Eric Ikhilae, Abuja
Law experts have suggested ways more Nigerians, particularly the indigent, can access justice with little or no financial implication to them and without the delay and other encumbrances associated with the regular court system.
Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on Social Investment Programme (SIP), Mrs. Maryam Uwais; Law Professor Yemi Akinseye-George (SAN); ex-Council Chairman of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Prof. Chidi Odinkalu and others said access to justice for the poor would be enhanced where efforts are directed at promoting and standardising para-legal services in the country.
The Director-General of Legal Aid Council (LAC), Aliyu Abubakar, his counterparts in the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS), Prof Muhammad Ladan and Nigerian Law School (NLS), Prof Isa Chiroma and Rule of Law Advisor, Office of the Vice-President, Hajia Fatima Waziri-Azi, noted that the current challenges to access to justice would be reduced where relevant provisions of the amended Legal Aid Act (2011) and the Constitution are faithfully implemented.
Uwais, Akinseye-Geoge, Odinkalu, Abubakar, Ladan, Chiroma and Waziri-Azi spoke on Tuesday in Abuja at an event, tagged: “National Paralegal Summit,” with the theme: Justice For All, organised by the LAC and the Isa Wali Empowerment Initiative (IWEI).
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Uwais, the founder of the IWEI, said the summit was intended to mobilise relevant stakeholders for the promotion of paralegal services with the goal of enhancing access to justice for the indigent and “address other challenges that our citizens face daily”.
Akinseye-George, who stood in for the Chairman of the Network of University Legal Aid Institutions (NULAI), Prof Ernest Ojukwu (SAN), lauded the many innovative provisions in the Legal Aid Act 2011.
He said they have not only taken legal aid in Nigeria beyond the traditional delivery but had introduced the concept of empowerment.
Odinkalu, who gave the keynote address, stressed the importance of promoting paralegal services in the country in view of the inadequacy of trained lawyers and the large number of the indigent.
“Today, Nigeria has tens of thousands more lawyers than it had in 1976, but the legal needs have also grown exponentially. These needs are multi-faceted in many areas, such as access to land and public goods; access to government and information; the human rights of the vulnerable and excluded; access to legal literacy; legal empowerment and civic rights, and lots more,” he said.
Abubakar noted the inadequacy of lawyers and the cost of accessing legal services.
He said: “The way forward in enhancing access to justice for all citizens is the institutionalisation of the paralegal services in Nigeria to complement and assist the legal professionals in the discharge of services in the justice sector.”
Ladan advocated the broadening of the opportunity available to the poor by providing financial assistance to pursue cases in court, as provided for in Section 46(4)(b)(1) and (2) of the Constitution.
Chiroma said LAC would get the support of his institution to effectively discharge its responsibilities.
He said the NLS, which currently trains about 6,000 law graduates annually, will, from next year, “send substantial number of students to LAC and other related institutions as against the current practice where students are only sent to law firms for practical training”.
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