Six months after the Court of Appeal voided the compulsory retirement of Justice Gladys Olotu of the Federal High Court, the National Judicial Council (NJC)’s failure to file its Notice of Appeal due to bureaucracy among others, until recently, has delayed a final justice by the Supreme Court, writes Lagos-based lawyer Babajide Olufemi

The Supreme Court will in the coming days consider whether the Latin maxims ‘Iustitiam morari iniustitia est’ meaning ‘to delay justice is injustice’, and ‘Qui iustitiam moratur iustitiam negat’ meaning ‘he who delays justice denies justice’ are relevant to the current state of proceedings in Suit No.: SC/W/715/2022, APPEAL NO.: CA/A/385/2018 SUIT NO.: NICN/ABJ/380/2016 between the National Judicial Council, the Honourable Justice Gladys K. Olotu, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Attorney- General of the Federation, Chief Justice of Nigeria and the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court.

The matter before the court is the result of the NJC’s bid to challenge the Court of Appeal’s decision invalidating Justice Olotu’s compulsory retirement from the Federal High Court, Abuja.

Justice Olotu was appointed a Judge of Federal High Court on July 28, 2000 and resumed the Bench on September 1, 2000. The NJC recommended her compulsory retirement on February 27, 2014, which the then President Goodluck Jonathan approved.

The NJC’s compulsory retirement hammer also fell on Justice U. A Inyang of the FCT High Court, also in Abuja.

Aggrieved at the decison, Justice Olotu sued the NJC at the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) in Abuja. The NICN, on September 20, 2017 upheld the NJC’s decision.

Dissatisfied, the Judge approached the Court of Appeal in Abuja for redress and won.

The Appellate Court on February 25, 2022 voided Justice Olotu’s compulsory retirement.

In a unanimous judgment, a three-member panel of the court, led by Justice Peter Ige, held among others, that the process leading to Justice Olotu’s removal was flawed.

Justice Danlami Senchi, who read the lead judgment, held that since the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC) did not recommend that Justice Olotu be compulsorily retired, the recommendation made by the NJC to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in that regard was unlawful, null and void.

Justice Senchi noted that since the FJSC is constitutionally empowered to recommend lawyers for appointment as Federal Judges, its recommendation is also necessary before such a judge could be relieved of his or her appointment.

He proceeded to hold that without the FJSC first recommending a judge for removal, such recommendation by the NJC (as it is in the case of Justice Olotu) and the subsequent acceptance of the recommendation by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria are a nullity.

The Court of Appeal thus, set aside the earlier judgment by Justice E. N. Agbakoba of the NICN which upheld Justice Olutu’s compulsory retirement.

*In reading the judgment, Justice Senchi held as follows: This finding by the trial court is perverse, wrong and a miscarriage of justice with regards to the appellant whose complaint was that the jurisdiction of the 2nd Respondent was not evoked for failure to comply with Paragraph 13(b) of Part I of the Third Schedule to the 1999 Constitution. Thus, the decision of the Trial Court breached the right of the Appellant to fair hearing and such decision is a nullity.”

“The Issue Number one (1) of the Appellant and or the issue couched by the court is hereby resolved in favour of the appellant and against the Respondents.

“Thus, this appeal is meritorious and it is accordingly allowed. Going into the other issues will only amount to a waste of judicial energy”.

“The decision of the National Industrial Court in Suit No. NICN/ABJ/380/2016 delivered on the 20th day of September, 2017, being a nullity, it is hereby set aside.”

“Consequently, the action of the 2nd Respondent by recommending the compulsory retirement of the appellant as a Judge of the Federal High Court, and the approval or acceptance of such recommendation by the 1st respondent is hereby declared null and void and of no effect, being a nullity, it is hereby set aside.”

“Consequently, the action of the 2nd Respondent by recommending the compulsory retirement of the appellant as a Judge of the Federal High Court, and the approval or acceptance of such recommendation by the 1st Respondent is hereby declared null and void and of no effect whatsoever.”

 

‘Appellant entitled to all benefits, privileges as a serving judge’

The judgment also specifically held that Justice Olotu should be paid all her benefits as a Federal High Court Judge.

He held: “The appellant is entitled to all benefits and privileges of her office as a Judge of the Federal High Court. According Order entering Judgment for the Appellant as per the reliefs in her Originating Motion is hereby made. No award as to cost.”

 

Reinstatement?

Justice Senchi was not direct on whether or not Justice Olotu should be recalled, and did not make a specific order of reinstatement.

However, he did hold, in Orders 1-4, that the recommendation upon which Justice Olotu was compulsory retired was a nullity, and it set it aside. This implies that Justice Olotu was never retired in the eyes of the law and is still a serving Justice.*

 

Reinstated Nigerian judges

Can a wrongfully removed judge be reinstated? Is it a legal possibility? Certainly. There are several examples.

Hon Justice Olamide Folahan Oloyede of the Osun State Judiciary was unjustly retired by the National Judicial Council (NJC) in 2016.

The jurist approached a Federal High court sitting in Abuja to challenge her compulsory retirement and won.

In June, 2021, the court upheld her claim. It  described Justice Oloyede’s removal as illegal and directed the Osun State government to reinstate her.

 

The government complied.

Justice Oloyede on Tuesday, June 1, 2022, resumed at the Ijebu-Jesa division of the Osun State High Court

She is now retired.

Similarly, Justice Iyabode Subulade Yerimah of the Oyo State Judiciary was sacked along with the then Chief Judge of Oyo State.

Justice Yerimah was also reinstated and currently sits as a Judge of her state judiciary.

 

Effect of Appeal Court judgment

Many analysts believe that the judgment in Justice Olotu’s case threw the judicial system into a tailspin as it meant that the NJC cannot recommend judicial officers for sanction without the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC).

Since NJC came into existence by the virtue of the 1999 Constitution and began operations in 2000, it has maintained sole power over judges’ discipline.

In its 22 years of operation, it has recommended over a thousand judges for various disciplinary measures, ranging from suspension to compulsory retirement and dismissal.

Apart from Justices of the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, Federal High Court and Chief Judges of states, NJC has also recommended a sitting Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen, for compulsory retirement, without the input of the FJSC as demanded by the ruling of the Court of Appeal.

By the ruling of the Court, the recommendation prematurely ending Onnoghen’s career as well as all others, in the last 22 years, appeared to have become null and void.

 

NJC’s Notice of Appeal and bureaucratic bottlenecks

Months after the judgment and out of time, the NJC is seeking leave of the Supreme Court to file its Notice of Appeal.

It stated this in its Motion on Notice before the apex court, supported by a June 17 Affidavit in Support of the Motion sworn by the NJC’s Assistant Chief Legal Officer Uju Lisa Ekwulu.

Ekwulu stated that after the Court of Appeal, Abuja gave judgment in Justice Olotu’s favour on February 25, 2022, the NJC “was unable to immediately obtain the judgment of the Court of Appeal until the 23rd day of March, 2022 almost about a month after the delivery of Judgment.”

She said the judgment was thereafter taken to the NJC meeting composed of members from various states of the country for further directive and that it was after deliberation of the NJC that it was decided to appeal the decision of the Court of Appeal and consequently brief new counsel.

 

New consortium of lawyers, more delay

She averred that the NJC on April 25, briefed new counsel, made up of a consortium of lawyers headed by Prince Lateef O. Fagbemi, SAN to lead other distinguished senior members of the bar, namely Paul Usoro, SAN, Dr. Garb Tetengl, SAN, Muiz Banire, SAN and Yakubu Malkasuwa, Esq., to file an appeal to Supreme Court challenging the Court of Appeal decision.

Ekwulu said: “I know as a fact that the delay in briefing the consortium of new lawyers to represent the Appellant/Applicant was due to the administrative bottlenecks and red-tapes involved in the process of briefing an external counsel/solicitor in the Appellant’s Council.

“Although at the time of briefing Prince Lateef O. Fagbemi, SAN, and the consortium of lawyers so briefed, the time prescribed by the rules of the Honourable Court for bringing an appeal had not lapsed but was significantly spent.”

The deponent averred that she was informed by the NJC’s lead counsel Prince Fagbemi that “the consortium of lawyers met three times inclusive of 19th May, 2022 to agree on what and how to proceed with this matter.

“Unfortunately, his earlier commitment(s) as a member of the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC), which has been meeting repeatedly in May, 2022 made him unable to get to the work on time and conclude same, until the time for the filing of this Application had lapsed;

“That he knows as a fact that the Appellant/Applicant is out of time within which to file its Notice of Appeal and there is needs to seek the leave of the Honourable Court to file the Notice of Appeal out of time.”

 

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State has assured Lagosians that they would enjoy dividends of democracy bountifully and good governance.

The governor, who spoke through the  Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Moyosore Onigbanjo, SAN said that there are a lot of projects and programmes that will come to fruition in the nearest future to improve the lives of ensure Lagosians.

Onigbanjo stated this in a welcome address presented during the Lagos session at the just concluded 62nd Annual General Conference (AGC) of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) held at the Eko Atlantic City, Victoria Island.

The showcase session presented an opportunity for the state’s handlers to highlight some of the achievements of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration.

Onigbanjo noted that the presentations, which covered climate change, healthcare, infrastructure development, land management in Lagos as well as emergency management and security, were designed to use the opportunity of the gathering of lawyers to tell them there’s much more that the state is doing beyond what they are seeing.

The Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tunji Bello, in his address at the event said the state government is working assiduously to reduce the amount of waste being generated in the state within the next four to five years, the Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tunji Bello has said.

He  assured that soon, waste dumps will no longer be a common sight in Lagos.

The commissioner  explained that this is why “the state is now resulting to waste separation and recycling from sources through organised estates, market places and residential homes, to ensure sanity in waste generation in the state.”

He lamented the state of the  six waste disposal sites in Lagos which he notes are almost filled up owing to lack of lands.

Dr. Bello, therefore, urged Lagosians and residents in the state, especially those living on the island, not to panic whenever Lagos experiences flash floods after about four to five hours heavy downpour.

He insisted that there cannot be full-blown flood in the state.

According to him,  there are enough drainage channels, through which the flood water disappears in less than two hours immediately after any heavy rain.

On his part, Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, spoke extensively on how the state government used the law, policies and regulations, especially sanctionable consequences, to flatten the fourth COVID-19 curve to protect the citizens.

Prof Abayomi said in an effort to further protect the citizenry, the state has also put in place a law to regulate traditional and alternative medicine practitioners in the state.

He said the state has also set up a board to regulate their activities, ensure standards and protect citizens of Lagos, considering the fact that a lot of people now visit the alternative medicine practitioners even before coming to the conventional medicine practitioners.

“My last stretch is on mental health. If you recall the last law we have in this country was in 1920. It was called the Lunacy Law and this sought to just extract people, who had mental health out of the society. It had very little understanding on patho-biology of mental health.

“So we in Lagos developed, the Lagos State Mental Health Law that was released in 2019.

“It was to humanize the management of mental health disease Lagos, part of this law means the state has to establish adequate facilities to manage mental illness, to work against stigmatization of people with mental health in the society, to ensure adequate access regardless of gender, age and economic status and provide treatment according to international best practices.”

In her address, Special Adviser to the Governor on Works and Infrastructure, Engr. (Mrs) Aramide Adeyoye, highlighted all the roads infrastructural projects the state is currently working on four legacy projects of the Babajide Sanwo-Olu led administration as well as the 40 outstanding roads projects of the last administration.

She listed the four legacy roads of this administration as the Lagos Fourth Mainland Bridge, Lagos-Epe Expressway, Lagos Regional Road and the Lagos Opebi Road.

“So, the first and foremost, is the fourth mainland bridge and I’m glad that the PPP is also here.

“As I speak to you, as at yesterday, it was all over the newspaper and radio jingles that the ESIA come out for inspection for the next one month is available so that people can pass this ESIA stage and move to the next stage to getting to the close of the fourth mainland bridge.

“So this gives you a thematic description of where we are on the fourth mainland bridge.

“As a government, we are determined to see to this. We have pass through phase one of it. That’s where we complete the visibility study. ,On Phase two, we are also done.

“You will see the yellow on the slide that’s exactly where we are now. So we need to get to phase 2b and so on.

“In the same manner, this slide gives you the idea of exactly what we are doing on the fourth mainland bridge. The step one was expression of interest, where over 51 people did tender, the step two is after they must have been sieved out to 32 and we have passed step three and we are between steps three and four as at today. We hope to reach a financial close hopefully by the end of the year.

“So the second legacy project of Lagos is the Lekki-Epe Expressway. It’s an 18.75km road and it’s not difficult to understand why we went in that direction.

“In the picture, you will see the deep sea port everybody is talking about. As a government, we were quite realistic with ourselves and also anticipatory to say if this deep sea port goes on with the bad road, it would be difficult to access the area.

“So we decided to do things differently, considering the kind of loading that the road would be subjected to, we would go all out to concrete and create a dedicated lane for articulated trucks to stay off the main expressway. And today, we are about 85% completed on that road.”

Other speakers at the session include Permanent Secretary Lands Bureau, Bode Agoro, the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, Dr. Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu; Managing Director, LAMATA, Engr. (Mrs.)Abimbola Akinajo; General Manager, Lagos State Residents Registration Agency, LASRRA, Engr. (Mrs.) Ibilola Kasunmu, and Executive Secretary, Lagos State Domestic & Sexual Violence Agency, Mrs. Titilola Vivour-Adeniyi, amongst others

 

 

 

The Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has upheld an arbitral award of $196,330 against a Nigerian firm, CG Biostadt and in favour of a Pakistani firm, Ferozons Laboratories Limited.

The arbitral award was made by an arbitrator and advocate, Mr. Haroon Dugal, of 73, Bridge Colony Cantt, Lahore, Pakistan.

Justice Akintayo Aluko, who affirmed the award, also granted an order entering the award of December 28, 2017, as the judgment of the Federal High Court.

The judge made the order following Ferozsons Laboratories’ application filed by its counsel, Aloy Ezenduka.

The firm, as plaintiff, had informed the court that the defendant – CG Biostadt – was indebted to it and had become unable to pay the debts.

The plaintiff contended that it was its right to “mitigate, ameliorate and protect itself from avoidable losses by bringing this application on time before the defendant goes into liquidation or a Receiver/Manager is appointed to oversee the affairs of the respondent.”

The plaintiff said it had satisfied the precondition under Sections 31 and 51 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 2004 and was entitled to the kind consideration of the court to recognise and enforce the Arbitral Award made by Dugal on December 28, 2017.

But the defendant, through its counsel Richard Oguntade contended among others that the applicant’s Notice of Arbitration was premature as it had not fully complied with Clause 24.1 of the distribution agreement between the parties to the effect that the disputes between them shall be settled in the first instance amicably between them.

It argued further that Dugal’s appointment as the sole Arbitrator is a breach of Clause 24.1 of the distribution agreement, adding that Dugal lacked the jurisdiction to have made the award.

It prayed the court to dismiss the suit.

After hearing the counsel, the court upheld Ezenduka’s argument.

Justice Aluko held: “Going by the affidavit evidence and documentary exhibits placed before the court by the Plaintiff, it has sufficiently met and complied with the above provisions of Section 31 of the Act and order 52, rule 16 of the extant civil Procedure rule of this court.

“The Plaintiff is entitled to the reliefs in its motion ex parte but converted into motion on notice dated 26 March, 2018.

Accordingly, reliefs 1 and 2 are hereby granted. Relief 3 is declined.“

1. An order for leave of the court to recognise and enforce the arbitral award made by Barrister Haroon Dugal, Advocate of the high court, having an office at 73 Bridge Colony Lahore Cantt, Pakistan, an Arbitrator in accordance with clause 24 of the agreement dated 9th of June 2010 in the same manner as a Judgement or order of the Federal High court.
2. An order entering the award dated 28th December 2017 as the Judgment of the court.

“Cost of this action assessed in the sum of Five Hundred Thousand Naira (N500,000) only is awarded in favour of the Plaintiff against the defendant.”

Bolaji Ramos is a partner and head of litigation at RouQ and Co. He holds an LLB and Masters of Law from the University of Lagos (Akoka). In this interview with Anne Agbi, the mediation and legal advisory expert examines justice delivery reforms, effect of global pandemic on young lawyers and how to tackle the abuse of ex parte orders.

Tell us your Nigerian law story?

I had my LLB from the University of Lagos (Unilag) in 2010, and I proceeded to the Nigerian Law School the same year and finished in 2011. My set could not get called to the bar that year due to a security threat in Abuja back then. So, we were eventually called to bar in February 2012. In 2013, I applied to Unilag again for a Masters Degree, and rounded off in 2015. In 2019, I applied to the Lagos State University (LASU) and had another degree, Master of Philosophy (M.Phil) in 2022. I am currently a PhD student.

I have been practising as a lawyer for 11 years and it’s been such an engaging experience, especially in the litigation, mediation advocacy and legal advisory/consultancy spaces.

Can you highlight some of the challenges you faced as a law student?

Some of the challenges I encountered during my studies can be put into two categories; First, the government and secondly, lecturers teaching methods. The government could not provide facilities for conducive learning such as good and well equipped library, classrooms, internet services etc. There were times that students were unduly put under pressure and expected to do the impossible by covering in two days what should ordinarily be covered in two months. Attention was paid principally to covering the course outlines than the students having a good understanding of what was being taught.

On justices petition against former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Tanko regarding funds, allegations of corruption and his resignation?

I took my time to study and analyse the two letters, that is, the one written and signed by the other Justices led by Ariwoola, ACJN and the response by Tanko, CJN (retired). My sincere take on the two letters is that both of them actually have merits, to a very large extent. For me, the gravamen of the two letters is the deplorable state of the Apex Court (Judiciary in Nigeria generally) and the need for a sincere and timely reform.

There are some minor but important details that both letters talked about, and if one looks at it very well, one can only come to the conclusion that irrespective of the fact that one CJN resigns and another one is appointed, the problems will remain unchanged and continue to be with the judiciary (and all of us) if they are not nipped in the bud. It is time to cure the cause and not just treat the ailment.

The reason stated by the former CJN Tanko for his resignation is ill-health. According to his rejoinder letter, he said he was not going to join issues with other Justices on the allegation of corruption. So, officially, I would not say he resigned because of the allegation of corruption.

What do you think they should have done differently?

Except there are still personal things not being or fully disclosed, I would have expected the NJC to be approached. The NJC is constitutionally empowered to, inter alia, discipline judicial officers. The CJN is/was a judicial officer. Allegations of corruption in discharging official duties of a CJN can be investigated by the NJC. I know the CJN is the Chairman of the NJC. It is expected that a CJN cannot chair a meeting where allegations of misconduct against him is being heard. The good thing about using the NJC is that not all its members are justices/judges.

As seasoned litigation, commercial lawyer and arbitrator who has been on both divides, what in your view should be urgently done to speed up justice delivery in Nigeria? What needed reforms have you identified?

Practice and Rules of Court that encourage delays (especially on undefended or straight forward cases) must be reviewed. Possible timeframe for hearing and determining cases of this nature should be set. This has been done for small claims cases and election petition cases.

Technical issues that affect substance or merits of a case (both in contentious and non-contentious matters) should not be allowed by the court to delay the hearing of applications and substantive cases, especially where the technical issues can be overlooked or treated as mere irregularities.

Use of modern technology where necessary, especially where it can engender quick justice delivery is most desirable and should be adopted. A good example is the new Rules of the Federal High Court on election petitions that allow serving by email on pre-election matters.

More attention should be paid to judges that have tendency of delaying proceedings, rulings and judgments. Most times, lawyers and parties are blamed for delaying cases, but the truth is that a good number of judges delay cases, too.

Pre-action steps such as case management conference (CTC), pre-trial conference (PTC), etc should be done away with in deserving actions (contentious or non-contentious). While the intention behind them to control the number of cases that eventually make it  to court, the truth is that these pre-trial procedures can bring about hardship and delays in some instances.

Are you concerned about courts of coordinate jurisdiction issuing conflicting orders? Is NBA doing enough to rein in the culprit lawyers? How can the abuse of ex-parte orders be tackled? Should it be abolished?

This is a major problem for stability in the legal profession and Nigeria generally, and I am very concerned as a stakeholder.  I believe and personally charge NBA to do something about this very fast.

Outside the courts of concurrent jurisdiction, another court that has a worrisome number of conflicting judgments is the Court of Appeal. One judgment of a COA can overrule an earlier one, this is not a problem. It becomes worrisome and problematic when a subsequent judgment pays no attention to an earlier judgment on the same issue or principles. This is prevalent in the area of garnishee proceedings on whether an application for stay of execution by a judgement debtor should be a ground for not making an order nisi/absolute in favour of a judgment creditor. NBA must continue to seriously engage these stakeholders on these developments.

The National Industrial Court (NIC) has been able to scale through this hurdle of issuing conflicting orders because of its case management policy. It will appear the judges of the NIC usually pay particular attention to existing decisions in its database on a certain issue before deciding such issue. This, for the NIC, has reduced situations of conflicting orders/judgments in the court.

There have been allegations of corruption in the judiciary, with the ICPC saying recently that N9.4billion exchanged hands as bribes between lawyers and judges in one year. What is your take on this?

On Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) allegation of corruption in the judiciary, corruption happens between the bench and the bar. I am aware some cases relating to this were/are still in court involving judges and lawyers while some have been taken to NJC. As per ICPC claim, I am yet to see an official document or a court decision confirming this. I do, however, not doubt the possibility. Like every other Nigerian, I look forward to seeing ICPC evidence.

What are your thoughts on the demands for true federalism as reignited by the VAT dispute, a new constitution and restructuring/power devolution?

Nigeria can hardly go anywhere if we are still short of a true federalism. True federalism touches on everything that affects our lives as Nigeria. Our security depends on it. Our judiciary depends on it. Our taxes, business operations etc. depend on it. One of the major reasons we are receiving calls for secession today is because true federalism is not being taken serious in Nigeria.

These calls can be best addressed by practising true federalism. It allows the sub-nations in Nigeria to develop on their own and at their pace.

 

Over 150 women groups from various rights and civil society organisations took to the streets last Tuesday in Lagos to protest the continued delay by the government in lifting the suspension on safe termination of pregnancy in the state.

This action is sequel to a prior petition to the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu demanding that he lifts the suspension of the regulation.

The protesters, majorly women  and supporting males marched through Obafemi Awolowo way in their large numbers to Alausa, Ikeja singing solidarity songs and passing a message to Governor Sanwo-Olu to protect their lives.

Though they were unable to have an audience with the governor as well as the State Commissioner for Health, a Director from the Office of Civic Engagement, Mr. Haruna Ayodeji received an open later to deliver to the governor.

According to Dr. Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, Executive Director, Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre, WARDC told journalists that it has been brought to their knowledge that unsafe termination of pregnancy accounts for second leading cause of maternal deaths in Nigeria. Dr. Akiyode-Afolabi contended that ‘Guidelines on Safe Termination of Pregnancy for Legal Indications’ placed on suspension is a timely intervention for reducing preventable deaths and protecting women’s reproductive rights.

She said that government was mis-advised to suspend the regulation.

She listed Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Cameroon, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Guinea, Kenya, Lesotho, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, Togo. Zimbabwe among African countries which  legally permit safe termination to save the life of the “- woman and preserve physical health.

They are worried that continued delay in lifting the guidelines launched by its government on June 29, 2022 will encourage unsafe abortion in the state, a situation they say could do grave harm to women’s health.

She reiterated that a guide to ensure that safe termination of pregnancy services are available within the ambit of its legal indications and the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2011.

The women are unsettled that unsafe termination of pregnancy accounts for second leading cause of maternal deaths in Nigeria.

 

Ms. Funmi Akintan is a Maryland, United States-based Immigration Law expert with over 20 years of experience in the legal profession. In this interview with United States Bureau Chief OLUKOREDE YISHAU, she discusses the intricate United States immigration law, Nigerians in the United States and issues affecting them.

Thoughts on Nigeria

It is undisputable that  Nigeria is a great country cindering hits resource both human and otherwise. The proper management of these resources has been an upheaval task then and now. However, it can be successfully tackled if all concerned can pay the sacrificial price of moving the nation forward.

Being an immigration lawyer

Migration is complex and has far-reaching implication in every aspect of human existence. The ongoing  unprovoked Russian-Ukraine war speaks to this, and particularly its devastating effect on the global community. I believe we can do much better, and we owe it to one another to make the world a better place worth living.

Many leave their country of origin in pursuit of a better future. This decision is complex, though “inspired by confidence and hope” as Pope Francis succinctly puts it. The drive to press on is marked by great expectation in the face of obvious challenges – the loss of social and familial network, the guilt and trauma of separation, depression, discrimination, and marginalization are  contributory to the devastating effect of migration and wish it could all be avoidable.

Practicing immigration law in the United States is a privilege. I am honored to meet with clients from different walks of life and their story reveal such level of resilience and tenacity to succeed and provide a sustainable lifestyle for themselves and their family. Studies show the U.S. has been the main country of destination for international migrants since 1970 particularly for the African migrants. The Pew Research Center estimates that there are 2.1 million African immigrants living in the U.S. in 2015, up from 881,000 in 2000 and a substantial increase from 1970 when the U.S. was home to only 80,000 foreign-born Africans. On the Nigerian population, it is estimated that the U.S. has the world’s third largest Nigerian community, only behind Nigeria itself and the United Kingdom where up to three million Nigerians reside.

Nigerians are professionals. They work very hard, provide for their loved ones, help stimulate the economy, and in the same breath are beneficiaries of a working government marked by good governance, respect for the rule of law where no one is above the law, including the government which helps instill a decent of conformity among the citizenry; sustainable infrastructural development; affordable social amenities, great education, employment and entrepreneurial opportunities, healthcare and more. The whole idea is that everyone has a role, and a demand is placed on all to act accordingly. Yes, it is not all a bed of roses because no government is immune from problem but at least it is much better than an environment plagued with heightened insecurity, failed healthcare system, impoverished and stagnant educational system and a host of other issues of concern among the populace.

My experience in U.S. immigration law began in the Spring of 2008 after a short unpaid internship at the Law Offices of  John Bell, a seasoned attorney who is referred to as  “practicing law religiously” because he bought a church and turned it to a law office! Glory! The immigration experience was from working at the Law Office of Jane Ho, where I was exposed to sound  immigration advocacy, a path that led to my current passion. Ms. Ho provided very personal and top-notch service to clients, who were mostly of the Asian descent. She was grounded in the law and her added ability to  speak Mandarin was a plus which earned her the trust of her clients. This resonated so much and became my template. The desire to replicate the ethos of her practice became a driving force, and being an immigrant myself, I took that as a challenge and a starting point to give back to my community.

I hung out my shingles in 2008 with cold feet. Despite being admitted to the Maryland Bar, with a Master at law ( LLM) from Georgetown University Law Center and New York Bar in 2005, 2006 and 2007, respectively. Still, I felt unprepared. However, the final push came when my very good friend, and colleague, Attorney Greg Lee, provided the framework and support needed to kick off my solo practice which is today known as “ The Preferred Global Law LLC”.

Decision to specialise in immigration law

My decision to practice immigration law is based on empathy. As an immigrant myself, I saw the need for adequate representation of migrants, and I chose to create constant awareness through seminars premised on the fact that knowledge is power, and many perish for its lack thereof. Undoubtedly, the U.S. Immigration law is complex, so it behooves anyone involved in the process to seek counsel not from “aunts” “uncles” or friends” but from experienced and seasoned immigration attorneys. For me, it is a privilege to provide top-notch, personal and knowledge-based “representation with a passion.”

Interesting Immigration cases for Nigerians

In the course of my practice over this past 14 years, I have represented many clients from different nationalities, especially from the African countries. Without delving into specifics, I have represented clients in several family, employment, and investment-based processes. Specifically, I have represented clients both in adjustment and consular processing; spousal-based filings, parent-child; siblings petition, VAWA cases; K-visas, special immigrant cases involving family members of employee of international organization, abused, neglected, or abandoned children; student visas, religious visas, H-1B, labor certification, in citizenship and naturalization-based process with applicants for medical disability waiver. Additionally, I have successfully represented clients in removal and deportation proceedings, and more importantly, I feel a sense of fulfillment when my clients take that final oath, becoming proud citizens of the United States. For me, helping others achieve their goal in life is mission accomplished.

Read Also: My father wanted me to study Law — Comedian Oga Sabinus

Immigration Law

Most applicants for immigration related services are migrants. They need to be guided within regulatory measures. In practice, I see many people suffer the consequences of gross misinformation and documentation-related challenges. I want to change this narrative by taking preventive and not curative measures to address the concerns of clients. I understood very early in life – thanks to my parents, that “knowledge is power”, and more importantly, a stitch in time saves nine! It is imperative that folks should understand that.

Most applicants for immigration related services are migrants. They need to be guided within regulatory measures. In practice, I see many people suffer the consequences of gross misinformation and documentation-related challenges. I want to change this narrative by taking preventive and not curative measures to address the concerns of clients. I understood very early in life – thanks to my parents, that “knowledge is power”, and more importantly, a stitch in time saves nine! It is imperative that folks should understand that the U. S. immigration process is not all about filling forms. It involves very intricate aspect of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which seasoned immigration attorneys can help with.

Living in America

I chose to live in America because my immediate family member resides in the States. Family unity is a big principle of the U.S. immigration law and I want to live up to this principle. Studies show that migration significantly impairs  the psychological and mental well-being of children particularly when the mother is absent. As a mother, I  have a minor child who needs me. So yes, I love to visit Nigeria regularly, I believe in Nigeria, and pray that God’s grace will continue to abound over Nigeria until she becomes a praise in the earth. The scripture enjoins us about timing, and I know it will happen. I believe it and look forward to giving back to my country when the opportunity presents itself. The founding fathers must return to the old landmarks to rebuild, reclaim, and return the prized possession of Nigeria to its rightful position.

According to the 2019 African Community Survey (ACS), an estimated 461,695 U.S. residents are of Nigerian ancestry. A  journal article titled, “ Nigerians’ Migration to the United States: A Contemporary Perspective” by Sunday Israel Oyebamiji and others, noted that the dominant motive for Nigerian’s migration is the “the quest for career development through the acquisition of western education.”  An enabling environment can be created to actualize the same objective, but it will require sustainable reforms and an overhauling  of the structure to birth a new country, one that the world is waiting to see.

Studying for a PhD

I love to study. Growing up, I had a pet name “iwe” which means boog. I started school at  3years in the company of my mother (Late mother, Ms. Victoria Ibironke Ayinde) who was the head of household at the time,  and if you can imagine being , the “headmistress daughter” I was loved by everyone. In total, I attended about five primary schools (not because I failed, lol!) She transformed every school she led and was truly loved by many. I attended Ahmadiyya School, Olushi, Lagos, where I was showered with much love being “the headmistress daughter.” I got many gifts,  which was mostly “Gala” which explains my robustness (lol)! Next, I attended Mushin Town Council Primary School, (MTC), Falomo Girls’ School, Ikoyi; and, finally Victoria Island Primary School, (VIPS) Victoria Island, Lagos, with my late mum as the principal. She adopted the motto of the school as “Knowledge is Power”,  and that shaped the trajectory of her life as well as mine. The former “Maroko” was her base. She would go into the market, from one seller to another, “selling them the idea of educating their wards.” She got uniforms for many children, encouraged parents that trading was not ruled out, and that their kids will go to school in the morning, and help with trading in the evening. So many parents bought into this idea, and it became a case of “killing two birds with a stone.” She also took part in politics – ran for councillorship in Victoria Island constituency, fasted many days, and went on campaign, her mandate being “education for all.” She was, however, unsuccessful. This is what I grew up to knowing as education. At the time, my father, a former Director of Library at the Nigerian Law School, Bwari Abuja, now 84 years old was a great disciplinarian, and God help you, if you miss school, or did not do well, today all is history, but knowledge continues to be a powerful weapon against poverty, and other ills of society. That is my background of education. To God be the glory, my parents dream was realized, and today I have some of my siblings who are professors, medical doctor, registered nurse, computer scientist; attorney; economist and a chartered public accountant.

Later, I went on to Victoria Island Secondary School, (VISS) Victoria Island Lagos; and the Lagos State University, Ojo, for my law degree in 1997. In 1999, I completed the one-year mandatory Law School at the campus in Bwari, Abuja (the first set at the location) and still I wanted more. I had the opportunity of relocating to the United States on February 14, 2001. I got married but knew there was more to life. I obtained my Master at Law (LLM) in International Studies at the Georgetown University Law Center, Washington D.C. in 2006. I was admitted to practice law in the States of New York and Maryland in 2005 and 2007 respectively and wanted to continue my education to the PHD level in 2006 but did not get the much-needed support at the time. For me, acquiring western education was the only reason for coming to the U.S. My dearest brother, our “olori-ebi” in the person of Professor Alfred Adebayo Malomo,  a Clinical Professor and Geriatrician with the Rochester General Hospital, Rochester, New York, USA would throw jabs at me saying, “ one day my dearest baby sister would accomplish her postgraduate dream.”  He was watering the seed, the desire within me. Though not overbearing, he kept the flame alive in me, and from time to time, I would ask God for guidance.

The right time came in the Spring of 2020, when the COVID-19 global pandemic hit the world. I remember sitting in my living room one afternoon and asking, “ what would I remember this pandemic for? Immediately, I heard a whisper, your PHD! I swung into action; and the rest is history. I am grateful to God for the support from immediate family members, brothers and sisters, cherished friends, which am a year into the doctoral program  at the Old Dominion University, Norfolk Virginia, USA in the area of Conflict and Cooperation with keen focus on Migration and Human Security. I hope to use the knowledge and my experience through the course of the program to highlight and address the root causes of migration with a view to curb it and reduce brain drainage in emerging economies. A thousand miles they say, begins with one step. I am glad I took that step! I know that God’s grace, and wisdom abounds. I have an increased capacity as my dearest brother, Pastor Joseph Oluseyi Malomo, the Chaplain of the Aso Villa, would always declare over me. I believe and therefore confess that I can do all things through Christ who enables me. I plan to do extensive field work in this area. I am not oblivious of the enormity of the task, I know the commitment its requires particularly combining full time work as a practicing attorney, mother, wife, daughter, sister etc. My strength is in God, and I know He who began the good work will bring it to a successful completion in Jesus name, Amen.

The contributing factors to Nigerians trooping to the U.S.

Even a newborn baby knows why Nigerians are leaving the country. Seriously, Nigerians are tired. Yes, they are resilient, but there is always a breaking point. For example, the ENDSARs protest is  a tip of the iceberg if something is not done. Enough of the “hand out” from leaders. Rather, teach the people how to fish, provide good education like my mother and many others fought for. It is possible to transform the country, a synergy, a collaboration of all the stakeholders is imperative. One man cannot do it. Elected officials must do away with policy congruency, engage the citizenry in productive dialogues and provide the wherewithal to move the nation forward. The number of those leaving Nigeria for greener pasture is on the rise.

Today, many are leaving because they lack faith in the leadership and governance, insecurity pervades the light, human right practices are on the rise, unemployment has become the norm, poor educational systems, incessant school closures; lack of social amenities, a legal system characterized with impunity are drivers of migration in Nigeria. Ordinarily, people just want a decent life. Why is this so difficult to ask? When you think about it, when the same breed of Nigerians steps out to western economies, they excel, our students do so well. As an adjunct professor at the School of Business and Graduate Studies, Bowie State University, many international students particularly Nigerians are doing so well and move on to great employment. We need to replicate this in Nigeria. Studies show that Nigerian migrants are well-educated, industrious and are a huge contributing member of the society. They are one of the most successful ethnic groups in the United States. Someone said about the Nigerian community, “ you cannot throw a stone without hitting someone with master’s degree”- Doctors, lawyers, engineers, professors” According to the Migration Policy Institute, 61 percent of Nigerian Americans over the age of twenty-five hold a graduate degree, compared to 32 percent of the U.S born population. The 2016 American Community Survey found that 45 percent of Nigerian American professionals work in education services of which a sizable number are professors at top universities. Nigerian-born professionals have distinguished themselves in various social classes. For example, Dr Bennet Omalu, a forensic pathologist is helping fix hits to the brain; he was the first to discover and publish on chronic traumatic encephalopathy in American football players. ImeIme A. Umana, the first Black woman elected president of the Harvard Law Review is Nigerian-American. There are many successful Nigerian entrepreneurs who would love to give back to their country of origin. Please let us give them a chance, and together, make Nigeria a praise in the earth. In my practice, I know many who yearn and long for “home.” It is time to ensure that a major contribution to the U.S. economy does not translate into a huge loss for Nigeria as a whole.

Guiding Nigerians on they how can live in America within the law

Information dissemination is crucial. In the U.S., immigration-related adjudications feed on proper and relevant documentation, and so one way to guide Nigerians is to ensure they have the right information to get the proper documentation and avoid shooting themselves on the foot. For example, there is a crackdown by the authority on the use of fraudulent divorce decrees. It is so prevalent that even the Nigerian Embassy in New York  spoke out against this vice especially individuals seeking certifications of fraudulent decrees. Few years ago, an online immigration seminar was titled “Fraudulent Divorce Decrees from Nigeria.” This is the height of embarrassment and unfortunate. The trend is destructive for those caught in the web, their family, and a shame to the authority for failing to take remedial actions. I tell folks, “there are no impunities here oh, you break it, you pay it.” I implore the Nigeria government to address this social ill and redeem its image and its citizens.

How to get a reduction in the way Nigerians troop to the US

With God, nothing is impossible. However, you cannot put something on nothing. All hands must be on deck to bring back Nigeria from the brink of destruction. It is due for a dialogue, a strong discourse among the leadership, civil societies, and the people. Many Nigerians travel out, they see how things work in other countries, and are compliant, why not in Nigeria?

Nigerians will excel if provided with an enabling environment. In recent years, the level of innovation demonstrated by the younger generation is outstanding, they have shown a level of resilience marked by “constant self-improvement” as His Excellency, Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Professor Oluyemi Oluleke Osinbajo noted. Despite obvious challenges, these population have distinguished themselves on the path to success through hard work as opposed to the “quick fix”, a “microwavable”, “drive through”  approach of the very few. Nigerians are law abiding and are a great asset to any structure.

Last word for the government in Nigeria

A working government. Can you imagine the stride the country would make if there were a working government in every local, regional, and central government? This is where the government, businesses, civil societies, the citizenry, and all well-meaning stakeholders contribute to making the country a place where citizens do not flee from, but where they throng into because of their mutually constitutive nature. Final note, those in diaspora must be careful. They cannot reprobate and approbate. Many elected officials are returnees from the diaspora, they promise to  serve but they almost immediately join the bandwagon. What then is good about the western education? Is it not mind bungling that the same people clamoring for a revamp of the country’s economy appear to do worse when given the opportunity to serve? ?  What changed?

To move forward, a national family meeting becomes imperative. In any family meeting, those with concerns should be allowed to speak out and not be muzzled. The government must pay listening ear to the clamoring of the people. I am confident that in the near future, the exodus of great brains will yield to an influx of great minds into the nation. Nigerians are not lazy. They are hardworking, resilient, and great achievers. If not, how do one explain an estimated remittance of 17.3 billion US dollars in just a year? With a sense of urgency, a singleness of purpose, and  value placed on lives, the nation Nigeria which was once desolate will arise and become a praise in the earth. It is only a matter of time – with the right-leadership, it will happen. Yes, it will!

Being a case review by Hon. Justice Alaba Omolaye-Ajileye

Introduction

In a widely reported judgment, the Supreme Court of Nigeria recently granted the request for the extradition of a Nigerian, Princewill Ugonna Anuebunwa, wanted in the United States of America for his alleged complicity in some criminal activities. A Bench of five Honourable Justices of the Supreme Court (Coram: Dattijo Muhammad, Chima Centus Nweze, Helen Moronkeji Ogunwumiju, Tijani Abubakar, & Emmanuel Agim, JJSC) allowed the appeal by the Attorney-General of the Federation, restored the June 1, 2020 judgment by Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja and set aside the November 6, 2020 majority judgment of the Court of Appeal, Abuja.

 

Facts leading to the appeal

The facts of the case under review are simple. The case originated as an extradition proceeding before the Federal High Court, Abuja (Coram: I. E. Ekwo, J.), wherein the trial court ordered the extradition of the respondent to the United States of America to answer to a 2-count indictment in Case No: S6 16 Cr. 575 (PAC) and filed on June19, 2017 in the United States District Court, Southern District of New York, United States of America. The application was supported by two affidavits deposed to by Stephen Fullington and Andrew K. Chan, both of whom were stated to be operatives of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FIB) in the USA. Also attached to the affidavit of  Stephen Fullington were documents generated from a computer in the custody of deponents which were marked Exhibits D1-D4. The appellant relied heavily on these affidavits to ground its application for extradition of the respondent. In opposing the application, the respondent filed a counter-affidavit to the affidavit in support of the application and a notice of preliminary objection. One of the points of the preliminary objection, relevant to this discourse, was that the documents attached with the affidavit were inadmissible in law for failure to comply with the provisions of Section 84 of the Evidence Act, 2011. The facts relied upon by the respondent, in challenging the admissibility of the documents were that the documents, though produced by a computer, did not meet the conditions specified in Section 84 (2) (a-d) and section 84 (4). The trial court overruled the preliminary objection and granted the extradition application against the respondent.

Being dissatisfied with the decision of the trial court, the respondent appealed to the Court of Appeal, Abuja (Coram: Stephen Jonah Adah, Mohammed Mustapha, Mohammed Baba Idris, JJCA.). The Court of Appeal, in a split judgment of 2-1, held that Section 84 applied to extradition proceedings. Both Mohammed Mustapha, Mohammed Baba Idris, JJCA., delivered the judgment of the court, while Stephen Jonah Adah, JCA., dissented.

In holding that Section 84 applied to extradition proceedings, Idris, JCA.,  who read the lead judgment, made a scathing remark about the trial court, stating that the trial court failed to apply the law or probably did not appreciate the application of the law of evidence as it was evident that Section 84 of the Evidence Act applied to extradition proceedings. His Lordship, without mincing words, pronounced as follows:

Having in mind my views as already postulated above in relation to admissibility/authentication of documents and considering Section 17 of the Extradition Act as well, it is clear that the reproduced Section84(1) of the Evidence Act above, the section applies to extradition proceedings as well and thus for any evidence generated by a computer to be admissible, it has to comply with the provisions of the Section 84(2) of the Evidence Act… (Underlining mine for emphasis).

Adah, JCA., dissented from the opinion of his learned brothers. In his minority judgment, His Lordship held that Section 84 is not “automatically applicable to extradition proceedings.” According to His Lordship, Section 84 “only becomes applicable where the judex is not comfortable with the authenticity of the documents generated from the foreign jurisdictions.”

 

The majority judgment of the Court of Appeal set aside

The Supreme Court, in the end, affirmed the minority judgment of the Court of Appeal. In setting aside the majority decision, the Supreme Court held as follows:

”The wordings of Section 84 of the Evidence Act 2011 do not contemplate that before an original official letter is tendered and admitted in evidence, the party tendering same must satisfy the conditions in the provision. Neither does the provision envisage same where the admissibility of an original affidavit is in issue.” (Per Ogunwumiju, JSC., page 21).

Perhaps, the most outstanding pronouncement of the apex court concerning electronic evidence is the simple but prodigious statement that “It would be ridiculous to assume that a document which was typed using a computer is a computer-generated document”*(p.22). This is instructive because from this statement derives the fundamental principle of the Law of Electronic Evidence that has now finally resolved a recurring question regarding the status of simple documents produced by computers. It is clear that Section 84 is inapplicable to a simple document produced by a computer when such a computer is merely used as a tool such as a typewriter to produce the document. The authentication of such a document is invariably established by its originality and the signature or seal it carries. It was on this score that the Supreme Court concluded that “the bundle of documents not being computer-generated documents, ought to have been relied upon by the Court below.”  (P. 24).

 

The significance of the case to the jurisprudence of electronic evidence

 The judgment of the Supreme Court in the case is significant from various perspectives. However, the focus of this review is the aspect of the judgment dealing with the admissibility of electronically-generated documents. While treating issues relating to authentication of documents under the Extradition Act,  the apex court has unwittingly addressed a compelling question concerning the applicability or otherwise of the provisions of Section 84 of the Evidence Act, 2011 to simple documents produced by computers. The summit court has authoritatively held that it would be ridiculous to assume that a document produced using a computer merely to type is a computer-generated document to warrant the application of Section 84 of the Evidence Act, 2011. Accordingly, the court further held that the documents attached to the affidavit in the extradition proceedings, being original official documents, produced directly from the computer of the deponents, were admissible in evidence, notwithstanding the allegation of non-compliance with the provisions of Section 84 of the Evidence Act, 2011.

This is a remarkable decision, to the extent that it represents the first case where the Supreme Court examined the law and pronounced on what constitutes a computer-generated document, properly so-called, as against ordinary documents generated using a computer merely as a tool. The decision also invalidates the erroneous position in some quarters that any document produced by a computer must necessarily be treated as computer-generated to call for the application of Section 84 of the Evidence Act.  For the avoidance of doubt, Section 84  of the Evidence Act, 2011 prescribes the conditions to be fulfilled to render statements contained in a document produced by a computer admissible.

In addition, the tenor or thrust of the Supreme Court’s decision in the case can be appreciated against the backdrop of its contribution to the advancement of the knowledge of the Law of Electronic Evidence as it remains yet another case where the scope of the applicability of Section 84 is restricted. It is to be recalled that the Court of Appeal, in _Stanbic IBTC Bank v. LongTerm Global Capital Ltd & Ors (2021) LPELR – 55610 (CA)_ constricted the application of Section 84, when it held that a party who does not have the device from which a document is produced cannot be required to produce a certificate under section 84 (4) of the Evidence Act, 2011 to authenticate it.

 

Process of extradition

 Extradition, undoubtedly, is a recurrent and topical issue in Nigeria. It is also an integral part of all criminal justice systems around the world. To successfully prosecute criminals, a criminal justice system normally requires four things – intelligence, information, evidence, and of course, the suspect. The more these four items are dispersed amongst different jurisdictions, the harder law enforcement becomes. It is, therefore, the effort of the international community to overcome these difficulties. Where the person to be tried is in a different jurisdiction, then, there is an invariable need to use the formal mechanism of extradition to bring him to justice. Extradition, therefore, is the formal process by which one jurisdiction asks another for the enforced return of a person who is in the requested jurisdiction and who is accused or convicted of one or more criminal offences against the law of the requesting jurisdiction.  The return is sought so that the person will face trial in the requesting jurisdiction or punishment for such an offence or offences.

Section 6 of the Extradition Act, 2004 stipulates the procedure for the surrender of a fugitive in Nigeria.  By the way, the Act under Section 21 thereof, defines a “fugitive” or “fugitive criminal” as any person accused of an extradition offence committed within the jurisdiction of a country other than Nigeria or any person, who has been convicted of an extradition offence in a country other than Nigeria is unlawfully at large before the expiration of a sentence imposed on him for that offence being, in either case, a person who is or is suspected of being in Nigeria. Section 6(1) of the Act states : “a request for the surrender of a fugitive criminal of any country shall be made in writing to the Attorney-General by a diplomatic representative or consular officer of that country and shall be accompanied by a duly authenticated warrant of arrest or certificate of conviction issued in that country.” (underlining mine).

 

It is important to situate this case in its proper perspective. The Supreme Court decided that no issue of admissibility under Section 84 of the Evidence Act arose and that such an issue should not have been imported into the extradition proceedings. It was the considered opinion of the Supreme Court that the Extradition Act, 2004 fully guides extradition proceedings, and the admissibility or otherwise of the duly authenticated documents in support of extradition request in such a proceeding is specifically provided for under Section 17 of the Extradition Act, notwithstanding any contrary provision in the Evidence Act, 2011. The apex court, therefore, entrenched Section 17 of the Extradition Act, vide Section 2 of the Evidence Act, as an exception to Section 84 of the Evidence Act on the principle that a specific statute on a matter is not affected by a general enactment on the same matter unless the earlier is radically inconsistent with the later, _Attorney-General, Lagos State v. Attorney-General, Federation (2014) LPELR – 22701 (SC)_ refers.

Another salient point that can be inferred from the decision of the Supreme Court in Princewill Anuebunwa’s case is that a document must be proved to have been produced by a computer before the provision of Section 84 can be activated. (See: A. Omolaye-Ajileye, Electronic Evidence, Revised edn., Jurist publication Lokoja, 2019, P. 569). See also: Zenith Bank PLC v. Nacoil International Limited. (CA/L593/2015, Unreported).

 

Validation of another exception formulated in the book: Electronic Evidence

The statement of law established by the Supreme Court in Princewill Anuebunwa’s case validates another theory of exception to Section 84 of the Evidence Act formulated by this writer in Chapter Thirteen of his book: Electronic Evidence (A. Omolaye-Ajileye, Electronic Evidence, Revised edn., Jurist publication Lokoja, 2019, Pp. 273-274) where it is stated thus:

“Another exception that may be extracted under section 84 (4) relates to documents that are generated using the computer merely as a tool such as a typewriter, for converting a text from one form to another e.g., letters, applications, petitions, etc. In such a situation, a document such as a letter, application, or petition is drafted on a computer and then printed out.

The author appends his signature after verifying the content of the document, to authenticate it. The role of the software here has no significance as the software has not been instructed to alter the contents of the text input by the author. The only function the computer is serving is to store the information input by the author. There is no processing or value-added in terms of computer-generated data. Furthermore, the fact that the printout is taken at the time of production takes away any challenge as to storage or metadata of the contents or any manipulation. This would be equivalent to when a person writes a letter with a pen or typewriter and signs the same after verifying the contents. The only difference would be the print style, font, and the use of features like spell check etc.”.

 

I then proceeded to differentiate this form of simple documents from documents produced through complicated processes where software plays a dominant role and computer analysis through Internet Protocols:

“In other cases, records are generated by software such as call detail records, and intercession voice clips. etc. in such cases manual intervention is very limited. Software plays a dominant role. This usually involves a process and analysis done by computer to produce such a document e.g. an account statement, or online transaction.”

 

 

Conclusion

 

On the whole, the verdict of the Supreme Court in Princewill Anuebunwa’s case is a welcome addition to the ever-growing jurisprudence of electronic evidence.  It can now be said that with the Supreme Court’s unequivocal pronouncement, the controversy around the status of a simple statement generated by a computer is now settled.

 

 

 

 

The Lagos State Judiciary has said it is investigating a report trending online about extortion by staff of the judiciary.

A statement by the Acting Chief Registrar, Tajudeen Elias, said state judiciary condemns such abhorrent behaviour.

It assured the public that the Lagos State Judiciary has zero tolerance for corruption and will swiftly and decisively deal with any of its officers against whom such is proven.

The statement stated: “The State Judiciary is aware of the trending online news of unprofessional conduct by some officers reported to be in the habit of extorting money from members of the public.

It  said:  “the Lagos State Judiciary just like any other organisation may have errant officers who deviate from the laid down rules but what is important is that such errant officers are decisively dealt with after being given fair hearing.

“It is important to state unequivocally that the Lagos State Judiciary condemns such abhorrent behaviour if confirmed to be true.

“There are internal investigative and disciplinary mechanisms usually deployed as part of our management system and such have been promptly activated in this particular circumstance.

“This office is currently investigating this reported incident and the officers involved are being put through the necessary process for the appropriate disciplinary measures,” it added.

 

The Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA) Resource Centre has sued the Lagos State Government at an Ikeja High Court over the validity of Lagos State Parking Authority Law as against the 1999 Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).

The defendants are the Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the Attorney-General and the Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly.

In the suit, ID/5927GCM/2022, the Claimant (The incorporated Trustees of HEDA Resource Center) prays the court to repeal the law, Lagos State Parking Authority Law, Law of Lagos State Ch. L50, Volume 6, which is inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).

HEDA through its counsel, David Ogungbesan, is seeking interpretation on the following questions:

Whether by virtue of Section 1(e) of the Fourth Schedule to the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), the 2nd Defendant validly enacted the Lagos State Parking Authority Law, Law of Lagos State Ch. L50, Volume 6 as a law for Lagos State;  Whether the Lagos State Government can validly take control of all bus-stops, parks and garages in the State through the Lagos State Parking Authority considering Section 1(e) of the Fourth Schedule to the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).

It is also seeking interpretation on whether in view of Section 1(3) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), the Lagos State Parking Authority Law, Law of Lagos State Ch. L50, Volume 6 should be declared void as being inconsistent with Section 1(e) of the Fourth Schedule to the 1999 Constitution of the Federal of Nigeria (as amended).

According to the claimant, Section 1(e) of the Fourth Schedule to the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) provides that one of the main functions of a Local Government Council in Nigeria is the establishment, maintenance and regulation of motor parks.

“That the Lagos State Parking Authority Law is inconsistent with the provision of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended). That by Section 1(3) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Lagos State Parking Authority Law is null and void,”

In its Originating Summons brought pursuant to Order 5 Rule 4 & 5 of the High Court of Lagos State (CIVIL Procedure) Rules 29, HEDA maintained that the Defendants: Lagos State Governor, Attorney General of Lagos State (Ministry of Justice) and the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, flagrantly ignored the Supreme law (1999 constitution) as amended, and went ahead to enact the law under review.

Upon the Court’s resolution of the above questions, the claimant seeks the following reliefs:

A declaration that by virtue of Section 1(3) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), the Lagos State Parking Authority Law, Law of Lagos State Ch. L50, Volume 6 is void being inconsistent with Section 1(e) of the Fourth Schedule to the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).

The group asks the court for a  declaration that the Lagos State Parking Authority Law, Law of Lagos State Ch. L50, Volume 6 being inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) stands repealed.

It in addition asked for a declaration that each local government area in Lagos State shall maintain, control and manage all parks, bus-stops and garages that fall within their respective areas in Lagos State as provided for in Section 1(e) of the Fourth Schedule to the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) among others.

A date is yet to be fixed for hearing in the matter.