices.

He said the task of educating the electorate to make informed decisions that will result in the enthronement of quality leadership rest on the CSOs, not the greedy politicians and their weak and exploitative political parties.

Executive Director of Human Rights Monitor (HRM), Festus Okoye, who undertook an overview of the compendium, expressed concern about conflicting decisions on similar issues by courts, particularly the Court of Appeal and on electoral cases.

“For me the implication of some divisions of the Court of Appeal refusing to abide the decisions of the Supreme Court, and some electoral tribunals, refusing to abide by the decisions of the Supreme Court, is very serious.

“Our judicial system and judicial process is anchored on the principle of precedent. The moment the Supreme Court laid down the law, it becomes the precedent and all other inferior courts must follow it. The moment courts begin to pick and choose which decision to follow, it becomes very problematic for our electoral process and undermines the judicial process.

“I think that one of the things that ought to be done, especially by the Court of Appeal, is that the moment a decision is rendered, the judgment must be circulated to other divisions of the court, so that they become aware of what a division has decided on a particular issue, to avoid this type of challenges,” Okoye said

An observation in the compendium queried the legitimacy of the huddles erected by courts for petitioners in election matters as criteria for the discharge of the onus of prove.

It was noted that in election cases, it is always difficult to prove allegations of crimes like rigging, electoral violence, falsification of result sheets, undue influence and other forms of electoral malpractices because of the standard of prove set by the judges.

It was further noted that the kind of evidence to be led to prove a case where election results/scores/votes is being challenged requires that such evidence should come from the officers present where the votes were counted. Where a petitioner fails to call such polling officers/agents as witnesses, the petition will be dismissed.

“Where a petitioner challenges an election on ground of non-compliance with the Electoral Act, he/she is required to call witnesses polling unit by polling unit and ward by ward to establish his claim of non-compliance.

“That is not all, the petition is also required to establish the non-compliance was substantial and that it affected the outcome of the election.

“Where the petition is anchored on over-voting or ballot stuffing, a petitioner is required to produce the voters’ register, the ballot boxes containing the stuffed ballot papers and statement of results from the affected polling units complained about.

“A petitioner, who alleges that an election did not hold is required to produce unmarked voters’ register. He is not to merely say so through witnesses’ testimonies.

“It must be noted however that though election tribunals and courts have always insisted on these manners of proof in election petitions, there is no single provision of the Electoral Act that provides for such proof or a particular kind of witness in proof of any allegation. It follows therefore, that the laws were made by judges, which with all respect, contradict the provisions of the electoral act,” it said.

The post Quest for perfection in Nigeria’s electoral process appeared first on The Nation Nigeria.

The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) is in a race against time. On July 7, it was suspended as a member of global Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs), the Egmont Group. A threat of expulsion is hanging over its head, if, by January, the government fails to grant NFIU autonomy from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The Senate has pledged to fast-track the passage of a law for this. But, won’t this weaken the EFCC? Or will an independent NFIU complement the war against graft, money laundering and terrorism financing? ROBERT EGBE writes.

AT the end of its five-day 24th Plenary in Macao, China, on July 7, the Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence
Units (FIUs) suspended the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU).

The group, consisting of 154 FIUs, accused the NFIU of reluctance to curb information leakage. It queried the NFIUfor being part of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Its demands are part of Recommendation 29 of the international standards set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) which Nigeria aspires to join.

In a statement, the group said: “The Heads of FIU made a decision, by consensus, to suspend the membership status of the NFIU, Nigeria, following repeated failures on the part of the FIU to address concerns regarding the protection of confidential information, specifically related to the status of suspicious transaction report (STR) details and information derived from international exchanges, as well as concerns on the legal basis and clarity of the NFIU’s independence from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

“The measure will remain in force until immediate corrective actions are implemented. The NFIU, Nigeria is now excluded from all Egmont Group events and activities.

“The Egmont Group expressed its hope that the Nigerian authorities will address these concerns to enable the Egmont Group to lift the suspension as soon as possible.”

The EFCC-NFIU- Egmont Group relationship

The NFIU was established in June, 2004 as the Nigerian arm of the global FIUs domiciled within the EFCC as an autonomous unit and operating in the African region. This followed the international community’s perception of Nigeria as a pariah state because of high level of money laundering and advance fee fraud associated.

The country had also been blacklisted as a non-cooperative country having limited legal and regulatory framework to tackle money laundering and financing of terrorism by the FATF.

The NFIU is the country’s central agency for receiving, analysing and disseminating information regarding money laundering and the financing of terrorism. It draws its responsibilities directly from the 40+9 Special Recommendations of the FATF, the global coordinating body for Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) efforts.

It draws its powers from the EFCC (Establishment) Act of 2004 and the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act of 2011 as Amended in 2012.

The laws require financial institutions and designated non-financial institutions to submit records of financial transactions to the NFIU.

The NFIU’s establishment is a precondition for Nigeria’s removal from FATF list of Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories (NCCTs).

Consequences of suspension, expulsion

The Egmont Group is the highest inter-governmental association of intelligence agencies in the world with 154 FIUs. It provides a platform for sharing criminal intelligence and financial information bordering on money laundering, terrorism financing, proliferation of arms, corruption, financial crimes, economic crimes and similar offences geared towards the support of local and international investigations, prosecutions and assets recovery.

NFIU’s suspension means it will have limited access to such intelligence and this will hamper its bid to request for assistance to investigate cross-border crimes of money laundering and terrorism financing. It will also stifle the country’s ability to recover stolen funds stashed overseas as well as affect the worldwide rating of Nigerian financial institutions by restricting their access to global transactions.

According to the spokesman of the Senate, Senator Sabi Abdullahi, “An expulsion might also, under certain conditions, attract the imposition of financial transaction limit, including the withdrawal by some countries of scholarships to students of Nigerian origin.”

History of non-compliance

Nigeria seems to have a history of “repeated failures” of compliance as mentioned by Egmont Group.

Criminology Professor and former Director-General of the ECOWAS Inter-Governmental Action Group against Money Laundering (GIABA) Abdullahi Shehu made similar observations last November.

In an article entitled: “Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Financing of Terrorism (ML/CFT) in Nigeria – A call for rescue”, Shehu noted that Nigeria could have been the first African country to attain a Financial Action Task Force (FATF) membership, but for improperly coordinated and sustained efforts.

He said: “As a result of non-response of Nigeria to engage, the FATF was left with no alternative than to blacklist Nigeria among countries considered to be Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories (NCCTs) in 2001.

“Subjecting Nigeria to this process meant that Nigeria was perceived as a risky jurisdiction for business and all financial transactions with Nigerian banks were subjected to extra ordinary scrutiny – and embarrassment.

“It took Nigeria six years of engagement to be removed from the NCCTs process in June 2006.”

The NFIU autonomy question

The NFIU states in its website that it is “domiciled within the EFCC as an autonomous unit”.

But the Egmont Group does not think so. Neither does the Senate.

Last Wednesday, its spokesperson announced that it had resolved to pass a legislation that would make the unit independent of the EFCC.

“Our worry is that Nigeria was suspended from the Egmont Group basically because NFIU has not been granted autonomy and is still domiciled in EFCC. The essence of it is that in sharing intelligence, there are protocols that must be respected. The Senate is committed to ensuring that the right thing is always done. We must be proactive. If you strengthen the NFIU you are strengthening other intelligence units in the country,” Abdullahi said.

Hours later, EFCC Acting Chairman Ibrahim Magu inaugurated a committee to reposition the NFIU as well as address the concerns of the Egmont Group.

The Senate’s Bill scaled first reading last Thursday.

What is in a location?

What does it matter whether the NFIU is located in the EFCC or not? Will the NFIU’s autonomy make the EFCC weaker?

Not really, according to Shehu.

In his article, Shehu said: “I have come to realise that the problem with the NFIU is not with its operational independence as most people would claim, but with a misplaced notion of who is in charge of what and a misperception of public office as a personal and life time vocation.

“Perhaps the most credible arguments in the controversy for a review of status and location of the NFIU are that: (1) the EFCC being a law enforcement agency cannot at the same time be the FIU of Nigeria as contained in Section 1(2) of the EFCC Establishment Act; and (2) the NFIU has not been administered professionally to make it truly a centralized authority for all law enforcement agencies to derive financial intelligence from it, rather, it is perceived as the property of the EFCC.

“Indeed, we must acknowledge the foresight and good leadership of the EFCC in establishing and strengthening the NFIU, but since we must conform to acceptable standards, what is required is either to enact a standalone law establishing the FIU according to the Egmont standard, or amend the EFCC Act to say the FIU is located within the EFCC as it has to be located somewhere anyway.

“There is no proof that the FIU can be better in any other location other than where it is at the moment. After, all what is in a location? It is instructive to note that what is required is the operational autonomy and financial independence of the FIU and its ability to serve all law enforcement agencies.”

Shehu’s view does not contradict the Egmont’s Group’s recommendation of four models of Financial Intelligence Units: judicial, law enforcement, administrative, and hybrid. The EFCC would fall under either the law enforcement or hybrid models.

The law enforcement model involves implementing anti-money laundering measures alongside already-existing law enforcement systems, supporting the efforts of multiple law enforcement or judicial authorities with concurrent or sometimes competing jurisdictional authority to investigate money laundering.

The hybrid model serves as a disclosure intermediary and a link to both judicial and law enforcement authorities. It combines elements of at least two of the FIU models.

Shehu, who has been appointed to head the EFCC committee to reposition the NFIU, pledged last Wednesday to strengthen the anti-graft war.

“We see this as a call to service and we assure you that we will ensure that we carry out this task judiciously in order to reposition the NFIU, and ensure that it is autonomous, as this will further strengthen the anti-corruption fight”, he said.

A ploy to weaken EFCC?

The alternative view is that the Senate’s plan to separate the NFIU from the EFCC is part of a plot by aggrieved senators to get back at Magu and weaken the anti-graft agency, following the Presidency’s insistence on keeping Magu in office, despite his non-clearance by lawmakers.

Holders of this view will refer to the Senate’s statement last Wednesday, holding Magu partly responsible for Nigeria’s suspension from the group, because of his alleged interference in the operations and staffing of the NFIU.

Senator Abdullahi, however, dispelled the notions that the Red Chamber’s decision to decouple the NFIU from the EFCC is an extension of the imbroglio with Magu.

He said: “Several agencies are involved in fighting corruption and this anti-corruption fight has been hampered by the refusal to share intelligence.

“We cannot succeed if we continue to individualise some of these national assignments. The institution is bigger than any person.”

He urged Nigerians to commend the Senate for taking “a bold step” to ensure that Nigeria’s financial system was not blacklisted.

Lawyers back NFIU autonomy

Dr. Paul Ananaba (SAN) and Seyi Sowemimo have praised the senators for rising to the occasion.

Ananaba faulted suggestions that the lawmakers’ move was borne out of an evil intention towards Magu or the EFCC.

He said: “I agree that it would be good to have autonomy for the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit because even when you look at the EFCC, there are still accusations that it is lopsided with mostly opposition figures being prosecuted and all that.

“I have no problem with the Senate’s move. I do not agree with the argument that it is an attempt to whittle down the powers of the EFCC, because this will now be a more specialised agency on financial intelligence.

“I don’t think it will whittle down EFCC’s powers in any way, each agency will have its own powers. For instance, why was the EFCC created when we already had the police?”

He gave his endorsement to laws that will help to reduce corruption to the barest minimum.

Ananaba said: “I have no problems with complying with international standards, you can’t also fight corruption without the cooperation of the international community.

“Most of the loot are sent out and if you don’t work with the international community in accordance with global standards, then you will find it difficult to get the collaboration you need to repatriate funds and all that and to trace corrupt funds that looters move from one border to the other.

“So, nothing is lost with the separation of the NFIU from the EFCC, what is needed is that the lawmakers should go to work and ensure that nothing is lost with the EFCC’s powers.”

Sowemimo noted that though the lawmakers had their differences with Magu in the past, their swift response to the Egmont Group’s threat was commendable.

He said: “Now that the Senators appreciate the consequences of the sanctions, it is nice that they are taking measures to redress the situation, it would have been worse if they were aware of this sanctions and were not doing enough to avert it.

“Now that they are moving expeditiously towards redressing it, I am quite happy that this is happening, because they could have said they were going on recess and it is when they return that they would do it.

“But since it is something that is going to affect our economic fortunes, it’s great that they are dealing with it, whatever may have been their initial motives.’’

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In the real world, Innocent Eboh is a budding commercial lawyer. But in the fluid, no limits to the world of cyberspace, Eboh transforms to De-Funky lawyer, an intelligent, witty, fun-loving Facebook personality. The 2014 Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK) alumnus and 2015 Nigerian Law School graduate tells his story to ROBERT EGBE.

Family

I’m the first child in a family of six – two boys and four girls. My parents are traders and my siblings and I grew up in Onitsha, Anambra State.

Decision to study law

My mum is the major reason I’m a lawyer. I almost dropped out after Senior Secondary School. As the first son, my dad wanted me to go into one of the family businesses. It was with a good intention, but my mum stopped it. Dad wanted me to go into the school books selling business – primary, secondary and tertiary books, even foreign textbooks. But that was not my passion. I wanted to be a lawyer and a professor too. Now my dad is so proud of me. He does not regret it and I’m thankful, because I’m living my dream. As for the family business, my dad also has a construction company and my younger brother, who is an engineer, is in charge there. He knows the work well. But the book business, dad is handling it alone. There’s no one to take over. It would probably have been greater, if I was there.

Why I’m called De-Funky lawyer

I gave the nickname De-Funky lawyer to myself and people liked it. I used to be called Brainy, but that’s not me. I’m no bookworm. My friends couldn’t agree more. I’m very creative… I imagine things that wow them. I feel the name De-Funky lawyer suits me because I have a great combination of social life and law and still performed well in school. I believe life should be balanced. You can call me a genius (Laughs). I pick up a law text, read it without being taught and at night, go for my clubbing. I can be clubbing and discussing law at the same time. I don’t allow law to define me, I dish out the rules. I comply with Rules of Professional Conduct, though. I’m a full time commercial lawyer, but I write anonymously for two blogs and I manage my De-Funky lawyer Facebook account. Most of my posts are funny, sarcastic, weird and natural.

How principal reacted to De-Funky lawyer nickname

Hahahhahaha…My immediate boss found out recently when I was celebrating my birthday. He was very, very amazed when he saw it on my birthday cake because I’m very easy going and I smile a lot. I laugh over everything. That’s cunning right? He was laughing all through the day. He seemed to like the name. He said, ‘I wouldn’t have any issue with you being funky and a social media celebrity, provided you don’t stop doing good jobs here.’ He’s a very cool man.

Best day in court

My best day in court was when the claimant wanted to discontinue a matter at hearing stage by filing a mere Notice of Discontinuance, instead of an application by way of motion. I moved the court to dismiss the suit, instead of an order for striking out. The court did. We, young lawyers, are most times left with ordinary applications. Senior lawyers feel we are greenhorns, so, they allow us to handle only non-contentious motions and take notes in court.

Most embarrassing day in court

The day My Lady cautioned me to stop addressing the court in a ‘bedroom voice’. She said I should make my submission and leave her court. I was so embarrassed. The laughter from other lawyers made it worse. It was at the Lagos State High Court, before Justice Serifat Sonaike. I was asking for costs against the other party for truncating the dates already fixed for trial by his frivolous application. Nevertheless, the judge awarded the costs, so, I suppose my bedroom voice worked after all. (laughter).

The future

I want to be a very distinguished professor of law and a SAN. I love academics. I always wanted to be in the classroom, but no opportunity.

Poor work conditions for young lawyers

A young lawyer who is not well paid will find practice challenging. Money encourages young lawyers. When you’re paid well, you will enjoy what you are doing. But the problem is that there are many lawyers in Nigeria and only a few big firms that can pay reasonable remuneration. So, the conditions of service would, invariably, be very poor. However, a firm must survive too. They can’t pay more than their income. I worked in a firm in Ikoyi, for 10 months immediately after National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) and for me, the salary was not poor compared to what other young lawyers take home. I got an offer from another law firm in Lekki, which paid a moderate salary. So, I’m coping fine.

Marrying a lawyer

I would love to marry a lawyer. Why not? That’s the best marriage I can ever think of. Lawyers understand each other. Some men are afraid of marrying lawyers, though. But I want to advise them, they are not marrying lawyers, they are marrying the mother of their kids. A wife, not just a lawyer.

The post ‘Why I‘m called De-Funky lawyer’ appeared first on The Nation Nigeria.

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has reconstituted membership of its disciplinary committee to stem indiscipline.

At the inauguration of nine NBA technical committees in Abuja, its President, Abubakar Balarabe Mahmoud (SAN), said it had become necessary to reconstitute its disciplinary committee to enthrone discipline and decency which distinguish the legal practice as a noble profession.

He said the NBA would not fold its arms and watch helplessly as indiscipline erodes the culture of decorum.

“I’ll like to say that we have had serious challenges of indiscipline and I like our members to reflect on this.” said. Mahmoud.

He said the challenges border on unruly behaviours among members which, he noted, are contrary to the entrenched traditions of the profession.

“These issues include discipline, respect for elders in the profession, seniority and decorum. I like to say that many of us are deeply concerned and have been despondent at the turn of events.

“At times, some lawyers make hateful comments against their leaders, against their senior colleagues. This is very unacceptable. We will really put a stop to this.

“The spate of litigations by members across the country is worrisome. Believe me, one of the first challenges that confronted me as President of NBA was the spate of litigation from various branches.

“In Abuja, here, we have had serious issues of indiscipline, indecorum and indecent conducts. It is not about who is right but about what is right and appropriate for our profession.

“I went to Osun State about two months ago and was confronted with serious issues of indiscipline perpetrated by our members who showed gross indiscipline to the Chief Judge, barricading the Chief Judge from entering the court premises. This is most unacceptable. I will plead with our members to show utmost restraint, utmost discipline and utmost respect.

“Let me remark about comments we receive on social media. While we live in an era of social media, we, as lawyers must be careful about comments we make in the social media about our profession. Let us be advocates of discipline, let’s be advocates of decorum and let’s be advocates of decency.”

He said this in view of the development, it has become necessary for the NBA to reconstitute its disciplinary committee and prepare the association for the challenges ahead.

A statement by the General Secretary, Mr. Isiaka Olagunju listed members of the Lagos panel A to include Mr. George Oguntade  (SAN)  as chairman , Dr. Fabian Ajogwu (SAN), as the alternate chairman, Wale Irokosu, Mrs. Ifeoma M. Okwuosa, Femi Fajolu and Mrs Tosin Adekoya as secretary; Lagos Panel B include Dr. Babatunde Ajiboye (SAN) chairman, Levi Adikawaone as the Altenate chaiman, Mrs. Muna Esegine, Mbanugo Udenze, Morenike Obi-Farinde and Tochukwu Chukwumerije as secretary; Lagos Panel C has Mr. Kemi Pinheiro (SAN) as chairman, Biriyai Dambo (SAN) as alternate chairman, Asue Ighodalo, Mrs. Pricilia Ogwemoh, Inam Wilson, Lateef Ajayi and Omotayo Kazeem Olatunbosun as secretary.

Members of the Southsouth panel include Mr. Chike Onyemenam (SAN) as chairman, Raymond Isitor, Austine Ajineh, Mrs. Alero Agboghoruma, Bola Adekanle, Simon K. Mokidi and Andrew Odum as secretary: Southsouth Panel B include Ntufan Mba Ukweni (SAN) as chairman, Marc Enamhe (SAN) as alternate chairman, Paul Ibom, Uduak Eneh and Joyce Opuah as secretary; Southsouth Panel C include  Dejo Lamikanran (SAN) Chairman, Dr Anthony Okorodas as alternate chairman, Joseph Zabbey, Amomia Amaso, Vincent Ogbumgbada , Emeka Ichoku and Nnamdi George Amadi;

Mr D.C. Demwigwe (SAN) is Southeast Panel A chairman, Ndukwe Nnawuchi as alternate chairman, Sir C.O.N. Anyiam, Rev. Fr. Mbachu, Emmakaegbu, Alex Nwosu, Ejie Okeke Chimaroke, Udo Uduma, Barth Okoye, Okey Edede and N.D. Ojeh as secretary; Southeast Panel members include Justina Offia(SAN) as chairman, Emeka Anaenugwu as alternate chairman, Mathew A.O. Iyamabo, David Elueka,  Mrs. Theodore Igwebe, Ray Ukanwa, Ude Unya, Ifeoma N. Katchy, Mrs Ada Edozie and Steve Ononye as secretary;

Southwest Panel A members are Olagoke Oluyemi Fakunle (SAN) chairman, Dayo Akinlaja as alternate chairman, Wale Afolabi, Ekerete Udofot,Benson Amuwa, Pastor Adewunmi, G.A. Adesina, Segun Isumede and Dosu Babatunde as secretary; Southwest Panel B comprises Michael Fashanu as chairman, Chief Ayodele Adebayo (SAN), alternate chairman; Luquan Laoye, Mrs. Ajose, Femi Akintomiwa, Mama Fida, Laide Yakeen Oladepo; Abuja Panel A has Ola Olanipekun (SAN), chairman; Paul Harris Ogbole, Okey Ajunwa, Dr. Sunday Kayode, Henry Ihunde, Adamson Adeboro, Uche Onyedum, Ayorunde Ogunleye; Abuja Panel B includes Tawo Eja Tawo (SAN), chairman; Sam Zibiri (SAN), alternate chairman; Anthony Oka, Daniel Oledeye, Elder Dickson Ibe, M.M. Ayinla, and Emeka Onyeaka, secretary.

The Northeast panel is composed of Chief Leonard Daniel Nzadon as chairman, Luka A. Haruna, D.G. Hassan, Aisha Mohammed and Stephen Sunday as secretary; Northwest Panel has Nnamanso Ekanem as chairman, Maliki Umar as alternate chairman, Tajudeen Oladoja, Linda Bala, Abdulahi M. Danige, Abubakar Yusuf, Mohammed Sani, and Bafa Alhassan while Solomon Umoh (SAN) was appointed chairman for the Northcentral, K.K. Eleja (SAN), Ishaku Usman, Salman Jawando, T.T. Igba, Suleiman M. Limman and Nanfa Daniel Delleng as secretary.

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Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, Solicitor-General of the Federation (SGF) Taiwo Abidogun and Co-Chair, Federal Justice Sector Reform Co-ordination Committee (FJSRC), Prof Muhammed Tabiu (SAN), have urged more states to adopt the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015 in view of its many benefits.

They praised the various innovative provisions contained in the Act, which they note, was capable of eliminating current challenges associated with the criminal justice system in the country.

El-Rufai, Abidogun and Tabiu spoke in Kaduna at a two-day sensitis ation workshop on the ACJA held on July 17 and 18. The event was jointly organised by the Federal Ministry of Justice and Kaduna State.

It was attended by Attorneys General and Commissioners of Justice from the 19 northern states, officials from the Federal Ministry of Justice, Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Nigerian Prison Service (NPS) and stakeholders from other criminal justice sector institutions.

El-Rufai described the ACJA as the most important piece of legislation to effectively reform the  justice sector in the last 50 years.

He said his state had adopted and domesticated the law and was about to begin its implementation.

El-Rufai assured of his government’s commitment to sustaining efforts to sensitise officials to ensure adequate understanding and application of the Act.

He said: “We welcome this model and we are likely going to call on the resource persons to come back to Kaduna to help train officials from the justice sector and sensitise them on the key provisions of this very important law.”

El-Rufai said Attorneys General from the 19 northern states constituted a committee, on September 18, 2015 to review the Penal code and the Criminal Procedural code.

He said in adopting the committee’s recommendations, members from the 19 northern states agreed to domesticate the ACJA and undertake a holistic re-writing and re-drafting of the Penal Code.

El-Rufai said his state took the lead, among northern states, with the passage of the two penal codes by the State House of Assembly with effect on May 29, 2017.

Abidogun, who was represented by the Director, Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF), Etsu Mohammed, urged stakeholders in the sector to collaborate to ensure the success of reform measures being introduced to aid the effectiveness of the criminal justice system.

Abidogun urged states yet to reform their criminal justice system to adopt the ACJA in their states.

He said: “Presently, only six (6) states have enacted their ACJA, while the Houses of Assembly in three states have passed the bill and it await the Governors’ assent.”

Tabiu praised the progress made by Kaduna State Government in its adoption of the ACJA.

He said the choice of Kaduna for the workshop was because of the state’s importance in the northern zone. He urged other states to emulate Kaduna in domesticating the ACJA.

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Corporate law firm Banwo & Ighodalo has won the maiden edition of the Lagos Court of Arbitration Young Arbitrators Network (LCA-YAN) inaugural International Commercial Arbitration Moot Competition.

Strachan Partners was runner-up.

The competition held last Friday at the Lagos Court of Arbitration (LCA) headquarters in Lagos.

Banwo & Ighodalo’s team beat participants from commercial law firms across the country including Dikko & Mahmoud, Moshood Shehu & Associates, SPA Ajibade, AELEX, Babalakin & Co. Sterling Partnership and Punuka.

Other participants were Olisa Agbakoba Global, Broderick Bozimo & Company, Perchstone & Graeys, Streamsowers & Kohn, Wole Olanipekun, White & Case and M. A. Banire & Associates.

The competitors comprised a four-man team of three lawyers of between one and three years post-call and a senior law student from higher institutions including Lagos State University and Obafemi Awolowo University, among others.

Their performances were graded by a panel of judges including Mr. Babatunde Fagbohunlu SAN, Mr Etigwe Uwa (SAN), Mrs. Obasa Akpata, and Mr. Kolawole Mayomi of SPA Ajibade and Co.

Co-chair of  YAN Prince-Alex Iwu explained the objectives of the competition thus: “Our moot is targeted at young arbitrators. The objective is to expose young arbitrators to issues in international commercial law, such as the convention on International Sale of Goods. At a time that you have to look high up to find those lawyers who are exposed to and interact and engage in international arbitration, we felt that it was important to organise a moot to give young lawyers and students exposure to international arbitration’’.

Mayomi hailed the organisers and competitors, saying: “I think they are doing well, because arbitration is gradually taking root as the preferred means of dispute resolution particularly for commercial disputes.

“If two contracting parties have a dispute to resolve, they want to resolve it and get on with their contract. The mere fact that there is a dispute does not necessarily mean that the contract has come to an end.

“We’ve also discovered that young lawyers are not properly schooled in the art of arbitration at the university and law school because it requires special skills that also need developing.

“So, the essence of a competition like this is to raise a new generation of lawyers who are arbitration-savvy, it’s a case of ‘catch them young’ or ‘teach them young’ so to speak, that this is a better, more cost-efficient way to resolve disputes, you don’t necessarily need to have your matter locked up in court.”

One of the participants, a 400-level law student of Lagos State University (LASU), Agu Mesioma Emmanuel, relived his experience.

“I was head of one of the teams that was attached to the Strachan Partners and our duty was to meet with them, draft the memorial, research, practise and then compete.

“I competed alongside two full-time lawyers and we qualified for the finals. It was a very challenging experience appearing in the preliminaries with lawyers against other lawyers. It was also inspiring. This kind of pressure brings out the best in one.

“This competition has been a great influence. Prior to this event I had very little knowledge of arbitration and the opportunities therein. So, this competition really opened my eyes, especially working with Strachan Partners as they are very good with arbitration.”

Secretary to the board of LCA Aderonke Alex-Adedipe said the competition was a success.

“I was particularly impressed with the students. The competition has shown that the level of our students’ education is not as poor as critics suggest,” she added.

The post Banwo & Ighodalo wins arbitration moot competition appeared first on The Nation Nigeria.

The leadership of African Bar Association (AFBA) has assured participants in its  2017 Annual General Conference holding in Port Harcourt from this weekend to deliver a world class international conference.

In a chat with The Nation, the Vice President (Budget) of the association who also was a  former General Secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA),  Mr. Ibrahim Eddy Mark said: ‘’The conference will be fantastic, the Local Organising Committee (LOC) under the chairmanship of Rivers State Governor, Chief Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, has done a marvelous job. The host governor is ready to showcase the wonders of Port Harcourt to the world’’

On the security of the conferees, he said: ‘’Port Harcourt is safe, nothing is happening here, we have hosted several national and international events here in recent times”

The National Vice-Chairman Northwest of the ruling All Progressives congress (APC), Mr. Inuwa Abdul Kadir who is also chairman of Nigerian Forum and chairman of the Marketing and contacts  committee for the conference said: “ The conference will be a tremendous success, we have made the right contacts, we have created the required awareness, we have visited our colleagues in high and low places to create awareness for the conference.

‘’We visited the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), the Corporate Affairs Commission ( CAC),  Bauchi State Governor, M.A. Abubakar, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara and so on

‘’The Conference theme “Overcoming the Legal Challenges of Doing Business in Africa” is apt,  Keynote Speaker who is the  immediate past President of the Republic of Tanzania Dr. Jakaya M. Kikwete , other Heads of State, past, present and distinguished personalities from across the Continent and outside are  expected to attend the Conference.

‘’It promises to be an interesting conference indeed” Abdul Kadir stated.

The post AFBA promises ‘world class’ conference in Port Harcourt appeared first on The Nation Nigeria.

Eminent jurists and other legal luminaries converged on the Faculty of Law, Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife at a four  day  national conference organised as part of activities marking its 55th anniversary.Legal Editor, JOHN AUSTIN UNACHUKWU reports

Eminent jurists and other legal luminaries converged on the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife,  to proffer solutions to various problems, cutting across disciplines, confronting the country.

Participants at the four-day  national conference organised by the Faculty of Law of OAU urged all hands to be on deck in seeking solutions to  the country’s problems.

The Law Moot Court  was organised as part of activities to mark the  55th  anniversary of the Faculty.

The theme of the conference  was “ “Law and socio-economic change in Nigeria: Issues, contexts and perspectives.”  It had several sub-themes that affect almost all aspects of our national life.

It had participants from  various disciplines and professional groups in the country.

The Dean of the faculty, Prof.  Demola  Popoola, said  the challenges that law is facing cannot be meaningfully addressed with the instrumentality of  law alone.

He said this was why the faculty invited historians, social scientists, economists, and even accountants to give perspectives on the theme of the lecture and because it believed that the problem that faces any society could hardly be resolved through the instrumentality of just one discipline.

“Now, that is apart from the fact that knowledge itself is holistic and it is for convenience sake that they are actually demarcated into convenient beats.  Even the dichotomy between the sciences and the humanities had not always been there. The sciences actually broke away from philosophy, physics itself used to be called natural philosophy.  Up till now, you find that there is increasing move to humanise the sciences just as we also trying to inject scientific methods into the humanities.

“ Now law cannot escape from this and that is why we took a decision that the theme of the conference and the conference itself is going to be interdisciplinary in conception and that is the only way that we can actually underscore our relevance in the present state of social and economic anomaly that the nation is going through’’.

On the performance of the university graduates in the country, Popoola said: “We have  Senior Advocates of Nigeria in the civil service, in the corporate world, in actual practice of law. Our products are recurring decimals and  they are doing us proud everywhere. Each batch has been particularly encouraging and that is what has been sustaining the current generation of our lecturers.

“We thank God for what we have been able to achieve, we might not,  like other institutions be where we actually would have  like to  be,  but I think that in terms of our products, their  quality and so on, we can beat our chest and give all glory to God for all the landmark achievements  we had recorded as I said in the judiciary”, he said.

Chairman of the conference Planning Committee, Prof. Babafemi Odunsi, said: “ The Faculty of Law and OAU are committed to important developments at national and international levels, and ever set to make inputs as considered apposite.

“This is what informed the theme of this particular conference. As we all know- with recession, inflation, increasing rates of poverty, widening gaps between rich and poor, disillusionment with political leaderships  and so on, Nigeria is faced with fundamental and confounding socio-economic issues.

“It is our hope as organisers that this conference will offer meaningful contributions to the discourse on how Nigeria can effectively combat the socio-economic challenges, particularly with the mechanism of Law” Prof. Odunsi said.

The university Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Eyitope Ogunbodede, represented by the Deputy provost of the Postgraduate School, Prof. Yetunde Ajibade,  who traced the establishment of the faculty to the late Lord Denning, noted that it was one of the fruits of the committees set up for  the establishment of Faculty of Law in the then University of Ife, when it took off in October 1962.

“Since then the Faculty, which is today fondly referred to by both the students and alumni as‘Ifelaw’, has grown in leaps and bounds, increasing the fortunes of the university, while also earning for itself a very distinguished record for the quality of its Law graduates. The Faculty has produced some of the most brilliant Lawyers in Nigeria’s 55 years of Legal Education, who are today not only the leading lights of the bar and the bench, but proudly sits at the top echelon of both.

“The enviable position of the Faculty has however not come without some sacrifices. On this note, I must salute the industry and doggedness of the successive deans of the Faculty who have left no stone unturned in ensuring that the Faculty remained the toast of most Secondary School leavers desirous of becoming Lawyers in Nigeria. In equal measure, let me also commend the resilience and  commitment of all members of staff of the Faculty, who have ensured over the years that Ifelaw, remained a worthy brand.

Chairman of the occasion, Prof. J. O. Fabunmi said that there are infrastructural decay, crisis in energy, health, education, and transportation sectors impunity by pubic officers and endemic corruption in the system, adding that all these vitiating factors are almost rendering the economy comatose.

“To redirect the country to the path of growth and sustainability Muhammadu Buhari on being sworn in as president of Nigeria in May 2015, adopted a policy of change with the slogan of change begins with me. The message is that Nigerians should change from their old ways of doing things to a new way of transparency, accountability and faithfulness. The vigorous pursuit of this policy has gradually changed the perception of the world that Nigeria is one of the most corrupt nations.

‘’In this connection we must appreciate the strong determination of the present administration to stamp out corruption and other malpractices in the system and the efforts of agencies of government such as Economic and Financial Crimes Commission ( EFCC), the Independent Corrupt and other Related offences Commission (ICPC), the Department of State Services (DSS)

‘’The theme of the conference tallies with the government policy of change. The theme is divided into 17 sub themes covering wide area of human endeavours. I expect a critical analysis, discursion and evaluation of there sub- themes indicating where we were, where we are and where we are going.

“A case in point is that of Magu, the Acting Chairman of EFCC.

“ The Senate has passed a resolution that unless Magu is removed from office, it will not consider any nominee for appointment submitted to it by the president. Another case in point is the controversy over the 2017 Budget which remains unabated,” Fabunmi said.

The key note speaker, Prof. Omotoye Olorode said: “Clearly, the character and the central economic, political and social interest of the  ruling class have not changed in any fundamental way since independence.

“Opportunities for social transformation in favour of the large majority of the people have always been there. Some of these opportunities have accrued to the masses of the Nigerian people only incidentally as part of social engineering strategies of the Nigerian ruling class. Needless to say, the ruling class has continually reproduced, the ideology of imperialism and the class had became entrenched between 1978 or so and today.

The ruling class under military and civilian dispensations has superintended a state where state apparati had been used largely to entrench its hegemony  at the expence of national development and of socio-economic advancement  of the large majority of the people. Laws and policies, serve the state that they control inspite of the efforts of legal activists on the Bar and Bench to use it to serve the cause of the people. Some of the gains which the mass of the people have made, from the incidental transformations and a whole lot of the mitigation of negative consequences of the transformations have also been made possible by the political action of lawyers and judges and of other fractions of civil society who are committed to building a peoples’ state and establishing a peoples’ jurisprudence.

“Let me conclude by paying fulsome tribute to members of the Nigerian Bar and the Bench,  living and dead, young and old, who have courageously struggled to understand the material base of law in society, to humanise law and use it to defend our people. In particular, I will like to dedicate this lecture to those of them that have directly touched our lives during our agitations for human dignity and for a better society but who have passed on. I will like to mention in particular late Justice Rosaline Omotoso, the late Comrade AlaoAka-Bashorun and the late Chief Ganiyu Oyesola Fawehnmi ( SAN) and  Senior Advocate of the Masses (SAM). I will also like to acknowledge the courage and the sacrifices of my young (lawyer) friends and comrades who were always been with us in the trenches and who continue to promote law on the side of our people”

Former Justice of the Court of Appeal, Justice Isa Ayo Salami (PCA) said: “It is on record that the faculty pioneered law reporting in Nigerian universities when in the 70s it started the erstwhile, very rich and popular University of Ife Law Report (U.I.L.R).

“Not only did  it report decisions of the courts of record in the country,  but also embarked on reporting retrospectively important decisions of the high court and the appellate courts which hitherto remained unreported. This unique venture by the faculty opened a new frontier which considerably eased law practice because it produced law reports at a very reasonable and affordable price. It also ended the spring of surprise which influential or prominent legal practitioners who had access to unreported judgments of courts, especially Federal Supreme Court and West African Court of Appeal, on both the court and opposing counsel,” Salami said.

Mr. George Etomi, whose goodwill massage was read by the Director-General, Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS), Prof. Dejio Adekunle (SAN), said: “As a lawyer who has advised local and international clients on many of the areas captured by this sub-themes of this conference and privileged to have a grasp of their importance to the national economy, it gives me joy to know that this prestigious Faculty is living up to its responsibility by leading discussions on these subject areas which are of national significance.

“ If Nigeria must achieve its economic potential, we not only need to have the befitting regulatory framework for agriculture, aviation, banking and finance, capital markets, and intellectual property just to mention a few, we also need to have knowledgeable lawyers who can advise on the application of the respective legal framework, taking our social realities into context. We will need those lawyers as advisers in government, business corporations, law firms and even on the bench but there is no better place to begin to train them than in the university. As the 1 sixth President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, once said: “The philosophy of the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of government in the next.

To enable them excel, he urged law students and  young lawyers to acquire as much knowledge as possible of the World Trade Organisation (WTO)  and other international bodies, the provision of cross-border legal services is increasingly a global phenomenon. With time, more lawyers from outside this jurisdiction will be able to provide their services to governments and businesses in Nigeria just as much as Nigerian lawyers will be able to advise clients in other jurisdictions. Knowledge is a critical factor in competing on a global stage. We must therefore prepare for this reality and equip ourselves accordingly, particularly paying attention to our law students and young lawyers.

“I have been impressed by reports of the successes recorded by OAU Law students at many international competitions on Arbitration, Human Rights, Space Law and Taxation among others and I must urge as many of us who can to lend our hand of fellowship to the Faculty to sustain such achievements.

The post OAU seeks solutions to national problems appeared first on The Nation Nigeria.

Theodora Ibifuro Kio-Lawson, daughter of late Justice W.H. Kio-Lawson of the Rivers State Judiciary was called to the Nigerian Bar in November 2007. She is the Law Editor of Business Day newspaper and currently the chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Lawyers in the Media (LIM) Forum and chair, Media and Publicity for the NBA Section on Business Law. She shares her experience with the Legal Editor JOHN AUSTIN UNACHUKWU

Theodora Ibifuro Kio-Lawson would have loved to read Psychology, Human Resource Management or Political Science but was inspired to read law by her father, who lived for  law and all it represents. Everything he did, both in his career and personal life, was a reflection of his value and respect for systems.

“So, watching him practise so passionately and excelling in what he did best, had a huge impact on my decision to go the way of the law and I’m thankful to him for ‘leading me on”

She describes her  interest in  law as  lying  some where between a need to understand how the rule of law and governance work; ‘’to be part of a system that seeks to balance interests and rights; and contributing positively to social change in my immediate environment. While my dad may have kindled that fire, the decision was entirely mine at the end of the day’’.

As Head of Legal and Law Editor of BusinessDay Newspapers, her role demands that she  exercises her knowledge of the law as a barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.  This involves providing ‘legal’ direction and counsel to her employer on a wide range of legal issues including lawsuits, trials and court processes working with the company’s external counsel to devise effective legal strategies, company and allied matters, contracts and collective agreements, government regulations, as well as other corporate commercial concerns and compliance issues.

As a consummate Bar man, she pays her Bar practising fees, branch dues and  is  fully  involved in Bar activities on several levels. She describes her foray into journalism as a kind  destiny or sheer providence, it however seemed like a trajectory, she was bound to take. Aside, her  dad was one-time legal adviser of Nigerian Tide, before going back to full-time practice and then the Bench. So while the move wasn’t exactly calculated, her career choices came with roles, which more or less propelled her  in this direction. She describes the  combination of law and journalism as not only been stimulating ‘’but has equipped me for my ultimate purpose – of bringing about positive social change.”

She describes the experience as rewarding “The experience has been rich and greatly rewarding. When I said earlier that my interest in the law lies somewhere between being part  of a system that seeks to balance interest and rights and contributing positively to social change, I found the fulfillment of that purpose working across these two sectors; the legal and media sectors and I honestly would not give it up for anything”.

She blames the  frustration of socio-economic challenges,  an anxiety over the big picture and getting lost somewhere  between the challenges confronting her in reaching the peak of her career. Neverthless she has confidence in  God  who she trusts to see  her through to the peak  by providing her  with a will and desire to succeed.

She describes legal profession as dynamic, yet very competitive globally. And for Nigeria she would like to see  a profession with standards so high that ‘’our members can compete favorably in any part of the world. I would also love to see a profession that can efficiently regulate itself with little or no external interference’’.

Responding to questions on her role model, she said: “I have had and still have several role models. Growing up it was my Dad, as his work ethic was greatly inspiring to me, even as a youngster. More recently, I am intrigued and continue to look up to people like Megyn Kelly formerly of Fox News. She’s a lawyer and journalist and was on the TIME list of 100 most influential people a couple of years back and Julie Gathoni Sumira Gichuru, Gichuru, a journalist and media personality, holds a law degree ( LL.B ) Hons.  and an MBA from Cardiff Law School, University of Wales and Cardiff Business School, University of Wales. She is also a recipient of Martin Luther King Salute to Greatness Award. Others are Mr. Asue Ighodalo and Mr. Augustine Alegeh (SAN) Their drive and leadership skills are truly remarkable, and I aspire to have these.

The post ‘I want to be change agent’ appeared first on The Nation Nigeria.

Governor Simon Bako Lalong of Plateau State has called on Nigerians  to always engage in programmes and activities that unite the country, promote peace and add value to lives.

Lalong made this statement in a speech he delivered as the guest of honour at this year’s Zumunta International Convention, specifically organised to address the challenges of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the North held in Atlanta, USA.

Lalong said: “Creating a value for the unity of Nigerian Northerners in Diaspora with this convention and other programmes of common interest is no doubt a clarion call to all stakeholders back home, that we have a valuable asset that we must nurture and continue to add value to for the benefit of generations yet unborn.

“Northern Nigeria with her land mass, population, natural endowment, diverse ethnic groups and human resources, is blessed beyond the issues of religious and ethnic difference that have been manipulated and exploited by conflict merchants garbed in political and religious apparels.

“Our shared values and strength in diversity as Northerners have accounted for the leadership we have provided and are still providing for our people. Further to this is the massive contribution of the region and her citizens to the socio-economic development of the nation. I must therefore be quick to commend all of you who are committed members of Zumunta Association for showcasing with your continuous fellowship and brotherhood, that Northern Nigeria remains an indivisible region of people committed to pursuing their common destiny in Unison, in our country Nigeria.

“This Year’s symposium on Internally Displaced Persons ( IDPs) with particular reference to Northern Nigeria, brings to heart a global concern demanding individual and collective action to nip in the bud. As we think globally we must act locally to address the issue at hand, so we can rank within global reckoning as people worthy of recognition and commendation.

“The growing number of people who are forced to flee their Native home and land, to seek refuge in other safe havens within our country is alarming. While it is a matter of humanitarian concern to have refugees cross the borders of our country into Northern Nigeria on account of natural disasters and violent conflicts, it is senseless to have a situation where the growing numbers of Internally Displaced Persons in Northern Nigeria is on account of Communal Ethnic clashes and attacks by religious extremists” Lalong said.

The post Lalong seeks unity, peace appeared first on The Nation Nigeria.

The National Assembly has drawn the flak for rejecting power devolution in its on- going constitution amendment. But to lawyers, this should not be seen as a loss for advocates of restructuring. The lawmakers’ initiation of the amendment, they argue, is a step towards restructuring. Eric Ikhilae writes.

The widespread condemnation of the National Assembly’s rejection of the proposal for power devolution to states is, no doubt, an indication that there exists a national consensus that the time to restructure the country is now.

A majority of those who reacted to the National Assembly’s position on the issue, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, believed that the legislators either chose to act against the prevalent mood in the society or were simply at sea on a matter that is germane to the nation’s continued existence.

The condemnation of the Legislature’s position on the need to allow more power to the states, many argued, can only serve as a momentary delay for the actualisation of an idea whose time has come.

This, they contended, is informed by the general acceptance of the clamour for restructuring, an agitation that was once restricted to a section of the country, and which was mainly actuated by the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, believed to have been won by the late M.K.O. Abiola.

Today, the call for restructuring is heard even from unusual quarters. Former military leader Ibrahim Babangida and Abubakar recently added their voices to the argument that there was an urgent need to alter the country’s current structure.

Also, recent happenings have shown that groups, representing various interests in the Southeast, have modified their hitherto hard-line position on secession, to now agree that the best way to alter this unhealthy status quo is through restructuring.

The Southwest has also not relented. It has continued to work on the concept of regional integration, on which pedestal its governors announced, after a meeting in Abeokuta, last week, plans to establish a regional security force.

On its part, the North (which comprises the three geo-political zones, made up of 19 states) has set up a 12-man committee to help aggregate the region’s position on restructuring. Before now, the North had maintained a lukewarm disposition on the call for restructuring.

Rising from a meeting of governors and traditional rulers in the region, last Friday, the northern leaders explained, in a communique, that the committee was expected to come up with “acceptable, tenable and sustainable position on restructuring for the Northern region in consonance with provisions of the 1999 Constitution.”

They said the committee became necessary  because the agitation for restructuring has assumed different meanings to different people.

The committee, with Sokoto State Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal as head, has Nasarawa, Gombe, Benue, Bauchi and Kaduna states’governors as members.

Also listed as members are Emirs of Kano, Zazzau and Gumel; Etsu Nupe and Gbong Gwomg Jos. Deputy Governor of Plateau State, Prof Sonni Tyoden is to serve as the committee’s Secretary.

Is consensus on restructing possible?

These developments, many argued, support the assertion that a national consensus exists on the need for restructuring, a concept whose realisation is only hampered by the lack of agreement on its conceptualisation and definition (meaning).

Observers noted that although the agitation for restructuring is driven by a dream – the creation of an egalitarian nation, driven by justice, equity and fair play (where mundane considerations do not influence critical state choices, particularly in appointments) – there is a problem because of lack of a consensus on how to get there.

They attributed the inability of critical stakeholders and today’s learders to agree on how to realise this dream of a functional egalitarian nation to, mainly, selfishness and lack of trust.

Critics accused those currently milking the cow of the state, benefiting immensely from the status quo and unsure of what a restructured nation holds for them, of being selfish and willing to do all they can to retain the state of affairs.

They noted that the problems of suspicion and lack of trust exist among those who have championed restructuring from inception, and are now unsure of the true motive of the modern day converts, who though, had the opportunities of effecting the necessary changes in the past (by virtue of the positions they held), chose to help sustain this warped federal arrangement.

Observers, however, argued that restructure is an idea, whose time has come. And that, the issue is only about when and how it will happen, not whether.

They advised that a peaceful realisation of a restructured Nigeria could only be achieved when stakeholders agreed on how to assuage the fear of the beneficiaries of the current arrangement, and could promptly discern the motive of the modern day converts, else violent change may occur.

Lawyers’ views

Senior lawyers, including Mahmud Magaji (SAN), Dr. Abdulrahman Quadri and Festus Keyamo, believe that the need for restructuring cannot be ignored in view of the state of affairs in the country.

They said the effort of the National Assembly to amend the Constitution and its rejection of the power devolution recommendation should be seen as a gradual step towards the actual restructuring that the people seek.

Magaji cautioned against seeing the ongoing amendment of the Constitution solely from the National Assembly’s rejection of the power devolution proposal.

He said “There are many amendments that were accepted, which many Nigerians have been yearning for. Examples are the separation of the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation from that of the Minister of Justice, autonomy for local governments, independence for the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), etc.

“We have to start from somewhere. We cannot achieve all the changes we want in one day. We cannot condemn all that have been achieved. I know we will get there. It is good they have started,” Magaji said.

Quadri argued that, from its disposition to critical national issues, the National Assembly has consistently exhibited a constant trend – its disregard for the people and their needs.

He said a National Assembly that feels the pulse of the people, and is not detached from them and their aspirations, ought to know that the issue of restructuring, on which every Nigerian appears to have agreed, should be given due regard.

Quadri added: I don’t think this National Assembly uunderstands what the clamour for restructuring is all about.

“These legislators are only interested in protecting their own interest. For me, this country cannot afford not to restructure. We need restructuring because it is the only way out to take care of agitations for Biafra, the insurgency in the North East, among other problems.

“If we don’t restructure, we are only postponing the evil days. These problems will not only multiply, they will go bigger. The idea of restructuring is to make the centre less attractive for politicians. But they appear to be blind to this point.

“Under the current arrangement, the centre is very delicious. There is a lot of money at the centre. So, the politicians will do anything, including killing fellow human being, to get to the centre. Those calling for restructuring want to discourage this.

“But to me, that the National Assembly even deem it fit to concede that the Constitution needs to be altered, is a step in the right direction. It is a step toward the remaking of the country that we will all be proud of.

“I don’t think we should condemn all they have done. We should not throw away the baby with the bath water. Instead, we should look ahead and how to fine-tune the process until we get what we want,” Quadri said.

Keyamo argued that the National Assembly’s amendment of the Constitution was not a replacement for restructuring. He contended that restructuring was more fundamental than amendment to the Constitution.

He said: “Of course, restructuring will lead to a new Constitution. There is no doubt about that. But, it is not this kind of haphazard amendment they are doing. I am not condemning the amendment.

“As a stop gap measure, it is commendable that the Legislature has risen to the occasion to amend the constitution. Restructuring will take more time, and more negotiation, more deliberation and more inclusive than the National Assembly,” Keyamo said.

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Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN) has urged the Criminal Justice Reform Committee of the association to reform the Criminal Code (CC) and Penal Code (PC) and make archaic provisions relevant to contemporary Nigeria.

Mahmoud spoke at the weekend during the inauguration of the committee in Abuja.

He tasked the Committee to ensure that “law enforcement policies and practices employed to investigate, charge and prosecute individuals are appropriate and accurate and to organise conferences, colloquium, workshops and roundtable that will ensure an effective system of criminal justice administration by making policy makers evaluate and propose recommendations for a better criminal justice system in Nigeria”.

The mandate of the committee also include: “To study and come out with recommendations on the Administration of Criminal Justice Bill worked upon by the panel on Implementation of Justice Reform set up by the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice.

“To redefine the roles of Security and Anti-Crime Agencies in the attainment of criminal Justice; To unify, harmonise and modernise the criminal code and the penal code, and keep them relevant to the needs of our contemporary society.

“To identify obstacles in the apprehension and prompt prosecution of offenders and to formulate practice direction for prosecutors, a total revamp of criminal trials with a view to enhancing the speedy dispensation of justice.

Mahmoud said the committee would also conduct audit of certain laws to identify those that should reform.

He added: “So, law reform is a key part of this committee’s assignment. This committee is expected to work in consultation with government institutions and civil society organisations.”

The committee has Chief Arthur Obi-Okafor (SAN) as chairman and Mr. Reuben James as alternate chairman. Its members are Aisha Ado Abdullahi, John Duru, Alfred Akinjo, Yakubu Orlando, Geraldine Wey, Tope Ogunrinde, Joy Gbanigo and Foluke Abaniwonda.

Others are Gerty Nkechi Iloegbunam, Damien Nosike, E D Ukoh, Oge Eyindah, former chairman of Calabar branch of the NBA  Nkoyo Amah, Publicity Secretary of the Eastern Bar Forum ( EBF)  George Fortune,  Anthonia Eke, Philomena Omorodion, Samuel Etuk and immediate past Publicity Secretary NBA Lagos Mr. Emeka Nwadioke

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The Defendant or his legal Practitioner has the right to reply to any new point of law raised by the Prosecutor, after which, the Court shall give its ruling.

  (3). In considering the application of the Defendant under Section 303, the Court shall, in the exercise of its discretion, have regard to whether:

 (a). An essential element of the offence has been proved;

 (b). There is evidence linking the Defendant with the commission of the offence with which he is charged.

  (c). The evidence so far led is such that no reasonable Court  or Tribunal would convict on it; and

 (d).  Any other ground on which the Court may find that a  prima facie case has not been made out against the Defendant for him to be called upon to answer”.

Section 357 on its part provides thus: –

”Where at the close of the evidence in support of the charge, it  appears to the Court that a case is not made out against the Defendant sufficiently to require him to make a defence, the Court  shall, as to that particular charge, discharge him being guided by the provision of Section 302 of this Act”.

From the foregoing provisions of the ACJA 2015, it is apparent that the Court is essentially to be guided in determining whether or not to uphold the Defendant’s No Case to Answer Submission, by the guidelines set out under Section 303(3) of the ACJA.  In other words, the Court is to determined whether or not by the evidence adduced by the Prosecution witnesses, it can in the exercise of its discretion hold that the evidence discloses or has proved: –

(1).   an essential element of the offence.

(2).  link between the Defendant and the commission of the offence.

(3).  the evidence is such that so reasonable Court or tribunal would convict on it; and

(4).  any other ground upon which it may find that a prima facie case has  been made out against the Defendant for him to be called upon to   answer.

Before the coming into effect of the ACJA in 2015, which has now codified the above guidelines, the Courts have in a plethora of cases held that a No Case to Answer submission shall be upheld where:-

(1)  The Prosecution has failed to prove an essential element of the alleged offence

(2).    The evidence adduced has been so discredited as a result of Cross  Examination or

(3).  The evidence is so manifestly unreliable that no reasonable tribunal will convict on it.

In IBEZIAKO V COMMISSIONER OF POLICE (1963) 1 ALL NLR P. 61, the Court held that these conditions are not cumulative.  Once any one of these conditions exists, the Court on its volition or the defence can validly make a No Case to Answer Ruling or Submission of No Case to Answer.  In AJANI & ORS V R (1936) WACA P.3 the Court held that the submissions of No Case to Answer may be made in respect of one Count of offence of the entire Charge Sheet and where the Charge contain more than one Count of offence, the Court must make a finding on each Count of Offence separately.  Conclusively, the Supreme Court in DABOH V STATE (1977) 5 SC P. 197 held that at the time submission of no case to answer is made, what the Court considers is whether the Prosecution has made out a prima facie case to which the accused would be called to answer.  See also: AKPAN V STATE (1986) 5 SC P. 186.

These said, what then does the phrase “prima facie case” mean?  The authors of the Black Law Dictionary (8th Edition), at page 1228 defines it as:

”The establishment of a legally required rebuttable presumption.  A party’s production of enough evidence to allow the fact trier to infer     the fact at issue and rule in the party’s favour”.

In ABACHA V STATE (2002) 7 SCNJ P1, the Supreme Court explained it thus: – ”The evidence discloses a prima facie case when it is such that if   uncontradicted and if believed it will to be sufficient to prove the case against the accused”.

In ONAGORUWA V THE STATE (1993) 7 NWLR (PT. 303) P. 49 the Court of Appeal explained it in these words:-  ”A prima facie case is a case where the Prosecution has presented   sufficient evidence to render reasonable a conclusion on the evidence that the accused is convictable, in the absence of contrary evidence”.

 Now under Section 135 of the Evidence Act 2011, it is provided that if the commission of crime by a party to any proceeding is directly in issue in any proceeding, it must be proved beyond reasonable doubt.  By Section 135(2), the burden of proving that any person has been guilty of a crime or wrongful action is on the person who asserts ie the Prosecution.

In a submission of No Case to Answer however, though the burden of proof lies on the Prosecution which asserts the commission of the offence by the Defendant, the burden shall be deemed discharged if the Prosecution by its evidence establishes a prima facie case against the Defendant with regard to the Court of the Charge.  In other words, the Prosecution is not required at this stage to prove the commission of the offence beyond reasonable doubt.  An evidene by it which prima facie links the Defendant with the commission of the offence will suffice for the Defendant to be called upon to put his defence with regard to that Count of the Charge.  See: DABOH V STATE supra.  Section 303(3)(a) to (d) of ACJA.  The Proseuction must however establish each ingredient of the offence vide prima facie evidence against the Defendant failing which the Defendant’s No Case to Answer will be upheld.  The Court of Appeal made this point in RASAKI V THE STATE (2011) 16 NWLR (PT. 1273) P. 281 when it held thus: –

”Accordingly, where the evidence led by the Prosecution fails to establish a single element…the Prosecution would have failed in its  duty to prove the offence charged and the accused would be entitled   to an acquittal”.

Having set out the basic legal frame work guiding No Case to Answer submission, the Court now proceeds to consider each Count of the Information in relation to the evidence adduced by the Prosecution witnesses to determine whether or not the evidence discloses a prima facie case against the relevant Defendant.  Put in another way, the Court proceeds to determine whether the evidence adduced by the Prosecution witnesses link(s) the relevant Defendant with the offence charged.

In Count 1 of the information, the three Defendants are charged as follows:

”Adeniyi Francis Adetokunbo Ademola Adult “M”, Olabowale   Toluwatope Ademola “F” both of on 32 Samuel Ogbemudia Crescent,  Zone E, Apo Abuja and Joe Odey Agi “M” Principal Partner, Joe Agi & Associates of 1, Villa Street, Minister’s Hill, Maitama Abuja,  between 11th and 26th March 2015 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of  this Honourable Court conspired to influence Adeniyi Francis Ademola in the course of his official function as a Judge of the       Federal High Court with a sum of  N30, 000, 000.00 and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 97 of the Penal Code Law”.

By these, the three Defendants are charged with Conspiracy to influence the 1st Defendant in his official functions as a Judge of Federal High Court with N30million and by so doing committed an offence contrary to Section 97 of the Penal Code Law. Section 97 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532 Laws of the Federal Capital Territory (“Laws of FCT”) provides thus: –

”97(1). Whoever is a party to a Criminal Conspiracy to commit an   offence punishable with death or with imprisonment shall where no express provision is made in this Penal Code for the  punishment of such conspiracy, be punished in the same   manner as if he had abetted that offence.

(2).  Whoever is a party to a Criminal Conspiracy other than a  criminal Conspiracy to commit an offence punishable as  aforesaid shall be punished with imprisonment for a term not  exceeding six months or with fine or with both”.

By the above provision, it is evident Section 97 of the Penal Code on which Count 1 of the Charge is predicated merely provides for punishment for the offence of Conspiracy.  It has not made provision for substantive offence of Conspiracy.  The learned 2nd Defendant’s Counsel made submissions in this regard.  He urged the Court that the implication of hinging that Count of Information on Section 97 of the Penal Code is that there is no charge disclosed in that Count and hence there is nothing for the 2nd Defendant to answer.  The Prosecution in its response (at page 6 paragraphs 2.04 of its Response to 2nd Defendant’s No Case to Answer submission) conceded that it “proceeded to charge the Defendants in this case for Conspiracy to influence the course of justice under Section 97 of the Penal Code because there is no express provision under the Penal Code for that genre of Conspiracy, Conspiracy to influence the course of justice.  Thus while Section 182 provides for the substantive offence of “influencing the course of justice”  there is no specific provision for Conspiracy to influence the course of justice hence the reliance on the omnibus provision in Section 97″.

In his Reply on points of law, the learned 2nd Defendants Counsel referring to the above admission by the prosecution, urged the Court that in the circumstances the complainant lacks the vires to charge a Defendant for an offence that is not tied to any written law. That doing so contravenes the provision of Section 36(8) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria and decision of the Court in AOKO V FAGBEMI (1961) 1 ALL NLR P.400 and RODA V FRN (2015) 10 NWLR (PT. 1468) P. 427.  He contended that the issue goes to the competence of the charge and by the provision of Section 396(2) of ACJA.  The 2nd Defendant having taken a plea to the charge has not lost the right to raise an objection or contend she has been misled by the content of the charge contrary to the submissions of the Prosecution Counsel which postulates she cannot object to the charge by virtue of Sections 220 and 221 of ACJA.  The 2nd Defendant’s Counsel contended this is because the earliest opportunity available to the 2nd Defendant to contend she has been misled by this fundamental defect is at this stage of No Case Submission”.

I have given due consideration to the foregoing contentions.  As aforesaid, Count 1 of the Charge is predicated on Section 97 of the Penal Code which has not provided for the substantive offence of Conspiracy to commit a Criminal Offence but rather the punishment for it.  Section 36(8) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria provides thus: –

”No person shall be held to be guilty of a criminal offence on account        of any act or omission that did not, at the time it took place constitute          such an offence, and no penalty shall be imposed for any criminal    offence heavier than the penalty in force at the time the offence was committed”.

By the clear words of Section 36(8) of the Constitution no person shall be held guilty of a criminal offence on account of any act or omission that did not at the time it took place constitute such an offence.  The case of AOKO V FAGBEMI supra relied upon by the learned 2nd Defendant’s Counsel held this much.

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A defence counsel, Kate Onyema, in the alleged fraud case against two Britons explains why the charges failed

Thursday July 13, a Lagos High Court presided over by Justice Oluwatoyin Ipaye struck out fraud charges brought against two British nationals, Deepak Khilnani and Sushil Chandra, by the Attorney- General of Lagos State. The decision of the court was sequel to a Notice of Discontinuance filed by the state Director of  Public Prosecutions, Mrs. Titi Shitta-Bey, praying the court to strike out the case in the light of a review of the case by the State Attorney-General, Mr. Kazeem Adeniji.

It had been alleged by the prosecution team led by the then Director of Public Prosecution, Mrs. Idowu Alakija (now a serving judge of Lagos High Court) in a four-count criminal charge  that Deepak Khilnani and Sushil Chandra sometime in 2008 defrauded a Nigerian company, Green Fuels Limited of about $8.8million. However there was apparently no evidence to support such an allegation.

When the case started in 2015, the media was awash with sensational headlines of how these British nationals allegedly defrauded their Nigerian business partners. The truth was that the allegations against the defendants were baseless and unsustainable before any law court in the country. Although the presiding judge during the early stages of the trial dismissed a motion seeking to quash the charges, the state prosecution team still could not make meaningful progress in the matter because there was simply no evidence to prove the allegation against the defendants.  This was evident at the proceedings of October 22, 2015 when the then DPP urged the court to adjourn the proceedings indefinitely to enable her amend the Proof of Evidence. The fact was simply that a non-existenctcriminal implication was being imported into a purely business disagreement between Deepak Khilnani and his Nigerian partners.

The background to this civil dispute is that Ola Rosiji and Anil Ahluwalia, who had formed a company called Green Fuels Limited, approached Mr. Khilnani’s company in 2009 to join them in building a CNG gas distribution company. Clearly this is a very technical business and Mr. Khilnani’s company held experience and expertise in this area.

After protracted negotiations and discussions Green Fuels entered into a contract with Mr. Khilnani’s Company Gentec Energy, a UK PLC company to build the plant, train their personnel and provide technical management support to the business. The contract was signed by Mr. Anil Ahluwalia on behalf of Green Fuels Limited and the funds for the project were initially provided by Ola Rosiji’s company, Nigerian Distillers Ltd.

Mr. Khilnani was well known to Mr. Ahluwalia since 1997 and in fact Mr. Anil Ahluwalia’s son Arjun worked for Gentec Energy in the UK. Both Mr. Ola Rosiji and Mr. Anil Ahluwalia visited Mr. Khilnani at Gentec offices in the UK a number of times and at all times knew of his involvement in the Gentec UK business.

Gentec executed its contract with Green Fuels in full and created a very successful business in Green Fuels. Furthermore, Mr. Khilnani facilitated an inward investment into Green Fuels which enabled it to grow its business to become the leading company in its field in Nigeria. The overseas investor Industrial Energy Africa Limited in fact invested and took a 75 per cent investment in the company providing the necessary capital to establish and grow the business. After this investment Ola Rosiji’s shares were a mere 25 per cent with 75 per cent being held by Industrial Energy. Mr. Ahluwalia relinquished his shareholding in the company. This investment and the subsequent changes in the shareholding were approved by the board of Green Fuels and duly filed at the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).

Whilst these matters were approved by the board, Mr. Ola Rosiji and Mr. Ahluwalia were both present and participated in implementing these decisions at the board. Green Fuels continued to operate successfully with high profit turn over until 2012 when a management dispute led to a court action instituted by Ola Rosiji and Anil Ahluwalia before a Federal High Court challenging the shareholding structure of the company. Rosiji and Ahluwalia in the suit number FHC/L/IKJ/CS/269/2012 are asking the court for rectification of the Register of Shareholding of GFL in such a way that would give Rosiji, 87 per cent shareholdings in Green Fuels. The matter is presently at the Court of Appeal, Lagos.

In all of this time, Industrial Energy, the majority shareholder had been excluded from participation of the company.

In 2014, Green Fuels under the chairmanship of Rosiji again filed another suit before the Federal High Court, Lagos claiming refund from Gentec for an alleged over invoicing of equipment supplied in pursuant of the agreement of 2008. Green Fuels also asked for damages against Deepak for breach of his fiduciary duty as a director in GFL. The matter is also still pending before the Federal High Court, Lagos.

While these two matters were pending in court, a petition by Ola Rosiji was forwarded to the Nigeria Police, Zone 2 Lagos to investigate the allegation of over invoicing and forgery against Deepak in respect of the supply of equipment by Gentec Energy Plc.  At the commencement of the investigation, Deepak was interrogated by the police in relation to his involvement in the transactions that culminated to the complaint.

The police team led by ACP Onaade S. Awoniyi (now a DCP) began its investigation in 2014 and after months of examining the company’s records of Green Fuels, invited parties in the matter for arbitration. An audit firm, KPMG was also engaged by the Police to look into the company’s activities. Deepak did not participate in this audit exercise because of a pending ruling before the Federal High Court, Lagos in Suit No. FHC/L/IKJ/269/12 whereupon the application of Green Fuels and on the objection of Deepak and Industrial Energy solely against the nomination of KPMG on the ground of an earlier biased briefing given to it by a personal staff of Rosiji. The court had heard arguments and adjourned the matter for ruling to let it determine the appropriate firm to conduct the forensic audit on Green Fuels. Indeed, in deference to the pending matter and the ruling before the court, Delloitte had turned down the request by the police to conduct the audit exercise.

It is now clear that the audit exercise was flawed from the start and in fact the report issued by KPMG confirms that the only information they relied on to generate the report was provided by Ola Rosiji and his associates.

At some point during the police investigation, Deepak’s lawyers sensing foul play, challenged the move by the police to initiate an arbitration process which was outrightly one-sided and skewed in favour of Ola Rosiji, who proposed some egregious conditions as the basis for agreeing to a truce with Deepak. Consequently, an application to enforce Deepak’s fundamental human right was initiated on behalf of Deepak at the High Court of Lagos State. Irked by the pre-emptive action of Deepak’s lawyers, the police hurriedly filed a charge before the Magistrates’ Court against Deepak and Sushil Chandra.  However the Magistrate, Mrs. I. O. Omotosho after seeing the information had no option but to adjourn the matter since there was no proof that the defendants and their lawyers had been duly served with the charges.

While this was on, Deepak’s lawyers, Chris O. Okunowo & Co through a petition drew the attention of the then Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to the perceived bias of his officers at Zone 2, Lagos. This prompted the IGP to set up another investigative team headed by DSP Yusufu Data and under the supervision of the Commissioner of Police in charge of the Special Fraud Unit (SFU), Milverton, Lagos.

An intrigue was introduced into the scene at this point when lawyers representing Ola Rosiji petitioned the then Lagos Attorney-General, Mr. Ade Ipaye, asking that the matter before the magistrate court be taken over by the state Directorate of Public Prosecution. Notwithstanding the ongoing investigation by the new team appointed by the IGP, the Lagos State Government took over the matter and subsequently filed charges against  Deepak and Sushil before Justice Oluwatoyin Ipaye.

After a detailed investigation the IGP’s investigation team issued a report dated May 4, 2015, asking parties involved in the case, that is Deepak, Ola Rosiji and Green Fuels Limited officials, to pursue their civil matter which is already at the Federal High Court, Lagos. An excerpt from the letter reads:  ”I refer to the Deputy Inspector-General of Police Intelligence and Investigation Department letter No. CR:  3000/FHQ/ ABJ/VOL. 182/ 137 dated 21st April, 2015. He directed this office to inform all the parties to pursue their civil matter that is already in the Federal High Court of Lagos.”

With this letter, Deepak’s legal team wrote to the Attorney-General asking for the review of his trial insisting that the issues which erroneously led to the charges being filed in the first place were contractual disputes which parties have already taken to the appropriate civil court for resolution. They also pointed out to the DPP that the allegation of filing wrong statement at the CAC lacked any basis on the ground that the company secretary of Green Fuels had in a statement to the police admitted to filing and making all entries on behalf of the company at the CAC. The then DPP however remained adamant and continued with the shoddy prosecution which even attracted some uncomplimentary remarks from the trial judge.

At some point in the trial, the court was erroneously misled into issuing a bench warrant against Deepak and his co-defendant despite the fact that their counsel on record, Kayode Ajekigbe was not served with the Hearing Notice of the proceedings where the warrant was purportedly issued. Although there was a pending application by Deepak’s lawyers challenging the warrant on the grounds that the requisite hearing notices were not served on them, some persons with vested interest continued to sponsor media reports which portrayed the defendants as fugitives of the law. Even when the motion challenging the warrant was still pending, newspaper advertisements were used to publish the warrants by persons who were not parties to the case but with less than noble intentions.

Mr. Khilnani has been a frequent visitor to Nigeria throughout this period and has never shied away from his legal obligations and has never at any time been a fugitive.  In fact throughout these years his companies have continued to bring substantial overseas investments into the Nigerian power sector, an area of critical importance to the development of Nigeria. Deepak is on record as stating that he has full faith in the Nigerian economy and her judicial system and will abide by the decision of its court which he has submitted himself to without reservation.

Knowing that the trial was a pure waste of the precious time of the court and the resources of the state, formal requests were forwarded to the new Attorney-General for a proper review of the case and the basis upon which the charges were predicated. The state on June 29, 2017 filed a Notice of Intention to discontinue the case. But those adamant on persecuting the innocent investors continued their intrigues by mobilizing over 23 junior lawyers and rented crowds to protest and challenge the statutory powers of the Attorney-General to institute and withdraw criminal proceedings. Surprised by the request of the lawyers, the presiding judge simply asked them to look elsewhere as they cannot compel her to review the lawful powers of the Attorney-General to initiate and withdraw criminal matters before any court in Lagos State. She promptly struck out the matter and vacated the warrants initially issued against Deepak and Shushil.

It is pertinent to note that several attempts were made through newspaper publications to portray Deepak as a fraudulent foreign investor. As a Chief Executive Officer of a leading company with interest in the Nigeria energy sector, Deepak could not have made so much significant impacts on the Nigerian economy for so many years through fraudulent means. The records of the impacts of his companies are there for everyone to see.

Portraying Deepak as a fraudster in Nigeria is, therefore, a cheap blackmail and an act undeserving of the huge investments and contributions he and his companies have made in this country.

That the Attorney-General of Lagos State took a firm position against using the instrumentality of the government through Ministry of Justice, Lagos to settle private causes and ensuring that persecution is not perpetrated in the name of prosecution, is an act that should be publicly applauded by all men of goodwill.  This, I believe, is another most welcoming development in the administration of justice in the state.

• Onyema is a legal practitioner based in Lagos.

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Second Vice-President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and former chairman of NBA Ikeja branch Mr. Monday Ubani has refuted reports that he will contest for the Presidency of the Bar at the end of the tenure of the Mahmoud Mogaji (SAN) inext year.

Ubani said it would be ambitious for him to do so as he is serving the Bar as Second Vice-President.

“I will not contest in 2018 because time is of essence. It will not make sense for me to just go into the contest immediately. That will look as if I have no other thing to do than the NBA.

“After my tenure, I will face my practice and let God determine my next political move at the Bar at that appropriate time.

“I will always support a candidate I believe in his vision, who will move the Bar forward and improve the welfare of Nigerian lawyers,” Ubani added.

The post Why I won’t contest NBA presidency in 2018, by Ubani appeared first on The Nation Nigeria.

Indigent residents of Lagos State have been advised to take advantage of the free legal service offered by the government for resolution of their problems.

Director, Public Advice Centre (PAC), Mrs Tola Akinyemi, gave the advice during a roadshow at Ikeja, Agege and Alimosho local government areas to sensitise Lagosians to the services of the centre.

She disclosed that the agency handles an average of 8,000 complaints monthly which are referred to different agencies of the government for resolution.

She cited the case of a lady who experienced acid bath from her boy friend for breaking their relationship.

She said the centre got the police to investigate the matter and that the suspect would soon face trial at the Lagos High Court.

Mrs Akinyemi stressed that PAC is the first port of call to the state government for those seeking solutions to problems confronting them, including domestic and sexual problems.

He said the state is ready to give them assistance on any issue brought to the attention of the centre.

The PAC chief, who said the roadshow was intended to sensitise the people to ensure equality of justice to all, also disclosed that the centre has a wide range of services to offer.

She said: “PAC has jurisdiction on all matters. When you bring your  complaints, we advise and refer you to the agency that would better handle your complaints.’’

She enjoined couples being violated by their spouse to bring their complaints to the centre for resolution.

She listed other areas where the centre could be of assistance to the people to include family and inheritance, social exclusion and discrimination, works compensation, land matters, rights violation, social welfare and child rights among others.

Vice chairmen, Ikeja and Agege council areas, Messrs Yomi Mayungbe and Abiodun Ogunji, praised the state government for the initiative which they said would make Lagos to work well.

Since they are new in office, Mayungbe expressed conviction that the activities of the centre would assist them  to succeed in office.

Ogunji on the other hand advised members of the Lagos communities to take advantage of the initiatives offered by the centre to improve their well being.

The post Lagos assures indigent residents of free legal service appeared first on The Nation Nigeria.

ON September 18, when a former Attorney-General of Ogun State and younger brother of Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, Akinlolu Osinbajo, is conferred with the prestigious title of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), it will be just and sweet reward for a journey that began well over 30 years ago.

Having taken to heart the Biblical injunction, “no man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God,” Akin has remained steadfast in active legal practice since October 1986 when he was called to the bar.

A highly experienced litigator and commercial law practitioner, chartered arbitrator and notary public of Nigeria,  the SAN-designate is a thorough professional who learnt from some of the best around to become the authority he is today.

The Department of Civil Litigation, Kwara State Ministry of Justice was where the alumnus of Holborn College, London and the University College London first chose to hone his skills after he was called to the bar in 1986.  Later that year, he joined the chambers of eminent lawyer, Wole Olanipekun (SAN) as Associate Counsel and was there until 1987 before becoming Associate Counsel at Abdulai, Taiwo & Co. Solicitors where he is currently Joint Managing Partner. The firm is internationally acknowledged for its expertise on transactional matters relating to Nigeria.

While making significant strides in his career, Akin, an enabler like his older brother, was also selflessly giving himself to the community and the church of God. He was appointed Registrar and General Legal Adviser, Church of Nigeria Anglican Communion, Remo Diocese in April 1996 and Legal Adviser and Member Board of Trustees, The Fountain of Life Church, Nigeria and Overseas in June 2001. This was after being appointed a notary public of Nigeria in July 2000.

In 2003, the Osinbajo brothers made history by becoming the first siblings appointed Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justices in different states simultaneously. While Yemi was quietly but efficiently re-energising and remodelling the Lagos State judiciary, Akin was doing same in Ogun, their home state. His principal, Governor Gbenga Daniel, was sufficiently impressed by his transformational abilities and diligence that he retained him throughout his eight-year tenure. Commendably, Akin acquitted himself well and extensively reformed the administration of justice in the state.

Some of his interventions and reforms in Ogun include provision of meaningful access to justice for indigent citizens of the state through the establishment of the Citizens Rights Department  that gave free legal advice and representation in court to poor people; reorganisation of the Ministry of Justice/ Chambers of the Attorney-General with over 80 law officers to function like a private law firm; the employment of over 40 lawyers; establishment of the Office of the Public Defender in 2004  and Alternative Dispute Resolution Centres (Citizens Mediation Centres).

Akin also facilitated the creation of more judicial divisions of the High Court and Magisterial districts; a comprehensive revision and publishing in 2006 of all the Laws of Ogun State in six volumes; establishment of the Criminal Justice Fund to provide funds to witnesses in criminal trials to enable them attend court and for process servers to serve witness summons. Under his watch as leader of the judiciary, the welfare of judges and other legal officers was significantly boosted such that judges were given brand new vehicles on two occasions while houses were later provided for them. That’s not all. Akin also introduced and facilitated the regular payment of research/journal and other enhanced allowances to judges, magistrates and law officers in the state.

Highly cerebral, Akin has not contented himself with practice alone. He has also done his bit in expanding the frontiers of the study of law in Nigeria with contributions to important law publications. He is a contributor to the Nigeria country report in the international compendium titled: ‘International Corporate Law’ published by Aspatore Books and also contributed to ‘Legal Aspects of Doing Business in Africa’ published by Yorkhill Law Publishers. The cleric and father of three children has an essay in ‘Perspectives on Contemporary Legal Issues: Essays in Honour of Hon. Justice Dolapo F. Akinsanya’ while he is co-author of ‘Establishing a Business in Nigeria’; ‘Registration and Regulation of Foreign Investments and Enterprises’; ‘Privatisation of Government Enterprises by Tender and Public Offer’ ‘Registration of Trademarks, Patents and Technology Transfer Licences ‘all published by Abdulai, Taiwo & Co.

A member of professional associations including the NBA, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators UK, International Bar Association, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators of Nigeria, Equipment Leasing Association of Nigeria and the Diocesan Board, Cathedral Greater Chapter and Synod of Church of Nigeria Anglican Communion (Remo Diocese), Akin, has not shirked his responsibilities to the NBA. He served as a member of the body’s Special Task Force on Multidisciplinary Practices and Incursions into the Legal Profession and has been a member of Body of Benchers Nigeria since April 2017.

Fittingly, Akin’s interventions in the praxis and theory of law as well as material assistances have not gone unnoticed by both the NBA and the Bench. He has consequently received several commendations amongst which are the Body of Benchers for facilitating the donation of N1million towards the building of the Body of Benchers Hall and the Court of Appeal, Ibadan for donating several sets of Revised Laws of the Federation (Volumes 1-6) for the Judges’ libraries.

Given his immense contributions therefore, it came as no surprise that the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC), the conferring authority found Akin worthy to be admitted into the select rank of senior Nigerian lawyers. The 57-year-old, indeed, is a worthy addition to the 481 silks so far appointed in Nigeria since 1975.

• Chief Ogummupe is a veteran journalist, economist and literary critic.

The post As Akin Osinbajo takes silk appeared first on The Nation Nigeria.

Olasunkanmi Falade, a 2009 law graduate of the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), is the chairman of the Young Lawyers’ Forum, Ikorodu Branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA). In this interview with ADEBISI ONANUGA, he shares his experience in legal practice.

Background

I am from Kwara State, though  born and brought up in Lagos State.

Year of call to bar

I was called to the Bar as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 2010.

Law Practice

I practise in the law firm of Dotun Adetunji & Co. in Ikorodu, Lagos State, which I joined before I was called to Bar in 2009, and I am still with the firm.

Practice experience

Law practice has been so challenging and interesting. Challenging because it requires a practitioner’s all; interesting because each time a puzzle is solved one becomes satisfied and dares for more. Unfortunately, abject poverty is the order of the day among many young lawyers as many don’t even have a place to practise let alone being paid the usual peanuts having spent five years pursuing LLB and a mandatory one year at the Law School. As a matter of truth, very few of us are privileged to work in a firm that makes us feel like a practitioner and gives us the leverage to still do private practice (pp) knowing full well that same is very much needed in order for a man to truly and fully prove his worth at home.

First day in court

Well, my first appearance/day in court was like heaven coming into the earth; though elated, I was afraid because of the fear of unknown.

Name of trial Judge

I appeared before Hon. Justice Olayinka sitting at Ikorodu then.

Nature of cause before the judge

The matter bothers on trespass to land and despite the tutorials given to me by my learned principal to move an application for extension of time, claimant’s counsel actually didn’t object to it. He only asked for cost and I became worried on the response to profer as same was never contemplated. The court and law school attachment experiences i had acquired later came to mind. The court ruled in my favour and I returned to the office with great excitement.

Challenges

My challenge as a practitioner bothers on the administration and dispensation of justice in Nigeria. It is imperative to say that the delay in our justice system has affected so many things in the country and how do we manage the situation except the court dispenses justice within the shortest possible time.

View of Specialisation

Specialisation isn’t a bad idea as it encourages the practitioner to be more focused particularly on that area of his specialisation. Please note that as a practitioner, we are presumed to know all because we are learned but why I support specialisation is because it deepen one’s knowledge on those areas of specialisation and become master of it.

Relationship with senior colleague

My relationship with senior colleagues has been awesome as respect begets respect and what one does to seniors will be what one would get in return.

Relationship with p rincipal

Truly, my relationship with my principal is very cordial. I call him oga (boss) and I see him as my best friend when it comes to learning. Since I have been with him, he has been so understanding, supportive in all forms and accommodating. He gave me opportunities that he never got when he was under a principal.

Complaints of poor remuneration for young lawyers

For years, the situation has been like that, like some people would say “no senior lawyer can indeed pay any junior lawyer his/her worth” but they usually give token as an appreciation of what the junior has done for the month. The truth is if we set a scale for payment of young lawyers remuneration, majority would have no law firm to develop themselves but my take on this matter is that since majority of the senior lawyers fondly say that they cannot pay a junior his/her worth for job done in a month, seniors should at least apart from the monthly stipends allow the junior to do private practice and the juniors in the course of doing that are encouraged never to let conflict of interest be shown let alone occur to the principal.

Sanitisation of the judiciary

It is not out of place to say that there are bad eggs everywhere and they all need to be thrown out for our country to be able to move forward than ever before therefore, sanitising the judicial system in whatever form is imperative.

How best to sanitise judiciary

The judges do have a code of conduct, when anyone of them go contrary to any of the stipulations as contained in the code of conduct by reason of complaint made by anyone with an overwhelming evidence(s), appropriate sanctions as prescribed should be meted out to them without unnecessary delay whatsoever.

Aspiration for next decade

With the way the country is, nothing is certain or predictable but God helping me, in the next ten years, I hope to be in a satisfactory position with a good state of mind.

Possibility of his children taking after him

It is important to say that  it was passion for law as a course that made me to read law and as matter of truth, I had hoped that immediately I was called to bar, money would start coming in but I believe slow and steady wins the race. If any of my children desires to become a lawyer, I will not hesitate to encourag/motivate him or her.

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