The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Lawyers

  • CJ urges lawyers to embrace ADR

    The Acting Chief Judge (CJ) of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Justice I. M. Bukar, has urged lawyers to embrace Alternative Disputes Resolution (ADR) in order to reduce litigation.

    He spoke at the inauguration of nine committees of the Nigerian Bar Association (Abuja) branch executive.

    The branch Chairman, Mr Desmond Yamah, urged the chairmen and members of the committees to discharge their duties with the fear of God and impartiality.

    Justice Bukar asked lawyers to be disciplined to enable the Judges meet the performance evaluation standards set for them by the National Judicial Council (NJC).

    Under the new regime, the judges are to grant very few injunctions and give a required number of judgments per quarter.

    He said courts were yet to get the high level of automation and computerisation that will make judges expedite justice delivery at the speed of light.

    Lawyers, he said, must first explore the ADR before coming to the court to avoid flooding the courts with frivolous suits.

    He frowned at a situation, where a counsel would come to court on a day a matter is set for judgment and be applying to amend his writ.

    He solicited the cooperation of the Bar and bench to facilitate effective and efficient justice delivery.

    He promised to attend the NBA meeting to speak on how to manage cases and embrace litigation.

    The committees, which were inaugurated, are the Welfare, Judiciary, the Legislative advocacy Working, the Editorial committee of the Unity Voice, Law Reporting, Finance, Continuing legal education committee, the Young lawyers Forum, and the Section on Business Law.

     

  • Lawyers to Jonathan: let Nigerians judge

    Lawyers to Jonathan: let Nigerians judge

    In his mid-term report presented last week, President Goodluck Jonathan gave his administration a pass mark.“We have done well,” he said. But some lawyers disagree, saying the administration must buckle up to meet the people’s expectations in the remaining two years of its tenure. Adebisi Onanuga reports.

    HOW has the Jonathan administration fared in the past two years? It has done well, says President Goodluck Jonathan in his mid-term report to mark the Democracy Day last Wednesday. Some lawyers disagree with this verdict, urging the administration to do more to better the people’s lot in its remaining time in office. For the President, the Democracy Day was an auspicious time to give an account of his administration. He told a gathering at the International Conference Centre, Abuja that his administration had performed “excellently” in the last two years.

    Jonathan launched a document on the performance of his administration at the ceremony. At the event, were former Head of State Gen. Yakubu Gowon; Second Republic President Shehu Shagari and former Head of Interim National Government Chief Ernest Shonekan, among others.

    Jonathan said: “Today, we are marking the end of the first 24 months, which is our mid-term review and my duty is to formally present a document that all Nigerians will be able to read and assess us.”

    He said the gathering was the perfect platform to formally present the document to all Nigerians on the activities of government in the past two years.

    “I plead with all of us, especially those who want to assess and write about it, to develop criteria because without a marking scheme, you cannot mark any student’s paper. Two years of a government, this is what we have done; develop your marking scheme and score us”, he said.

    Three officials gave a glimpse of what the report card looks like. They are Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Anyim Pius Anyim; Minister of Finance Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Minister of National Planning, Dr Shamsudeen Usman, who gave the government a pass mark.

    Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala said remarkable progress had been made in the economy. According to her,Nigeria’s economy was strong and growing, and that foreign reserve is $50 billion, up from $32.08 billion in May 2011. She said due to the level of foreign reserve, foreign exchange had remained stable in the past two years. Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is one of the fastest growing in the world. The GDP growth in 2013 is expected to be at 6.5 per cent (NBS) or 7.2 per cent (IMF).

    Inflation rate, she said, has slowed down to 9.1 per cent per cent from 12.4 per cent in May 2011. She said the focus of the government was to complete ongoing projects. Stressing the determination of the government to reduce the country’s debt, she said the government had begun retiring existing debts.

    “We want to keep our debts at a very manageable level.”

    The minister said the cost of government was reducing due to a policy to lower recurrent expenditure and complete unfinished capital projects. Recurrent expenditure dropped from 74.4 per cent of total budget in 2011 to 68.7 per cent in 2013 while annual borrowing has reduced from N852 billion in 2011 to N588 billion this year.

    On expenditure, Dr Okonjo-Iweala said Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) have resulted in N118.9 billion savings on the payroll cost, and that 58 per cent of the budget was being executed through the introduction of the Government Integrated Financial Management and Information System (GIFMIS). Through the Treasury Single Account (TSA), she said the government’s overdrawn position has dropped from N102 billion in 2011 to N19 billion in 2012.

    To prevent corruption in the various pension schemes, she said: “All the pension schemes are now coming under one roof to check abuses.”

    On the Subsidy Re-Investment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P), she said last years, the Federal Government got N180 billion, states – N154 billion and local governments – N76 billion for various projects. Speaking on investment climate, the Finance minister said  Nigeria had become the highest destination for investment in view of the improvement in the  power sector, adding that the on-going privatisation would boost the power sector.

    Usman, who gave an overview of the Transformation Agenda of the government, said: “Mr. President is actually setting a record in Nigeria. He is raising the bar.”

    According to him, about eight of the 14 key objectives set by the administration in 2011 have been achieved by the government.

    Anyim said the government should not only be assessed by the physical infrasructure in place now but that there are many intangible achievements that have been recorded in the past two years.

    To Anyim, there have been stability and no interference with the legislature. He pointed out that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been receiving more funds towards procuring electoral materials, like permanent voters’ cards, among other things.

    “We have recorded some progress, but a lot is yet to be achieved,” he said.

    Much as the ministers spoke glowingly about the achievements of the administration of Goodluck Jonathnan, many Nigerians and lawyers have a contrary view of his administration, especially against the background of the unending killing of innocent Nigerians by the Islamic sect, Boko Haram, high level corruption, the increasing rate of kidnappings and armed robberies, the reckless spending in government, all which appeared to have defied solution.

    They also believe that determining whether a government had done well in office is better left to the people.

    Speaking at the opening of the first Jigawa State Economic and Investment Summit at the Sir Ahmadu Bello Hall in Dutse, former President Olusegun Obasanjo said  leadership was another cankerworm facing the country.

    “You know you can help somebody to get the job, but you cannot help him to do it. If somebody cannot do the job, we have Sule Lamido who we are confident can do the job,” he told a crowd of would-be investors, dignitaries and ordinary folks.

    He described  the Boko Haram insurgency and the growing unemployment as a time bomb waiting to explode. Obasanjo said the government should have approached the Boko Haram insurgency the way he (Obasanjo) handled Odi (Bayelsa State) and Zaki Biam (Benue State) communities when he was the president.

    Lagos lawyer Bamidele Aturu said the government had not lived up to the expectations of Nigerians.

    His words:“People must understand that democracy is for us to stand up and demand what is right. This mid-term report that Jonathan has given is his own idea of setting the exam and giving himself marks.

    “It is only a very funny student that would set exams for himself and give himself marks. To even give a mid-term report today is a sign of unseriousness from the Federal Government, you don’t mark yourself, let the people asses you. When you begin to asses yourself, then there is a fundamental problem.

    “I am not saying this for Jonathan alone; I say it for all the leaders, even down to the local governments. Our leaders have failed us. My take on this is this: If you say you have achieved and Nigerians are not seeing your achievements who are you achieving for? This is a made up achievement, there is no doubt there are no achievements here. If he says he will shock us with his achievements we cannot be shocked again. What I want to say is this; our leaders have failed us, not just the President but leadership at all level. There is no development,” he added.

    A lawyer, Ikechukwu Ikeji, said there could be no better marking scheme for performance than what one sees. Performance indicators or indices do not exist on the pages of a book or in the mouth of the person being assessed.

    “Let’s take electricity, corruption, education, manufacturing, roads, to mention a few, as marking scheme. What existed before the present administration came to power and what exists now? Do we have a substantially improved electricity supply? The answer is no. We hear that they are struggling to achieve a meagre 10,000 megawatts by December 2014. What a shame, when South Africa has a reserve of more than 135,000 megawatts. Why can’t they work out a structured plan of getting the cities lit one after the other, for example, give Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja 24 hours supply, them move to other cities one after the other.

    “Are we winning the fight against corruption? The answer is an emphatic  no. In point of fact, there is presently no war against corruption, which has become institutionalised in Nigeria. What happened to the Ribadu report on petroleum income? Are our industries growing? The obvious answer is no. What has happened to the different steel industries? The only area of manufacturing that seems to have some level of relative sanity appears to be the cement industry with the Dangotes, the Lafarges and the Ibetos calling the shots. How about our refineries? They are moribund. What about our roads? We hear so much noise about plans to open up the rail lines but these exist more on paper than on geound. Opening up working rail lines will greatly boost the economy. Railway towns have historically been known as centres of development.”

    Ikeji went on: “Of what use is government policy if the ordinary man on the street does not feel the impart, if it does not help in putting food on the table or providing employment or profitable business environment? he asked

    Ikeji said what Jonathan presented surely do not measure up as dividends of democracy.

    “In terms of doing well, I would say that the present state of emergency going on in three states is a plus. But beyond that, security challenges still remain a real threat”.

    He said the government has continued to deceive the masses “and we are all suffering and smiling and the beat goes on. The few who find themselves in government become massively rich and mediocrity becomes a virtue while excellence is thrown aboard… Corruption remains endemic, it remains the rule rather than the exception. Culture of impunity thrives in the land while the poor citizens behold their leaders in overwhelming affluence”, he said.

    To him, the President is just going through the motions like other past leaders without really impacting on the Nigerian situation and so the status quo remains and the problems mount.

    As a way out, Ikeji suggested that the fight against corruption must take the front seat in all government activities. We should aim at building strong institutions and not strong personalities. If the President is not ready to step on toes, especially those of powerful interests, we should forget about redemption. We will continue to decay as a society, he noted.

    Constitutional lawyer Ike Ofuokwu described the mid-term report as an economic abracadabra, that is: the more you look the less you see. The only thing glowing in the report is the audience and the language of the report. Any report that does not translate into putting food on the table of Nigerians is only worth the piece of paper on which it was written, he said.

    “We want to see escalating issues of unemployment and insecurity addressed. We want to see all the billions expended on thepower sector translate into lights beyond Aso Rock. Nigerians want electricity in their homes and not lamps. We want the issues of decaying infrastructures particularly Federal roads properly addressed. We want to see a mid term report that de-emphasises swagger of Government Officials and highlights on their role as servants out to serve the people. We want a Government that will see to quality delivery of our  health services instead of expending public funds in treating headaches overseas.

    “Honestly, I sympathise with this administration because from what is on ground the next two years portrays a situation of hopelessness. The only meaningful expectation from them is a ‘do or die affair’ for 2015 election since all the permutations and activities in Government swings only towards that course,” Ofoukwu said.

    Former Publicity Secretary, NBA Ikeja Branch, Samson Omodara, said: “There is virtually nothing to showcase other than weak governance that has permeated the entire national life accentuated by corruption and insecurity that is threatening our corporate existence.”

    Managing Partner of TC Akanwa and Co., Mr Theophilus Akanwa, said: “What more do you expect from a politician than to blow his trumpet himself even when he knows within himself that he has done nothing, despite the huge financial resources at his beck and call.

    “This administration has performed below expectation of the good people Nigeria. What is mid term report that tends to portray excellence in a paper work without physical realities?” he asked.

    “The reality on ground is that corruption is not been fought. There is no security hence bokoharam, kidnapping of people even relations of those in the same govt. Imagine a Supreme Court justice’s wife and relatives being kidnapped. It is a shame!

    “Cost of running business is so high because there is no electricity. We only hear of the drop of megawatts despite d huge resources. The roads are still death traps. Unemployment is on the rise and criminality springs up. Hunger is on the land. Nigerians are suffering.

    “Let this government allow Nigerian masses to assess them by what we can see and not to venture into paper works”, he said.

    Abuja based lawyer, Dr. Ahmed Sanusi remarked that one could be tempted to think that not much has been achieved under this administration in the last two years. This is so, when viewed on the scale of general insecurity in the land, growing unemployment, rising poverty level, poor infrastructure, among others.

    He believes that the government has done well in upholding rule of law and human rights and dignity.

    “People are no longer being killed unnecessarily by state agents because they share opposing views or are seen as threat to government in any form. You can remember what it was under Abacha and Obasanjo. The murder of Bola Ige and others have not been resolved till date. People are also not being arrested and detained arbitrarily for no just cause”, he said.

    Sanusi noted that there is less interference in judicial proceedings, unlike what obtained under Obasanjo, where court decisions were subjected to Executive interpretation.   In this instance, the Supreme Court decision in the case between the Lagos and the Federal Government over the withholding of the state’s local government allocation comes to mind.  There also the Obasanjo government’s reluctance in obeying court judgment on the voiding of the impeachment of Ladoja as Oyo state governor.

    He argued that to an extent, there is less federal government’s interference in electoral process. We have seen instances where the ruling PDP has lost election and the Federal Government did not make effort to influence it.

    “So, in those areas, the government could be given a pass mark. But there is a lot to be done, particularly in the areas of power, security, employment, provision of social amenities, among others.

    It is my hope that the government should be more tolerance of criticism, indulge in less of politics and focus more of delivering on its electoral promises in the next two years”, he advised.

    ANPP National Financial Secretary, Alhaja Fatima Muhammed said that she does not know what is giving President Jonathan the confidence that he has performed in the last two years.

    According to her, “things have gotten worse compared to when Jonathan got into power. I am not saying that he should be impeached, all I know is that by 2015, the country will be singing another song of victory. The PDP government has ruled for 14 years without improvement in the lives of the people. Nigerians are not enjoying the dividends of democracy.”

     

  • Reps, lawyers, Tsav condemn PDP over Amaechi’s suspension

    Reps, lawyers, Tsav condemn PDP over Amaechi’s suspension

    •’It’s a bad omen for democracy’

    Members of the House of Representatives yesterday criticised the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over the suspension Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi.

    Minority Leader of the House Femi Gbajabiamila described the move as an act of desperation.

    He said: “This tells you how low a government will go when desperate. This is an accidental government. There is supposed to be an art and a science to governance but this one possesses neither. First it was the State Assembly members that were purportedly suspended and now it is the governor.”

    Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream) Dakuku Peterside said it was a bad omen and a major setback to Nigeria’s quest for true democracy.

    Peterside, in a statement, said: “This is an inauspicious moment to suspend a popular governor who is not only marking his 48th birthday but was also a few days ago, re-elected by his colleagues in the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) as Chairman.

    “This news is baffling and a major blow to lovers of democracy because it violates the right of an individual to associate freely, to vote and be voted for in any democratic process. The NGF is not an extension of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), thus not governed by the constitution of the PDP. This is also a major impediment to PDP’s future as a party as Governor Amaechi is seen in Nigeria today as one of the most outstanding governors.

    “What would it benefit a political party to suspend its most performing governor? Therefore, to my mind, this decision is not only ill-timed but ominous and capable of threatening the foundation of democracy, especially the process of free, fair and transparent elections in Nigeria.

    “This ignoble action of the PDP Working Committee signposts what to expect in the build up to 2015: divergent views will not be tolerated and this is dangerous”.

    Deputy Minority Whip Datti Ahmed (CPC Kaduna) said the PDP members were bad losers.

    He said: “This has shown what PDP is all about; it is about illegality and rigging. They are just giving us bad example because they are bad losers. This decision cannot stand because he has to freedom of association to vote and be voted for.

    “He has not committed any offence. Even the PDP knows it cannot stand. You cannot suspend somebody for exercising his fundamental human rights. We in the opposition are very happy about what is happening in the PDP. It is nemesis and it shows that PDP is on its way to the grave.

    “Everyday is for the thief one day is for the owner. It is the injustice that they have done that is haunting. They are expelling the democrats among. Let them suspend more we are waiting for them. This is the right time for them to join the opposition.”

    Chairman, House Committee on Anti- Corruption

    Abiodun Faleke condemned the decision. “Suspension? For exercising his right to vote and be voted for. It shows the type of party PDP is.”

    Another member, Sokonte Davis (PDP Rivers), said the action was laughable.

    He said: “It is unfortunate that this is the only time I have heard that somebody is punished for winning. If canvassing for the support of his colleagues is a crime, why is the defeated anointed candidate not equally suspended since he has opposition members like Peter Obi who supported him?

    “On the other hand, why participate in a process you expect only your party members to be lobbied? They shouldn’t have gone into the elections at all since they already have their own governors.

    “I think that this action has made the party to become opprobrious to the generality of the country. In fact , I am yet to believe that the story is true. If it is true, then all the denials that the main purpose of the Rivers State crisis is not to chase Amaechi and his supporters from the party have turned out to be lies. Those who play or want to play God should not forget that power belongs to God and he gives it to whomever and however it pleases.”

    A former Lagos State Commissioner for Police, Abubakar Tsav, said the suspension was unfair.

    He said: “Every person, who is elected and took oath of office and allegiance as a state governor, is expected to be above reproach, temperate, self controlled, respectable, reliable, impartial, dependable, honest, forthright and God fearing. The governors agreed to form an association and named it Nigerian Governors’ Forum. They unanimously agreed to hold election for the chairmanship position. Election was held and Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State was declared winner. A few hours later Governor Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State who is neither the returning nor electoral officer, declared Governor Jonah Jang of Plateau State as winner. Couldn’t the governors resolve this quietly or they simply want to satisfy the President? Now Amaechi is suspended from the PDP. Is this Democracy? What are the factional governors teaching the youths? A shame of a nation !”

    Senior lawyers, such as Emeka Ngige (SAN), Yusuf Ali (SAN) and Dr. Fred Agbaje condemned the NWC’s decision.

    Ngige said: “It is unfair. The National Working Committee shouldn’t have relied on the report of the faction that is at the logger head with the governor. Moreso, the NWC didn’t summon Amaechi to appear and defend his action. Anyway, there is no cause for alarm. I am sure the governor is equal to the task. What is playing out is part of the script written by the powerful forces in the PDP to deal with Amaechi. He should challenge the suspension in court.”

    Ali said the PDP was vindictive. He said: “Political party is like any other association. You are free to join and abide by the rules. But in the case of Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi, there are elements of vindictiveness the way PDP is handling the matter. Nigerians are embarrassed by politics of hatred, intolerance and that everybody in the party should go to the same direction as exemplified by PDP in the Rivers State crisis. I want to believe that his suspension is out of his victory at Nigeria Governors’ Forum chairmanship election.

    “The country is faced with serious challenges like epileptic power supply, insecurity of life and property which would be tackled by government rather than dissipating energy on petty and primitive politics.”

    Dr. Agbaje said the PDP has succeeded in cutting “noses to spite its ugly faces”.

    He said: “The suspension can never demean the political ruggedness, popularity, astuteness and irokoness in Amaechi. PDP leadership is jittery and acting politically demagoguery and a clear case of infantile puerility. What is wrong in Amaechi exercising his freedom to freely associate? This is the question every right thinking member of the Nigeria society should ask PDP leadership. What PDP did to Amaechi better put thus: ile oba to jo, ewa lo bu si. (A burnt king’s house will turn out more beautiful) Tukur deserved to be commended for leading PDP astray.

    However, the National Vice Chairman of PDP, Ishola Filani, said the decision was in order.

    Filani said: “The National Working Committee (NWC) must have articulately verified their facts before they decided to suspend him from the party. Suspension is usually done with a view to investigate an offence levelled against somebody and that is what the NWC has done. This is in principle with democracy but however, I am not in any position to pass judgement on what has happened. He is only on suspension and has not been expelled from the party.”

    A member, Kingsley Chinda (PDP Rivers) said the action was appropriate.

    “ I have said the party is superior to its members. Without discipline we cannot progress, however, fairness, equity and due process must be complied with in the process,” he said.

  • How to stop kidnapping, by lawyers

    How to stop kidnapping, by lawyers

    Atraditional ruler and retired Deputy Comptroller-General of Customs, Chief Lawrence Oragwu, was abducted by unknown gunmen on June 2, 2011 in Agulu, Anaocho Local Government Area, Anambra State, on his way from church. Till date, he has not been found, dead or alive, nor has his family been contacted.

    On October 24 last year, a Federal High Court, Lagos, ordered the State Security Service (SSS) and the Inspector-General of Police to investigate his kidnap and to report to the court in three months. But there has been no news on the 80-year-old regent’s abduction, three years after he went missing.

    Chief Oragwu’s abduction may be unusual as his family has not been reached with a ransom demand. The incidence of kidnapping in Nigeria has risen considerably in the last 10 years.

    The latest of several high profile kidnap cases is that of Lagos lawyer Adedoyin Rhodes-Vivour, whose husband is a Justice of the Supreme Court.

    She, with her daughter, said to be preparing to get married, and their driver, were kidnapped on May 10 near Benin in Edo State.

    Security agencies were said to have expanded the search for the three to Ondo and Ekiti states following tracking signals that the kidnappers have relocated to some swamps along the two neighbouring states.

    As at the time of filing this report, the kidnappers were said to have got in touch with some people, leading to the tracking of their location by the police and other security agencies.

    In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person’s will. It involves holding the person in false imprisonment or confinement without legal authority. This may be done for ransom or in furtherance of another crime.

    Nigeria is now ranked among such countries as Haiti, Iraq, Afghanistan, Chechyna, Philippines, Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela and Mexico as kidnap havens, and is said to have moved up to the third position, behind Mexico and Columbia since 2007.

    Kidnapping for ransom is a common occurrence in various parts of the world today, and certain cities and countries are often described as the “Kidnapping Capital of the World.”

    In 2009, the Los Angeles Times named Phoenix, Arizona as America’s kidnapping capital, reporting that every year hundreds of ransom kidnappings occur there, virtually all within the underworld associated with human and drug smuggling from Mexico, and often done as a way of collecting unpaid debts.

    In Nigeria, recent high profile kidnaps that come to mind are father of Nigerian footballer, John Obi Mikel, mother of the Finance Minister, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; chairman of Ejigbo Local Council Development Area, Lagos State, Kehinde Bamigbetan and elder statesman Shettima Monguno in Maiduguri.

    Others are Nollywood actors Pete Edochie and Nkem Owoh, elder brother of Super Eagles Defender Joseph Yobo, Nornu and footballer Christian Obodo.

    Criminal gangs are estimated to make up to $500 million a year in ransom payments from kidnapping. There were reports that a whopping N50 million was paid within 72 hours to secure Monguno’s release.

    Motives behind kidnappings include ransom, ritual purposes and terrorism-related reasons. There have also been cases of stage-managed kidnappings where people have colluded with kidnappers to stage their own abduction and later share the ransom with the supposed kidnappers.

    Earlier in the year, some foreign construction workers were kidnapped on a site in Bauchi State. A terrorist group, Ansaru, claimed responsibility and later showed videos that led to the belief that the hostages might have been shot and killed.

    The group claimed it executed the foreigners due to an attempt to rescue them. Another family of seven French nationals ended up in the hands of terrorists who captured them in Northern Cameroon and drove them into Nigeria.

    While high profile cases get wide-ranging media attention, a lot of kidnapping incidents are resolved without publicity. Many people prefer to quietly pay the demanded ransom and move on as soon as the release of the victim is secured.

    On February 26, 2006, Niger Delta militants kidnapped foreign oil workers to press home their demand, and since then, kidnapping seem to have been commercialised.

    Victims have changed from being predominantly foreign oil workers to Nigerians, including parents, grandparents, toddlers and about anyone who has a relative that could be blackmailed into coughing out a ransom.

    Analysts, including lawyers, say the rising incidence of kidnapping is one of the major symptoms of both ‘failed’ and ‘failing’ states.

    They believe most of the countries where kidnapping have been pervasive have been either failed or failing states – Baghdad after the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Columbia from the 1970s until about 2001, and Mexico between 2003 and 2007.

    In most cases, kidnap victims are usually locked up with little or no attention paid to their physical needs or hygiene. It has also been found out that treatments meted out to victims vary. Sometimes kidnappers are harsh and hostile to their victims while at times they are courteous and unusually kind. Sadly, many victims have to cope with post-kidnap trauma even years after being released.

    Many lives have been lost in the hands of kidnappers. While some die in the course of the harrowing experiences they are made to go through, some are deliberately executed, either as a result of having become “excess luggage” or when ransom is not forthcoming.

    Some victims have also paid the ultimate price when kidnappers find out that their families play too smart by involving security agents in the ransom process in a bid to arrest them.

    An attempt by a combination of British Special Forces and Nigerian troops to rescue to a Frenchman and a Briton who were taken hostage by suspected terrorists in Sokoto last year led to their execution by their abductors.

    Some have called for an amendment of the laws to make kidnapping a capital offence, although others have argued that the existence of the death sentence has not stopped armed robbery.

    Last year, the Delta State House of Assembly, alarmed by the growing kidnapping trend, proposed the “Delta State Anti-Kidnapping and Anti-Terrorism Bill, 2012” which sought to impose death sentences for kidnappers.

    Bamigbetan, whose family allegedly paid N15 million before he was released, said said God made his captors to change their minds despite their initial plan to kill him. According to him, the kidnappers claimed that they were graduates and that they did not like what they were doing but had to do it due to lack of jobs.

    “One claimed to be an engineering graduate, another claimed to be a human resources management graduate, while another said he was already in final year in an American university when his father’s shopping complex was demolished and he had to be recalled home,” he said.

    Worried by the incessant abduction of its members, the Edo State chapter of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) petitioned President Goodluck Jonathan on the state of insecurity in Edo, particularly kidnappings, with the doctors apparently being the main targets.

    Among doctors kidnapped was the Chief Medical Director of the Federal Psychiatric Hospital, Benin, Olabisi Ihenyen, and her husband, Lionel.

    The doctors blamed the porous security situation in the country on insensitivity on the part of government officials at all levels, adding that the effect of kidnapping on the state is too enormous, as it scares away potential investors and robs the state of the benefit of development opportunities.

    “It clearly appears to us that the only safe place to live in Nigeria is Aso Rock,” they said.

    “We therefore urge you to deploy the same security arrangement in the villa to the rest of Nigeria. That is the only way we can be assured that you are truly working in the interest of the people of this country.”

    The NMA also said the scourge of kidnapping is a direct result of the “long-standing irresponsibility of successive Nigerian leaders,” resulting from bad governance and corruption. It also blamed Nigeria’s “sad culture that venerates wealth without regard to its source”.

    Experts say kidnapping affects the tourism potential of countries. Factors linked with the increase in kidnap cases in Nigeria include the distressed economic situation in the country, widening gap between the rich and the poor, unemployment, greed and get-rich-quick syndrome.

    Low level of security has made arrest of kidnappers difficult, and the fact only few of those arrested have been prosecuted and punished seem to have emboldened perpetrators.

    Lawyers believe a reform of the criminal justice system is essential to remove the bottlenecks in speedy justice dispensation. They said beyond strengthening the security agencies, improved intelligence gathering and building of public confidence in the security system to engender citizens cooperation are needed.

    More importantly, the fundamental issues that encourage crimes such as kidnapping to thrive, including impunity among public officials and corruption must be decisively dealt with through effective leadership.

    Analysts say to curb the menace, the government must provide equipment such as tracking machines and cameras to enable the security agencies track kidnappers easily.

    There is also need to equip the security agencies better in order not to endanger the lives of victims. A law is also needed to deal with those whose homes are used as hiding points. The Anambra State government recently ordered the demolition of such hideouts.

    The kidnap of members of Justice Rhodes-Vivour’s family has generated a lot of reactions. Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Okey Wali (SAN) condemned the abduction.

    He said: “This is a very disheartening development. What has the Supreme Court justice done to deserve this traumatic experience? This is an assault on administration of justice itself. For whatever reason those that kidnapped his wife and daughter have, it is a very wrong reason and a very wrong decision.”

    Former NBA President Olisa Agbakoba (SAN) said the high incidence of kidnapping was becoming shocking. He urged security agencies to do more.

    Chairman, NBA Lagos Branch, Taiwo O. Taiwo, said the kidnap of Mrs Rhodes- Vivour, a very active member of his branch, shows that no one is safe.

    Chairman, NBA, Ikeja Branch, Onyekachi Ubani, expressed displeasure at the state of insecurity and government’s inability to address the issue.

    He said it was frightening and alarming that judges and their family members were now targets of the kidnappers, adding that the danger this would do to the already battered justice system was better imagined.

    He called on all government agencies and other relevant stakeholders to arrest this situation.

    A lecturer at the Nigerian Law School, Mr Nelson Ogbuanya, said: “Incidentally, kidnapping landscape in Nigeria has been elevated out of criminality to business concern. Speaking from corporate legal point of view, the scenario is just analogous to business operation, where proposal is submitted and the contract negotiated and executed with full payment made.

    “Here, the victims are kidnapped and their family member(s) contacted with a ransom proposal (ranging in millions of naira). The family, in a desperate but needed gesture to safe life, usually cooperates and accepts to pay a negotiated sum.

    “Thereafter, the victim is released and the family hosts an expensive thanksgiving party with friends and well-wishers(potential victims), for being released unhurt! Then the next victim….and the business goes on…

    “Despite the risk elements in high profile kidnapping witnessed so far in Nigeria, how many companies can post even a pre-tax profit as much as the sum reportedly paid as ransom by families of kidnap victims?

    “Paradoxically, it is the return on investment that provides the incentive for continuity, particularly in a lax environment.”

    Rights activist Bamidele Aturu said until the leaders correct social imbalances, kidnapping would remain. He added: “Kidnappers must be fished out and punished firmly and swiftly. The truth is that the political elite have lost it completely. The security agencies are merely groping in the dark while anarchy reigns supreme.

    “It is amazing that President Goodluck Jonathan and his security chiefs are watching idly while Nigeria is parceled among ethno-religious militias of various hues.

    “This sort of incompetence, I believe, is unknown to human history. Let no one politicise the madness that is going on in Nigeria, it is not a case of failure of leadership or of the state (as some fancy), but their absence.

    “The state is not failing in Nigeria, nor has it failed, it has vanished. Welcome to warlordism of the most virulent kind.”

    Another human rights lawyer, Ebun Adegboruwa, blamed youth unemployment, corruption and economic mismanagement as the root causes of kidnapping.

    He said: “Judges are very conservative people, they do not appropriate or allocate funds, they don’t administer pension fund or execute projects, and they have no private jets and mansions, but rather depend on their meagre salaries which, often times, are paid very late.

    “So, most of the judges, like all our youths who turned to kidnapping, are all victims of mis-governance and crass corruption. It will be demoralising to other judges if they have to be kept in a state of fear and trauma of kidnapping.

    “It will in turn affect the quality of judgments to be delivered by them and ultimately impact negatively on the democratic template,” Adegboruwa said.

    He called on the NBA to urgently dialogue with the relevant government authorities to firm up the safety and welfare of judicial officers.

     

  • Lawyers’ committee sacks four, suspends one

    Lawyers’ committee sacks four, suspends one

    The Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) yesterday announced the prohibition of four lawyers from further engaging in the practice of the profession.

    It directed the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court to strike off names from the roll of legal practitioners in the country.

    LPDC’s Chairman, Joseph Daudu (SAN), said in Abuja yesterday that decisions stemmed from findings of the panel that the respondents were guilty of infamous conduct.

    Those affected include Dominic Ntiero, Timipa Okponipere, G.C Monye and J.A Agwuncha.

    Another lawyer, Olawole Ajoge-Daniel, was suspended for five years for a similar offence bordering professional misconduct.

    In relation to the allegation against Ntiero, Daudu said the respondent outrightly failed to appear to defend himself.

    “We were, however, satisfied by the committee’s secretary that there was due notice in The Punch newspaper.

    “The respondent’s act violated Rules 47, 50, and 51 of the Rules of Professional Conduct in the Legal Profession 2007 and Section 12 of the Legal Practitioners Act as Amended,” Daudu said.

    In its petition against Ntiero, the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) had alleged that Ntiero issued a dud cheque of N6.3 million to one of his clients, Rita Edet, over a failed agreement.

    In the case of Okponipere, Daudu said the respondent sometimes in 2007 admitted to have given unsolicited legal services to Timi Alaibe, an ex-Managing Director of Niger Delta Development Corporation (NDDC).

    Daudu stated that Okponipere claimed to have nominated Alaibe for a national merit award and, therefore, made demands for the sum of N40 million.

    He added that Okponipere failed to maintain the high standard of professional conduct expected of a legal practitioner.

    The NBA also alleged that Monyei, the principal partner at G.C. Monyei and Co, was engaged by GMNL sometimes in 2003 as a debt collector to recover the sum of N9.2 million from the Edo State Ministry of Justice.

    It stated that the money was an amount being the value of a Kodiak Bedford vehicle (Black Maria) supplied to the ministry.

    NBA further alleged that Monyei had collected the sum of N5 million on behalf of GMNL since May 3, 2005 as a part payment of the debt and converted to his personal use.

    Duadu directed the respondent to refund N4million to the GMNL.

    On the petition against Agwuncha, Duadu noted that he cheated his client by converting funds meant for the incorporating of a company (New Resources Bureau De Change) as a limited liability company.

    He added that Agwuncha took advantage of the confidence reposed in him as a lawyer to dupe the unsuspected client.

    “You failed to maintain the high standard of the professional conduct expected of a legal practitioner by engaging in a conduct unbecoming of a legal practitioner and thereby found guilty of the offence.

    “N651,800 be refunded to Lofty Investment Limited by the respondent.

    “The Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court is hereby directed to strike off the name of the respondent J.A Agwuncha from the Roll of Legal Practitioners in Nigeria.

    “The notice of the directions be immediately brought to the attention of the respondent by service on him personally or at his last known address and by publication in any edition of The Punch newspaper.

    “It should also by publication in the Federal Gazette as required by law,” he said.

    The committee directs that the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), the AGF of the 36 states and the FCT to be put on notice.

    After the proceedings, Daudu expressed delight on the outcomes of the cases so far, saying “it is no longer business as usual”.

    He said the judiciary must be repositioned to its former status, adding that the LPDC was prepared to carry out the reform.

    The leader of the NBA team that prosecuted the cases, Jubril Okutepa (SAN), said the current LPDC panel had achieved so much in the dispensation of petitions in a short while.

    The committee is expected to reconvene in June.

  • 50 lawyers represent ‘brutalised’ colleague in N500m suit

    Over 50 lawyers from the Ibadan branch of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) yesterday represented their colleague, who was allegedly brutalised by policemen, at the State High Court in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

    Mr. Joshua Olaniyan has sued the police for N500 million damages.

    Olaniyan was allegedly assaulted by policemen at the Kajorepo Police Division in Ibadan on April 3.

    The respondents in the suit are the Inspector-General of Police (IGP); the Commissioner of Police; the Divisional Police Officer; an Assistant Superintendent of Police, Mrs. Sola Olarenwaju; Kajorepo Divisional Crime Officer Etim Ebighe and a Corporal, Egunnusi Dominic.

    Olaniyan is seeking a declaration that his alleged detention and brutalisation were illegal.

    The lawyer was allegedly detained and brutalised by Mrs. Olanrewaju and her colleagues when he went to secure the release of a truck that was impounded by the police because the driver could not produce the waybill for his consignment.

    He said he took the waybill to the station and tried to explain to the police that the driver forgot it at home, but he was beaten up and detained. Olaniyan was released in the evening when the DPO intervened.

    At the hearing yesterday, 50 lawyers, led by Abiola Olagunju, made two applications. The first was a “Notice of Application for an Order Enforcing the Fundamental Rights” of the applicant.

    The second was an application to serve the notice on the third and eighth respondents through the office of the second respondent (the Police Headquarters, Eleyele, Ibadan).

    Justice Muktar Abimbola granted the second application and adjourned hearing of the first application till May 23. The applicant’s suit was filed by the office of R.O. Ogunwole (SAN).

  • Jonathan to support lawyers

    President Goodluck Jonathan has assured lawyers of his admnistration’s commitment to providing a conducive environment for them to practise.

    Jonathan spoke in Abuja at the weekend at a dinner held by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to raise funds for its planned headquarters building to be known as the NBA House.

    The President, represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, said he would support the association in realising its objective.

    Jonathan said the nation’s Bar deserves to be sufficiently and well accommodated to enable it effectively perform its role in the society.

     

  • Lagos to provide lawyers for the indigent during weekends

    The Lagos State government has promised to provide lawyers for defendants who have cases to answer in magistrates’ courts during weekends.

    The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Ade Ipaye, said in a statement on criminal justice administration issued in Lagos that arrangements have been made to provide counsels from the Directorate for Citizens’ Rights and Office of Public Defender (OPD) free to those who might need their services.

    Ipaye explained that the move is in furtherance of the state government’s policy of enlarging access to justice and ensuring service delivery at points of public need.

    “At least one court will be open for business on Saturday in every one of the seven Magisterial Districts of Lagos State to ensure that the machinery of justice is not concentrated in one part of the State at the expense of other locations.

    “Thus as from the commencement of this programme, there will be at least a Court sitting at each of the seven Magisterial District in Lagos. When the Courts sit on Saturdays, they have their full jurisdictional powers and can, among other things, hear matters relating to remand, bail and other non-custodial disposition.

    “You may recall in 2009, this administration enacted the Lagos State Magistrate Court Law No. 16 of 2009”, he said.

    The Justice commissioner remarked that one of the innovative provisions of the Lagos State Magistrate Court Law No. 16 of 2009 is the authorisation of at least one Magisterial Court in every magisterial District to be opened and available for business on Saturdays, adding that the rules and operational guidelines for the implementation of this provision have been issued by the Chief Judge of Lagos State, Justice A. A. Phillips.

    He said this step was especially necessitated by the need to ensure that citizens are not deprived of their liberty unjustly and that suspects who were arrested by the Police on Fridays would no longer be denied bail and made to spend the weekend in Police or Prison custody with the excuse that they can only be arraigned in Court the following Monday.

    “The Saturday sitting of Magistrate Courts in Lagos State is therefore a practical demonstration of our government’s commitment to the promotion of law and order as well as protection of fundamental rights of the citizenry” he said.

    He, therefore, enjoined the people of Lagos to take advantage of this latest development in justice delivery and to continue to partner with the state in its efforts to maintain security, law and order.

     

  • Nigeria,failing nation: where are the lawyers?

    Nigeria,failing nation: where are the lawyers?

    The story of Chief James Onanefe Ibori,the immediate former Governor of the oil rich Delta State, is still very fresh in our minds. A federal high court judge in Asaba, Delta State found Ibori, strangely though, not guilty in a 171-count charge of misappropriation of public funds, outright embezzlement of State’s funds and other grievous offences which can be likened to crime against humanity. In what later appeared like an “outsource” of criminal justice, he was found guilty by a United Kingdom court. Ibori’s case exposed the rot in the judicial process in the country as he was found guilty in London court. A man who through his Nigerian lawyers pleaded not guilty in Nigeria later pleaded guilty in the UK and has since been jailed alongside his collaborators, his wife – Theresa Ibori, sister, Christine Ibori-Idie, mistress, Udoamaka Okonkwo and his London-based lawyer Bhadresh Gohil.

    Delivering his address on March 9, 2011 in a landmark judgment, Justice Christopher Hardy sitting at a packed Southwark Crown Court in London told Bhadresh Gohil, a partner at Arlington Sharma Solicitors and James Ibori’s lawyer; “you have brought shame on your family, your profession and your country. You were a solicitor of the Supreme Court and holding out as a man of integrity. It’s sad the real villains are in Nigeria, but this fraud required special expertise and you lent yourself to it”, Justice Hardy concluded. Gohil was sentenced to seven years imprisonment for conspiracy to defraud and money laundering as well as sharing in the proceeds of Crime. Lawyers being sanctioned by the courts in other jurisdictions in cases like this are a common scenario, but lawyers in Nigeria who commit worse offences in form of unethical practice, more than Gohil are walking freely. In fact, some of them are paraded as leaders of the Bar in this country!

    Not until Nigerian lawyers do what is right, not until Nigerian judges act responsibly, our quest for a better society, rule of law, good governance and justice may be a mirage. The situation requires that the bodies put in place to sanitize the bench and bar become alive to their responsibilities so as to restore the peoples’ confidence in our judicial system. Many cases are taken out of this country because the people no longer trust that our courts are capable of administering justice. Companies and businesses are moving to other African countries that appear to guarantee justice in their system and that should be a concern for any citizen that desires national growth.

    We cry of lack of jobs, lack of economic opportunities and general apathy, what the lawyers can do to make the situation better is just to stick to the rules of their profession. Lawyers need to uphold the ethics of the legal profession because that is the only way the justice system can earn the trust that has evaded it. We have become a laughing stock in the comity of nations due to the precarious situation of the legal system and if we do not arrest the situation now, the country may collapse due to impunity. This has led to situation whereby most commercial agreements that contain arbitration clauses insist on having disputes resolved outside Nigeria. Owing to lack of confidence in the legal profession Nigerian lawyers and judges are no longer given serious consideration in international appointments. This is particularly embarrassing as many Nigerian lawyers and judges distinguished themselves in a number of countries where they had served in the past.

    I am not unaware that some lawyers have made suggestions on how to curb the menace of corruption in the country. For instance, two senior counsel: Yussuf Ali (SAN) and Niyi Akintola (SAN) are curiously involved in the campaign for the amendment of the anti-graft laws to prescribe the death penalty for offences relating to official corruption. With respect, the proponents of the death penalty should be made to appreciate that the death penalty has failed to serve as a deterrent in curbing violent crimes in any society. In the case of Nigeria, the death penalty was prescribed for armed robbery in 1970. That was 43 years ago. Today, armed robbery is on the ascendancy due to mass unemployment, poverty in the midst of plenty, corruption and moral decadence. I have always maintained that there are enough legislations to deal with corrupt practices, drug trafficking, human trafficking, terrorism and other dangerous offences. It is the lack of political will on the part of the ruling class coupled with the manipulation of the legal system by powerful litigants and senior lawyers which have continued to frustrate the investigation and prosecution of corruption cases. No society can successfully challenge criminality where impunity is the order of the day.

    No doubt, Nigerians were justifiably angry over the light sentence awarded Mr. John Yussuf by the Federal Capital Territory High Court after admitting his role in the N23 billion police pension scam. As far as I am concerned the attack of the trial judge is rather misdirected. Hence, in a recent interview on the criminal justice system I was compelled to observe that: “The light sentence which has angered Nigerians merely followed a consistent pattern. Ex-governor Lucky Igbinedion was charged with stealing N4 billion. He pleaded guilty and was fined N3 million. He paid and went home. Ex governor James Ibori was acquitted as the trial judge dismissed the 170-counter charge. The EFCC and the Delta State government are currently embroiled in a controversy over the ownership of the $15 million with which he bribed the then EFCC Chairman, Nuhu Ribadu. In a deliberate move to free Mr. Ibori, the judge refused to order that the $15 million bribe be forfeited to the Delta State Government which has now come up to lay claim to the money. In her own case Mrs. Cecilia Ibru was convicted of N190 billion fraud and jailed for 6 months. The trial judge even went outside the law to direct that she should spend her prison term in a highbrow hospital in Victoria Island, Lagos. Frankly speaking, I wonder why Nigerians are surprised at the turn of events.”

    It was my further observation that a few of our judges who have, in spite of pressures and temptations, continued to discharge their duties in line with their oath of office have been subjected to undue harrassment by the system. Hence I stated that: “I only pity the EFCC and the judges who might have been led to think that the system is committed to the fight against corruption. Justice Olubunmi Oyewole who had the courage to sentence Chief Bode George to a 2-year jail term was posted from the Criminal Division to the Probate Division in Lagos State. The reassignment was designed to stop him from jailing more members of the ruling class. There wasn’t much problem when the judge jailed 419 people like Ade Bende, Mrs. Anajemba, Nwude etc. But he was called to order when he jailed Chief George. Did the Federal Government not roll out the drums for the ex convict? Was he not given a triumphant entry to Lagos from the Kirikiri prisons when he completed his jail term? What the trial judge, Justice Abubakar Talba did in Yussuf’s pension scam case is an act of class of solidarity.”

    While Nigerians are critical of the mockery of the criminal justice system exhibited in corruption cases it is sad to note that the handling of drug related cases is by far worse. I am in possession of the report of a Committee set up in 1985 by the Federal Government on the reform of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA). The Committee found and confirmed that several offenders who were convicted and sentenced to prison terms by the Federal High Court never saw the four walls of the prison as they were illegally freed by a criminal syndicate of NDLEA prosecutors, defence counsel and prison officials. Thus, the Committee found that “out of the 143 drug convicts for the year 2006, 96 of them were never brought to prison. Similarly, another 101 drug convicts for the year 2005 were never brought to the prison, bringing the total convicts evading jail to 197 within this period.”

    For some inexplicable reasons the Federal Government has refused to implement the aforementioned recommendations of the Committee which would have repositioned the NDLEA to fight the menace of drug trafficking and consumption in Nigeria. Thus, the unpatriotic officials who were found to have engaged in recycling of confiscated hard drugs, prison evasion by drug convicts, corrupt practice and other vices have been treated like sacred cows. Consequently, the menace of drug trafficking has been on the increase in Nigeria.

    It may also interest Nigerians to know that persons convicted of illegal possession or use of hard drugs or narcotics are freed after paying meagre fines through questionable bargaining plea arranged by the Directorate of Prosecutions contrary to section 11 of the National Drug Law Enforcement Act (CAP N30) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 which has prescribed imprisonment of not less than 15 years but not exceeding 25 years. I am of the humble view that the NBA ought to set up a Committee Against Impunity to ensure that all indictable offences are prosecuted to a logical conclusion. The Committee should also be tasked with the responsibility to hold a watching brief in certain cases pertaining to corruption, drug trafficking, terrorism etc. This is the only way to stop the government from wasting scare resources and energies on cases that are deliberately programmed to fail.

    It is worthy to observe that the judiciary has responded positively to the concern of Nigerians. In the past one week, the courts have committed Mr. John Yussuf, Messrs. Farouk Lawan and Boniface Emenalo as well as Aminu Sule Lamido, the son of the Jigawa State governor to prison custody before ruling on their applications for bail. This has sent a clear message to Nigerians that the treatment of influential criminal suspects with kid gloves has stopped. In the circumstances, Nigerians should keep up the pressure on the judiciary.

     

    The way forward

    I believe that Nigerian lawyers are in a vantage position to ensure that the country is operated under the rule of law. To achieve the objective the NBA has to be re-organized to take over the management of the legal profession in the overall interest of its members and the society at large. This can only be done if the NBA is truly independent. To ensure such autonomy the natural officers of the NBA should nominate independent minded lawyers to represent Nigerian lawyers in statutory bodies. A situation whereby the national officers appoint themselves and some of the secretariat staff to represent the NBA in statutory bodies should stop. The decision to ban the elected officers of the NBA from accepting any post from the Government was aimed at preserving the independence of the Bar. The ban should be extended to all statutory bodies including the National Judicial Council as the membership of elected national officers in such bodies has compromised the independence of the NBA in recent time.

    Over the years, it has been agreed on all hands that the disciplinary machinery of the legal profession is weak and ineffective. To arrest the anomalous situation the NBA should urgently take concrete measures to re-organize and reform the disciplinary committee to deal with cases of professional misconduct without fear or favour. In this regard i have just requested the NBA leadership to reconstitute the Body of Benchers’ Disciplinary Committee to reflect the decision of the Supreme Court in the case of Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee v. Chief Gani Fawehinmi (1985) 2 NWLR (PT 7) 300. Unless the Disciplinary Committee is reconstituted and peopled with members who are prepared to rid the legal profession of bad eggs the impunity that has been associated with lawyers will continue unabated. The NBA should equally demand the reconstitution of the National Judicial Council with a view to removing serving judges from the body. The Katsina Alu\Ayo Salami imbroglio has made a strong case for a judicial disciplinary body that is detached from the undue influence of serving judges.

    Both the disciplinary committees of the bench and bar should collaborate and synergies to restore confidence in the legal profession. Individual judges should take control of courts manned by them and refer cases of professional misconduct by lawyers to the National Disciplinary Committee. Lawyers who run foul of the Rules of Professional Ethics should also be reported by their colleagues and members of the public.

    Finally, Nigerian lawyers should go beyond the defence of political and civil rights or fundamental rights which are meaningless to the majority of economically disadvantaged citizens. Nigerian lawyers should team up with the human rights community in the enforcement of all welfare laws made pursuant to the Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy. Unless the socio-economic rights of the people are recognized and enforced, law and order cannot be guaranteed in the society.

    Conclusion

    In William Shakespeare’s Henry VI, Part 2, there was a rebellion. Dick the butcher was a leading member of the rebellion. Convinced that lawyers would invoke the law to oppose and put down the rebellion Dick said:

    “The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers.”

    Many Nigerians share the view of Dick that all lawyers ought to be killed to prevent them from standing in the way of the “Nigerian revolution” which they believe is imminent. As far as such Nigerians are concerned lawyers have committed unpardonable crimes against the Nigerian people. In particular, they are accused of resorting to technicalities to perpetrate injustice colluding with judges to justify the rigging of elections, and setting corrupt public officers free while jailing petty criminals.

    Although the general perception of lawyers and their role in the society may be erroneous it cannot be denied that Nigerian lawyers have contributed to the imminent collapse of the country. However, I believe that the dangerous situation can be reversed if the Body of Benchers’ Disciplinary Committee and the National Judicial Council are re-positioned to monitor lawyers and judges who subvert the legal system. Unless the Nigerian Bar Association is democratized and freed from the tiny grip of Senior Advocates of Nigeria it cannot discharge the duty of defending the rule of law in the interest of the country. In my study of the crisis of the justice sector I have discovered, rather painfully, that most of the cases relating to election petition and corruption cases which have brought the judiciary to ridicule were handled by Senior Advocates.

    Finally, the lack of internal democracy in the Bar has had adverse impact on discipline among lawyers. If the current trend continues the legal profession is doomed. She rule of law is endangered if the practitioners of the law continue to operate in an atmosphere of impunity. Professor Yemi Osinbajo, one of those who believe that the situation can still be remedied has called for “a serious commitment to implementing well thought out, practical and measurable solutions”. As I am not as optimistic as the learned Professor permit me to conclude this lecture with the parting words of Brutus to Cassius in Julius Caesar when he said:

    “There is a tide in the affairs of men’

    Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

    Omitted, all the voyage of their life

    Is bound in shallows, and in miseries;

    On such a full sea are we now afloat;

    And we must take the current when it serve, or lose our ventures.”

     

  • Lawyers demand arraignment of policeman’s ‘killer’

    Members of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) in Ondo town yesterday threatened to sue the police, if the alleged killer of a police Inspector attached to Yaba Division Police Station in Ondo, the late Adelakun Lawal, is not prosecuted.

    The late Lawal, who was a prosecutor at the Magistrate’s Court, was allegedly killed by his friend, Mr. Kazeem Shehu, a police officer.

    The NBA chairman in the area, Kunle Adetowubo, told reporters that the association would ensure that the matter was not swept under the carpet.

    Adetowubo: “Though the NBA hails the police for arresting the suspect on the scene of the incident, we are waiting for the result of the Orderly Room Trial (ORT) and the arraignment of the suspect.

    “The only weapon we have is the court. We are ready to tackle the Ondo State Commissioner of Police, Patrick Dokumor and the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, if the suspect is not prosecuted.

    “We are disappointed with the slow pace of the investigation and failure to arraign the suspect.”

    Dokumor said investigation is ongoing and the suspect would be prosecuted.