The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Nigerian Newspaper

  • Unregistered SIM cards pit minister against telcos

    Again, the issue of poorly registered/unregistered SIM cards on the network has aroused the attention of the Federal Government. It has earned the telcos fines running into millions of naira, with the highest, N330billion, just settled by MTN Nigeria this year. LUCAS AJANAKU writes on the need for stakeholders to collaborate and end the menace.

    Communications Minister, Dr Isa Pantami, is not new to the Information Communication Technology (ICT) space.

    He had stirred one or two controversies in the past. When he headed the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), his attempt to register IT contractors was resisted by the Nigerian Computer Society (NCS), which insisted that registering contractors wasn’t part of the intention of NITDA Act 2007. Its role  is to plan, promote and develop regulatory framework and guidelines as stated in NITDA Act 2007, Section 6a. “The Computer Professionals Registration Council of Nigeria (CPN) Act 49 of 1993 is saddled with the mandate to register, license, supervise and control the profession as stated in CPN Act Section 1 (2),” NCS insisted.

    Again, in July this year, the Association of Licensed Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ALTON) pettioned the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) over attempt by NITDA to usurp its functions.

    Titled: Introduction of Legal Instruments by NITDA with Attendant Impact on the Operations of Entities Regulated by the NCC–Request for Guidance, the telcos had drawn NCC’s attention to:  Framework and Guidelines for Public Internet Access (PIA) 2019; Framework for Data Centre Facilities; and Nigeria Data Protection Regulation 2019.  ALTON  raised concern over NITDA’s attempt to regulate data services. It also faulted attempt to register data centres in the country under the guise of   Presidential Executive Orders 003 and 005 on local content development.

    The telcos also raised concern over NITDA’s attempt to turn itself into Data Protection Agency by making its regulation to override the NCC’s provision on data processing in the industry.

    Read Also: Minister gives NCC uptill Sep 26 to rectify improperly registered SIM cards 

    When he assumed office, Pantami told CEOs of Federal Government agencies under the supervision of the ministry that their performance would be assessed monthly. He warned that sanctions awaited anyone found wanting in the perfromance of their duties.

    Specifically, Pantami madated the NCC to end the issue of sale of pre-registered, unregistered and partially-registered SIM cards, especially as this can help in reducing numerous security challenges the nation faces; stem the tide of illegal deduction of data of subscribers and work towards the downward review of the cost of data; and ensure compliance with the maximum two per cent Call Drop Rate directive to telecom operators.

    It may have been pursuant to the mandate he gave to the NCC to end the sale of pre-registered, unregistered and partially-registered SIM cards that he directed the regulator to deactivate 9.2 million unregistered subscriber identity module (SIM) cards on the system.

    The concern of the minister is understandable. Almost 10 years after SIM registration started, it is curious that the telcos are yet to get it right.

    Last week, a statement from Communication Ministry  said  the NCC has submitted its baseline short-term performance targets report.

    “The report, signed by the Executive Vice Chairman of the Commission, contained precise figures of improperly registered SIM cards in use around the country. The Commission in its report disclosed that an estimated 9.2million SIM cards did not comply with the proper procedures of SIM registration.

    “The investigation, which was carried out at the behest of the minister, has exposed for the first time in the telecoms history of Nigeria, in precise detail, the magnitude of defaulters,” the statement read.

    According to the statement, Pantami  “expressed concern over the security implication of this discovery and further directed that the telecoms regulator, should with immediate effect, ensure that all improperly registered numbers are duly reregistered.”

    To ensure maximum compliance, Pantami has directed NCC to ensure all mobile network operators block all SIM cards that do not meet proper registration standards until users comply with proper reregistration procedures.

    “The security implication of this irregularity is too grave to ignore and the Federal Ministry of Communications will not tolerate any actions or inactions that will compromise the nation’s security,” the statement noted.

    This is not the first time the issue of unregistered SIM cards is coming up in the telecoms sector. It has always been there. It is either the NCC said it has arrested people selling pre-registered SIM cards or it is issuing warnings to the telcos.

    About three months ago, the NCC had raised the alarm that some 95.7million subscriber data was ‘invalid’.

    ALTON  Chairman, Gbenga Adebayo, had accused the NCC of indicting itself with huge number of cards it adjudged to be invalid because the NCC came out with SIM card registration rules, which the carriers adhered to during the exercise, adding that huge cash was also sunk on the project.

    Adebayo is right. The NCC got budgetary approval of N5.6billion, which it said, it also spent on registering SIM cards across the country.

    How many of the improperly registered 9.2 million SIM cards came from the NCC is unknown but it did particpated in the process that has become a subject of national security challenge.

    Adebayo faulted the new figures, insisting that it must be far less than 9.2 million. He agreed that unregistered SIM cards should be blocked because it is in line with the SIM registration guidelines reached by the regulator and carriers but wondered how that huge number of unregistered SIM would be on the network.

    “I don’t know how anyone will come about nine million unregistered SIM cards; that is certainly not possible. There could be SIM cards that have incorrect data or that require revalidation. Maybe they are talking about improper registration; but if they are saying that there are nine million unregistered SIM cards in the country, that is not possible. It is just impossible and I am saying this unequivocally.

    “Any unregistered SIM cards will be blocked and should be blocked. There should be no unregistered SIM cards in the first place.”

    A security expert urged all the stakeholders, including the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), telcos, National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), NCC and other security agencies, to close ranks and address the issue headlong.

  • ‘Obaseki has mismanaged Edo Assembly crisis’

    All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman Comrade Adams Oshiomhole spoke with reporters in Abuja on the protracted crisis in the Edo State House of Assembly, how Governor Godwin Obaseki is handling the conflict and how it can be resolved. TONY AKOWE was there.

    What is the bone of contention between you and Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki?

    This has been an issue I have tried to avoid. I watched people talking about Oshiomhole’s faction and Godwin’s faction. The truth is that I don’t have any faction. Everybody in Edo State particularly those of APC stock, are my people. We founded the party from ACN, to APC. It hurts when people can’t make a distinction between policy positions and unhealthy debate about options in dealing with specific issues. Now, I remain convinced that it is not in the interest of our democracy for nine members at 9:30pm, which I understand the Supreme Court in another judgment has described as nocturnal hours, for an elected parliament to seek to secretly inaugurate a House so that a particular person can emerge as a Speaker and in the process you exclude 15 members of the House. Nine persons cannot elect the Speaker or Deputy Speaker on behalf of 24 members. Number two, it is also the tradition and the law that when you are elected by your various constituencies, the day of your inauguration, the proclamation is not a state secret to be shared by those who are favoured. The proclamation must be published stating time and date.

    The Speaker, Frank Okiye, accused you of planning to impeach the governor with your loyalists and the governor also accused you of orchestrating the crisis from Abuja…

    First of all, Okiye is not the Speaker. He is member elect. I watched the governor say those things but the truth of the matter is that he knows better than that. The question I will put to you is, is it within the discretion of a state governor to decide who becomes the Speaker? The only option for him is to lobby and if he lobbies and in the end, he is unable to get everybody to toe his line, he has to concede that these are not his Commissioners or Special Assistants for which he has absolute monopoly to appoint. But even at that, if they are commissioners, they must be screened by the House of Assembly. That is the law.

    Read Also: Edo Assembly crisis: Obaseki hails Judiciary for upholding rule of law

    So, I ask you, which section of the constitution says when the governor had decided on who should be the Speaker, so be it. Number two, Okiye, being the beneficiary of the purported inauguration says the agenda is to impeach Obaseki. Did he tell you what offence Obaseki has committed? Is he known to have committed any impeachable offence? Is impeachment a tea party? It does not make sense. By the way who is Okiye? Does he know what was invested in the making of the governor? Can he possibly lay claim to loving the governor more than those of us who went round the state and stake our reputation and invest our energy and persuasive skill to market the governor to the people? If there is one man that wants governor Obaseki to succeed so that everything I said on his behalf comes to pass, I think it will be me.

    But, we thought the issues were resolved when the governor visited you in your town during Salah?

    The governor has slept in my house countless times before he became a governor and even after he became a governor. He is my friend, he is my brother. But I am surprised that Nigerians don’t appreciate the fact that even as brothers, if I feel strongly that what my younger brother is doing is wrong, I should advise him quietly and when I do, it becomes factional war, that impression is wrong. Secondly, the governor knows that there is no quarrel between us. Because what could have caused us quarrel, I consciously made decision from day one to avoid it. Namely, I was never going to decide for him who he pays. I was never going to suggest to him who he appoints.

    But, he alleged that politicians want him to share the money of the state?

    Political leaders in Edo state, after a year in office, two years, started complaining that after they have worked hard to elect the governor, only three people are in government. The governor, the deputy governor and the SSG. What is their evidence. That the governor immediately dissolved all the boards and two and half years after, he has not reconstituted the boards. These boards are not to be occupied by Oshiomhole. I am not going to hold any position in Edo State any more. These boards were dissolved and the governor after two and half years have not reconstituted the boards. These were part of the complains. The third one was the governor’s decision to create new political leadership.

    What basically is your point of disagreement with the governor?

    We do have genuine disagreement about what to do with the young people who were our foot soldiers. I usually refer to them as our infantry division. These are young men and women who on election day steps to protect our votes. To engage those who want to steal our votes. At a time when we were in opposition, when the PDP ruthlessly deployed the Army, deployed the Police and even the DSS to make sure that opposition does not win. Don’t forget that I was rigged out in my first election, thanks to the courageous judiciary, I reclaimed my mandate. So, I do not think it is right. My idea of leadership is that when people have worked with me and make all those sacrifices and I am elected, I cannot abandon them. I think I have a duty to rehabilitate them and give them a sense of belonging and a sense of ownership of the outcome of the elections. Motor parks will always be motor parks whether it is in Lagos, Maiduguri, Port Harcourt, they have their code. The responsibility of government is to engage them and manage them in a way that they can do their lawful business because the Road Transport Workers Unions and Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, are registered trade unions in Nigeria. They have a right to operate. And it is not for a governor to proscribe them. I defended those rights when I was President of the NLC and I cannot accept that particularly when have supported us to win election. That When you give those jobs to political leaders who are competent contractors, you are empowering your people and you are empowering the political class. And they in turn have the resources to sustain. Now, if this is sharing money to people, then I disagree.

    The governor set up a probe into the construction of the central hospital…

    I felt terribly bad and embarrassed that as governor, I decided that we should not lament the poor state of health facilities in Edo state particularly the Central hospital that was built in 1903. So we built what I call a 5-star hospital and I deliberately went out to look for a competent commissioner for Health, a professor of Medicine from UNIBEN to superintend over the procurement process and ensuring that we bring state of the art equipment to that hospital. We built the hospital with Edo tax payers money. We gave the contract to Vermed Nigeria Limited, Vermed is well known for manufacturing hospital equipment. They operate in many African countries. We placed orders for them to supply equipment which they did even though at time we gave the contract the exchange rate was 195 per dollar. By time they finished their processes the naira has been devalued. But thanks to the governor of Central Bank, he assisted to ensure that we had access to forex at the old rate, they got their dollars at N308 to a dollar. Before I left government I paid 75 per cent of the total value. All I expected my successor to do was to pay the balance. At a point I felt so embarrassed and I went to Aliko Dangote who is a mutual friend of the governor and myself and I said, I am unable to understand why the governor is unable to open the hospital. Aliko Dangote, God will bless him. He told Godwin that if he builds a factory and lock it up for two years, the deeds that will happen is that the grease will dry up, the oil will dry up and you will invest a lot of money to service the machines before they can be operated. Not to talk about sensitive hospital equipment. And I am no more the governor so I cannot go there to defend myself. And I live with this pain even though I did my best to provide that facility.

    The inquiry was set up by the former Speaker (Adjoto) who is aggrieved because he lost the House of Reps ticket to Peter Akpatason who is an incumbent lawmaker. So, based on his open bitterness, he was encouraged by the state government to set up this panel to rubbish themselves.

    Are you saying that there was never a time you had disagreement over money or appointments?

    We have no argument over money, we have no argument over appointment. Infact, at a meeting that we held with four governors including governor Bagudu, Fayemi, Niyi Adebayo now Minister and Alhaji Aliko Dangote, I asked the governor, how many Commissioners did I nominate in your cabinet. And he agreed that I nominated only one person out of twenty commissioners. And after that first meeting, the governor decided to remove that one commissioner along with seven others. The governor will not tell you that I dictate for him. But the only thing I feel worried about is that some of the projects we started together have been abandoned.

    But, will you support him for a second term?

    Have we gotten there? Let us get there first. As it stands right now, has he told you he is contesting? And has he told you I am opposed to him?

    He is being told he is going to be given the Ambode treatment?

    Who told him that. What will I gain if Godwin does not run a second term? Is Oshiomhole going to run a second term? If I did what I did, whether he acknowledged it or not, people know what I did to support him to be governor.

  • How to manage waste, by Lagos lawmaker

    Lagos State House of Assembly member, Mojisola Meranda, has urged residents to dispose waste properly.

    She spoke at a meeting with stakeholders in her constituency.

    According to her, the state plans to sensitise the public on how to separate waste that can be recycled.

    This, she said, will make it easier for waste collectors and recyclers.

    “At a time like this, when our community is being ravaged by flood as a result of improper disposal of waste, there is urgent need to organise a program like this to sensitise the public on how well to manage waste products,” she said.

    On how flooding can be reduced, Meranda said the drainages must be cleared.

    She said once the primary and secondary channels are cleared, flooding will reduce.

    She said the clearing must be a continuous exercise.

    “The safety of our environment is the collective responsibility of everyone in the community and should not be left out to the government alone,” she said.

    Meranda assured that the ninth Assembly would do everything possible within its capacity to bring governance closer to the people.

    To support less privileged parents, Meranda empowered 1,000 primary school students around Apapa 1 Constituency.

    She provided them with writing materials, books and mathematical sets.

    She also presented textbooks and library materials to schools in the community.

  • Bailout refund

    Many state governments in the country have to brace up for hard times from next month, when, hopefully, the Federal Government begins the deduction, at source, of the N614billion fund advanced 35 of the 36 state governments by the President Muhammadu Buhari administration between 2015 and 2017, to enable them meet urgent obligations. The money, popularly referred to as ‘bailout’ was advanced to the states under the tag of the National Budget Support Loan Facility.

    Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs.  Zainab  Ahmed, who disclosed this last week at the presentation of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper (MTEF/FSP) said the deductions would be made directly from their statutory allocations from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC).  She added that since the money was a loan from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), it would be repaid to the apex bank. Each of the states would be required to refund a total of N17.5 billion.

    “The N614 billion bailout fund given to the states is not going to form part of the revenue for funding the budget. It was a loan which was advanced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the repayment will be made to the CBN. So, the recovery process is that we deduct from the FAAC allocations from the states and then we return it to the CBN and we are starting this process by the next FAAC” the minister declared.

    Read Also: N614b bailout cash: Governors insist on terms for refund

    We saw this coming.

    Indeed, no one needed any soothsayer to know that it would get to this since the bailout was not gratis. We had warned in other editorials that it was high time state governments became more creative in revenue generation, rather than perennially relying on handouts from Abuja to fund their projects, or pay salaries. In spite of the vicissitudes that many state governments’ finances have witnessed, and continue to witness, we would have thought that they would have found a common ground to make a stronger case for themselves, especially with regards to the revenue sharing formula which presently is skewed in favour of the Federal Government.

    We wonder what the governors discuss at the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF). Where they are resolute and focused, it should not be difficult for them to prompt a review of the formula in a way that state governments would benefit more than they are doing now from the sharing formula. They have virtually what it takes to make this happen. We do not see, for example, how it would be difficult to carry their respective legislatures along on this journey. Securing the concurrence of the National Assembly members should also not be much problem because many governors have some influence over their state’s representatives in both chambers.

    Moreover, with nearly all the states of the federation blessed with one mineral resource or the other, there is no justification for the heavy reliance on the centre for survival. The governors can use the same instrumentality of the NGF to speak with one voice on the need for true federalism under which states would have control over resources in their areas and only pay taxes to the Federal Government as was the case in the First Republic

    We have said it before, and it bears restating, that the present revenue arrangement cannot endure; it is unsustainable. And, until the state governments decide to change the narrative, the cycle of bailout will only linger. Yet, as we have seen, bailout is not the solution to their financial predicament because it has to be repaid someday. The ultimate solution is for state governments to be in charge of their resources and finances. We can only imagine how dire the situation will be for many of them, with the proposed N30,000 minimum wage that is causing ripples already.

    We know many state governments are already jittery over the minister’s disclosure because it is going to cause a lot of hiccups in their financial systems. But then, even if an amicable exit strategy is agreed between the Federal Government and the state governments now, it is still a stop-gap measure. The money has to be repaid somehow, someday because it is a loan from the CBN and it is doubtful if the Federal Government itself would want to write it off.

    The way forward is for state governments to start thinking seriously about how to raise their internally generated revenue to enable them pick their bills without going cap-in-hand to the Federal Government every month.

  • ‘NCS Act 2019: Bold step towards international standards’

    Dr. Uju Agomoh, a lawyer, psychologist and scientist, is the Executive Director, Prisoners Rehabilitation and Welfare Action (PRAWA). With over two decades of experience in prison work, she and other Nigerians see the passage of the Prison Bill into Law as a novel event. Dr. Agomo is pushing for full implementation of the provisions of the Nigerian Correctional Service Act signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari a few weeks ago. In this interview with Legal Editor JOHN AUSTIN UNACHUKWU, she discusses the challenges of the old law and the innovations in the new one.

    You are so passionate about prisoners’ welfare. What ignited your interest about the prisons, prisoner’s welfare business?

    I don’t know about business in the first instance. But in terms of idea, I could really trace it back to my husband. It started when  I was doing my first degree in psychology. I  had gone to the Yaba Psychiatric Hospital, Lagos to look for research materials because of the area I was researching on and there, somebody told me that I needed to see Dr. Ahamefula  Agomoh, that if I could see him, he would be able to point me in the right direction so that I would know which and which materials to look for and the exact areas that I should read.

    What happened when you saw him?

    When I met him, he was extremely helpful. He told me that he was going to send some materials to me. When I wanted to pay for it, he said no, because he didn’t know the number of pages that he was going to photocopy. At the  end of the day, he kept his words. I got the materials from him and made the best results in  project at the University of Jos at that time. I had a very good result in my first degree and when I came back  from the university, my father  said,  ‘Have you gone to thank this doctor that was helpful to you so that next time he would  be encouraged to help other people?’. So, when I went back to thank him he said, “when they send you to a place of primary assignment, let  me know”.

    He became very excited when I later told him that I was posted to work with the Police. The first was then doing the Youth Service with Nigerian Police, Ondo State command. We had to do a research of all the persons that were in Police detention and the Prisons in the then Ondo State.  Prior to this time, during my holiday periods, I used to work with a small private security outfit that was run by a former Commissioner of Police, Rivers State.

    What was the result of the research?

    Now, the result I got from that research shocked me. It didn’t matter to me whether those people in detention were guilty or not. They were people who were vulnerable; they had little education, job skills, drug abuse and all sort of things; so,  I felt that the society needed to do something  more around this to ameliorate their sufferings and give them justice. Dr.  Agomoh, who later on, I got close to and got to marry is a psychiatrist. He used to go to Kirikiri Prisons every Thursday to provide psychiatric assessment for some inmates. He started pointing in that direction for me, that was how I knew about Prisons and started visiting them.  And I felt, these people should start thinking of how to help and support them.

    What were the initial challenges in starting this project?        

    When I started on December 16, 1994, I had  just come back from the University of Cambridge where I went to do an M. Phil in criminology, in August 1994, I got married that August 1994 and just felt that I needed to start doing  something, so by the time I went round trying to see if I could find  an organisation that would employ me to do this kind of work, I was having a challenge in that first three months when Nick Essiet asked me to set up a Non- Governmental Organisation (NGO) since I couldn’t find an NGO doing the kind of thing I wanted to do. Essiet is the founder of Action Health Inc.

    How did you get sponsors for your projects?

    When we started, remember that there was no subvention, money. I had nothing to type my letters and proposals. Sometimes my husband  or his friends would help me. Then I would go to the Prison Training School in Kirikiri, look at its time table and provide them some training. I started doing some low cost activities. I was not on a salary. From the funds I got from my husband and relations, I did some jobs for the prisons.  I recall that  my first proposal was approved by the British Council. They said they would approve the grant but because they didn’t know me or PRAWA, they would give the money to another organisation but they would implement it. That actually happened and that was the first time we had a meeting, in Ibadan, of the people who were working in the NGO sector. From there we moved on and over time, people began to see the quality of our work.

    How did you get on with the projects?

    At this time I already had a first degree in Psychology. I had three Masters, one in Clinical Psychology and an M. Phil from Cambridge in Criminology. There was some little knowledge base. I brought some executive committee members. We had lawyers, political scientists and all of that. Nobody was paid. After a little while we got about three staff some of whom were on part time. And then, my husband was giving me money to pay them. I was not on salary, but only thing I could say is consistency, focus and the other point was that we started looking for activities that we could do without looking for big money, things that were not costing so much and things that did not have any cost at all. After that phase, we started getting grants. The first we got from the British Council, the British High Commission. The British High Commission funded our firs project  on human rights in prisons. And there were a few others from the Austrailian Embassy,  the Irish Embassy etc. But in all these, one thing was key- no matter how little the funds were, we accounted for them. We were very meticulous in making sure that we had no problems with our documentation and all of that. In a foreword to one of the manuals, the Prisonlink Manual, written by the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, he said PRAWA is struggling with shoe string budget could do so much. By that time we had trained over 2,000 persons on human rights.

    What really made you different and how were people responding to your  projects?

    With time, some of those things started speaking for us. The issue of documentation because you could have a project and the project life span could last for two to three years, for instance or even one year, but one of the strengths we had was that we made sure that in almost every budget, there was something that could stay on beyond that project, so we have produced a lot of training materials that can last for a long time.  As I speak to you, we have over 60 publications and 79 projects. This year is our 25th year. We have been able to build that level of knowledge. It was not easy, but we have been able to go thus far.

    Can you give us highlights of the sections of the Correctional Act that impresses you most?

    In fact, all the sections of this Act impress me, but Section 1 of it provides that the Act shall comprise non-custodial and custodial services. This impresses me because of the fact that there is a clear provision for the custodial and the non-custodial components of the Correctional Service. What is new is not the custodial because we have always had it. What is new is the non-custodial. I was so happy that we have this provision in our laws because the whole of part two of the law is about the non-custodial provisions. Beyond that, if you go to the objective section, which is Section two, the second part of the new law is also about ensuring that there is platform for the non-custodial implementation. Also, within that same law, it provides that the Deputy Controllers-General, which the law increased from six to eight, one of must be in charge of the non-custodial. This is also wonderful because it provides a platform for the coordination of the non-custodial provisions. Both at national and state levels through the committee on non-custodial measures. It also provides for the funds in Section 44 of the Act of the non-custodial measures.

    What are the benefits of this non-custodial services?

    With this non custodial, petty offenders would not need to be in prison because it is a very foolish thing for us to do keep doing what we were doing, such as clamping petty offenders in the same place with hardened criminals. As a result, we were breeding more criminals.  Some of them might be innocent and are very vulnerable and you keeping them together with those hardened ones. Who will know about them? They will exchange contacts and they will begin to teach  and use them for more grievous offences. The non-custodial sentences will, apart from preserving petty offenders, also save money for the government. Government’s money could be better utilised instead of using same to feed awaiting trial inmates. Using it constructively, you push some of these people out there working for government instead of government feeding them with public funds. Above all, you still retain the facilities and your contacts. They  enhance  convicts reintegration.

    What do you mean by this reintegration?

    It means that if they had a job, they would still keep it. If they had accommodation, they would keep it. They still relate and interact with their family and extended family members. This way, the chances of sliding into criminality will be remote. It will amount to  reduction in the offending behaviour. The fact that this particular piece of legislation announces its compliance with international human rights standards  and correctional best practices is really commendable.

    Which sections really provide for that?

    If you go to Section Two, which talks about the objectives of the Act, the very first objective it mentions is that this will be compliant with international human rights standards and, most importantly, we need to remember the United Nations minimum rule for the treatment of prisoners which we call the Mandela Rules, Bangkok Rules, the UN minimum Rule on the treatment of women offenders, which I called the Bangkok Rules, the UN Convention on torture, cruel and inhuman treatments, which is UNCAT and UPCAT. Provisions that are very very amenable, I don’t want to go and begin to talk of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International Convention on Civil and Political Rights and so on. By making that bold statement, the new law introduces human rights  in the lexicon of legislation guiding the prisons. It was not there before.

    What are the human rights element in the Act?

    This  Act makes human rights a critical factor that every process of the correctional service should address. You will see that some of the provisions align themselves to this; for instance, the provision on labour, which states that inmates’labour should not be afflictive. It used verbatim words from the Mandela Rule in terms of that section. In Section 9, in terms of the powers that the minister has, to declare a place or gazette a place as a Correctional Centre, it has always been there. In the old law, we had it but the difference now is the proviso, which stated that such a facility must have ventilation, space, and water, sanitation and so on which is good. It shows human feelings. There are different mechanisms for oversight and monitoring and the functions of the prison visitors, inspectorates and process in the prisons actually support the spirit and letter of that law. Now you keep hearing of the word humane in the Act that one alone is very good. You will no longer find words that are derogatory in the Act, which shows a certain level of sensitivity.

    What other novel provisions do we find in the Act?

    The provision for separate facility for women, a requirement for pregnancy test within 14 days and so on, are all novel provisions of the new law. The mandatory requirement for creche in every facility that accommodates female inmates is also novel and wonderful. Because the children are not the criminals, so they should be free and operate freely in the Correctional Centre as contained in Section 34 of the Act, Section 14 talks about rehabilitation so for all monies made by the facility shall be divided into three one for the institution, one goes to Federation account and one goes for the inmates same  Section provides for certificates of good behaviour and so on. S. 12 (4) provides for the Suprintendent to alert that Chief Judge,  the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), the state prerogative of mercy the the facility has accommodated inmates to its maximum capacity.

    The law states that these people who were so informed should do something within three months depending on what they deem fit in the circumstance not to send more inmates to that correctional facility.  Same Section 12 empowers facility managers to refuse accepting inmates into the facility after the early warning signal to say I will not take more inmates. I will not take  acts like checks and balances. It provides that if the superintendent refuses to say I will not take after three months he will be sanctioned.

    What other provisions are there?

    Also, there is a new provision dealing with the training of staff, which was not there in the old law. They have one now on non-custodial  measures. In the new law, we have a security of tenure for the Conmptroller -General and other staff of the Correctional Centres. The challenge is that we need to implement the law, we need to track it. There is going to be a standing order, which will help to perationise these laws.

    How did you get this bill passed into law by the National Assembly?

    There have been several  attempts,  almost 19  years ago by many people to amend or repeal the Prison Act Cap. P29 Laws of the Federation 2004, yet none of those efforts yielded positive results. For this particular project, it was something started and concluded by the Eighth Assembly. In the Eighth Assembly, both Houses’ committees on Interior; that is, the House of Representatives and the Committees on Interior from the Senate had public hearings and at the public hearings. It happened that we had four bills before the House of Reps, they spoke on different things concerning corrections. And then, you had four other bills before the Senate on different things relating to prisons and repeal.

    I think it will be useful to mention the bill for you to see how the content of this law was arrived at. When you see the  title, you will appreciate how it was formed. First, let’s start with the Senate. We had one bill that was sponsored by a Senator. We had another by Senator Moh’d Shaab Lafiaji Senate – Bill 125  (SB. 125),  a bill for an Act to Repeal the Prisons Act Cap. P 29 Laws of the Federal of Nigeria, 2004 and Enact the Nigerian Prisons and Correctional Service, To Make Provisions for the Administration of Prisons in Nigeria; The Awaiting Trial Persons and for Related Purposes, 2019.

    Senator Oluremi Tinubu:  Her bill was Senate Bill 191 (SB. 191) – A Bill for an Act  to  Amend the Prisons Act  Cap P. 29 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 to provide for a Mother and Baby Unit for the Care of Female Prisoners, who are Nursing Mothers and their and for Related Matters, 2018.

    Senator Babajide Omoworare: the number of his bill was Senate Bill 288  (SB 288). A  bill for an Act to Repeal the Nigerian Prisons Act 478 Laws of the Federal of Nigeria, 2010 and make comprehensive Provisions for the Administration of Prisons in Nigeria; and for Related Matters, 2018

    Senator Gershom Bassey, the number of his bill is Senate Bill 308 (SB 308).  A Bill for an Act of establish a Correction, Reformation and Reintegration Centre to provide support services for prisons in the Area of Reformation, Reintegration and Youthful Offender Programming; and for Related Matters, 2018.

    In the House of Representatives we had a bill from: Hon Henry Nwawuba;  the number of his bill is House of Representatives bill, 487(HB. 487).  A Bill for An Act to Establish the Special Maximum Security Prisons for Persons Accused or Convicted of Terrorism, in surengency, Kidnapping and Other Crimes Against the State and for Related Matters.

    Hon Ochigiegor Igagbo (A Bill for An Act To Establish a correction, Reformation and Reintegration Centre to provide support services for Prisons in the area of Reformation, Reintegration and youthful Offender Programming; and for Related Matters (HB)

    Hon. Danburam Abubakar Nuhu ((A Bill for an Act to Repeal the Prisons Act Cap P. 29 Laws of Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and Enact the Nigerian Prisons And Correctional Service, to Make comprehensive Provisions for the Administration of Prisons in Nigeria; and For Related Purposes, 2016 (HB S 160)

    Hon Johnbull Shekarau (A bill for an Act to Provide for Regulate Community Services for Offender in Certain Cases and to provide for Related Matters, 2016 (HB 517).

    Following the Public Hearing by both the Committee of Interior of the House of Representative and the Senate in late 2017 and early 2018, technical retreats were held in April 2018 for the Committee on Interior of the House of Representatives in April 2018 in Enugu and the Committee on interior of the Senate in July 2018 in Lagos respectively to review to the draft harmonised bill.

    Following these, the bill was passed by the Senate and House of Representatives on December 20, last year. By April 2019, the President declined assent and requested some modifications, which were effected and on  May 8,  the Senate passed the Bill reflecting the amendments. This was then forwarded to the President on July 22 and assented to by Mr. President in August 2019.

    You noted lack of coordination as a challenges of the criminal justice sector. What do you mean by this?

    Coordination operates at various levels. The notion of intra-agency coordination, the arresting unit is not coordinating with the prosecuting unit. You cannot understand this. They cannot do this even to give leadership to the investigators in terms of what evidence they need to gather that can help prove the case is critical. So, the prosecutor and the investigators need to work side by side. Whether they exist in the same agency or they don’t exist in the same agency is immaterial. This is very critical whether in the Police it is very critical. While dealing with intra agency coordination, it is even more critical in inter agency coordination to the extent that they do not even input into the budget of these agencies so you have agencies that have budgets but the budgets  were not  intelligently led, they were not let led intelligently to appraise and accommodate all that they need, assessment of what budget they need to meet those needs so you see that problem.

    How does it involve  budgeting?

    Even when it is even budgeted, it is not released or released on time, when it is released, it is not utilized for what it was budgeted for, and then nobody accounts for anything and then you find out that whole issue of coordination whether intra or inter between two agencies or multi sectoral coordination is becomes a problem. The next is the issue of oversight and accountability, how much of the internal mechanisms of oversight and accountability have we put in place. How  much of the independent external oversight and accountability have we put in place, people violet laws if they believe that the chances of being caught and prosecuted is very weak. And these happen everywhere so, behaviours  work on incentives both negative and positive incentives. So, if we want people to behave well there must be some quantum of compensation and if you don’t want them to behave in a certain manner, there must be some repercussions in terms of punishment and all that that is really important.

    What do you mean by this?

    If you start from the point of arrest as I have said to the point of prosecution, you then you have to talk about the notion of the judiciary, how independent is this judiciary? How do you assess the workload of judges? How do you  assess success in terms of completion of cases which is also important? What of the things contributing to delay in terms of adjournment of cases? PRAWA did a research on the causes of adjournment both in the High Courts of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT)  and some of the courts in Enugu State. You will be shocked  to find out that the bulk of the reason was from the prosecutors, delay in the course of prosecution is because  either they were not in court, or they  did not produce their witnesses and so on. Others also have their own issues but I’m talking about the quantum, now we also have to talk about defense lawyers,  how many of these people have lawyers? How many of them know that they have right to lawyers?  When  you talk about having lawyers, it is also instructive to know that access to legal representation also includes the quality of such legal representation. We did a survey.

    Who did the survey and what was the result ?

    PRAWA and the Nigerian Prison Service did a survey which was presented on the first of February 2018 by President Muhammadu Buhari who was ably represented at the event by the then Minister of Interior. What we found out was the fact that over 50 per cent of the persons who were in the Prisons, did not have legal representation and of those who had legal representation, close to about 54 per cent of them said that they did not  like the quality of the legal representation they had.

  • Full disclosure

    The Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) has recovered N900 billion from unnamed lawmakers. According to the executive secretary of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, Prof. Sadiq Radda, the lawmakers had converted into cash funds allocated to senators and House of Representatives’ members for execution of projects in their constituencies. Sadda added that ICPC is ready to take the fight against corruption to the states: “People will be accountable. No governor will go free under the guise of security votes. People must be accountable”, he said.

    The discovery and recovery of the funds by ICPC are commendable. We also find the decision of the commission to take the fight against corruption to the states long overdue. The matter of constituency projects under the control of lawmakers has been a source of controversy since the policy became part of the governance style since the country’s return to post-military rule in 1999. The core of the controversy, especially from the perspectives of the executive branch, and from the civil society has been the proneness of legislators performing executive functions to corruption, and its distortion of the principle and practice of separation of powers.

    In addition, there have been many instances of irregularities in the management of constituency projects to illustrate the fears of critics of the policy. For example, in August, several equipment and medical items purchased for projects were found in the possession of some senators. It is thus remarkable that the ICPC has recovered N9 billion during transition from one administration to another, and at a time that President Muhammadu Buhari has re-committed to fighting corruption harder than ever.

    Read Also: Constituency projects: Reps rise against ICPC, NFIU in plots to stop probe

    We find the opportunity of lawmakers to access cash meant for constituency projects ridiculous, especially after many years of a government that is driven by zero-tolerance for corruption. The procedures inherited from previous governments ought to have been streamlined to make it impossible for lawmakers to access funds for projects in their constituencies. The role of lawmakers should have been limited to lobbying for projects for their constituencies. It is thus concerning that lawmakers have been able to access funds not meant for personal use.

    We suspect that there must have been collusion between the concerned lawmakers and some members of the executive. There is need to probe the process that opened collection of cash for projects to lawmakers. Members of the executive found responsible for this anomaly ought to be fished out and made to face the law, along with the erring lawmakers. Undoubtedly, manipulating procedures can prevent community projects from meeting goals of community empowerment. It is not enough to recover funds held illegally without prosecuting holders of such funds.

    Further, ICPC’s decision to move beyond Abuja to the states is better late than never. About 48% of allocations from the federation account go to subnational governments—states 26% and local governments 22%. A nation-wide anti-corruption commission designed to fight corruption should not restrict its radar to the nation’s capital. Ensuring transparency and accountability over spending of 48% of the nation’s resources is not less important than watching over 52%. ICPC should also not restrict its activities to security votes for governors. As important as monitoring security votes may be, it is also crucial that the commission extend its radar to all aspects of expenditures at the state and local government levels.

    We urge the commission and other anti-corruption agencies to avoid rushing to the press on important matters of management of the nation’s resources. Not being able to disclose names of legislators in possession of N900 billion that they should not have had access to diminishes the significance of such recovery. In such matters, full disclosure is essential.

  • Lagos: 3 governors, 3 destinies?

    Lagos — and it appears a case of three governors, three different destinies.

    Babatunde Raji Fashola charged in and stormed out, turbo-charged.  Jimmy Cliff, the Jamaican reggae great, would have crooned: Gone clear like a rocket!

    Akinwunmi Dapo Ambode ambled in and hobbled out — the gubernatorial equivalent of a vanished comet.

    Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu, is BOS of the new order.  Will he boss ideas and let the team bloom?  Or boss people and let the team wilt?  So far, a quiet, cautious cruise.

    Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the gubernatorial paterfamilias himself?

    That was another era — of David securing the kingdom, against the fierce political Amalekites, Philistines and Amorites, that gave no quarters: the imperial president, roaring from his Abuja liar; his Lagos viceroy-dogs, sniffing cheap partisan blood.

    It was an era of the power jungle, of the most reckless hue.  Yet, a foundation had to be laid.  Yet, the path had to be tracked — a Moses tracking post-Red Sea, to the Promised Land; a David fending off fearsome blitz, from formidable foes.

    Twelve years after Tinubu, it’s not quite the easy peril of Solomon.  But the kingdom would appear strengthened and stable enough to establish a pattern; and track a legacy.

    Read Also: Two ex-governors, 103 others in trouble over N5tr debts

    Fashola dazzled his electors with low-hanging fruits — the BRT tracks and BRT Red and Blue buses; a restless environment policy that re-greened the Lagos Marina and allied city concrete jungles; cleared Lagos of filth, and rid the city of outlaw traffic, in ways never previously imagined.

    Eight years later, Fashola exited in near-universal cheer — the policy equivalent of Plato’s philosopher-king, though in a democracy that Plato decried!

    Ambode, at dawn, ran into a vicious LASTMA ambush, which hideous traffic gridlock sent fickle folks screaming: bring back our Fash!

    Four short years later, he hobbled out as virtual gubernatorial garbage — no thanks to a refuse reform turned hideous deform.

    In-between, he showed brilliant flashes.  The most spectacular rural-friendly Lagos governor, for one: witness his glittering infrastructure in Epe and rural Alimoso.  Rural Lagos was never so blest!

    At the city hub, a mixed grill: breath of fresh air, cruising on the new Lagos Airport-Oshodi road; unmitigated pestilence on the comatose Iganmu-Orile-Ojo-Badagry road-and-rail; sweet-sour on the Pen Cinema-Agege motor road-Oshodi front — no thanks to too many constructions at the same time.

    Ambode exited power the ultimate political equivalent of the tennis unforced error — the gubernatorial symbol of avoidable self-ruin, from blatant rotten choices.  Yet, he wasn’t the worst governor in town!

    Sanwo-Olu, after 100 days?  Neither the blistering entry-and-exit of Fashola; nor the sweet-sour hobble-and-tumble of Ambode.

    Gboyega Akosile, the BOS chief press secretary (CPS), would probably not echo Segun Ayobolu, Governor Tinubu’s first CPS, that the 100 days were sheer hell for the administration, given the media’s all-too-familiar penchant to just bark and bark, without recourse to context.

    Still, lobbies can legitimately claim BOS’s first 100 days have been comparatively quiet — lacking the blistering glory-to-glory of the Fashola years; or the grass-to-grace-back to grass of the Ambode era.

    Yet, there are serious problems requiring blistering solutions — the Lagos brazen road outlawry, for one.

    With the Lagos State Road Traffic Law 2012, Fashola was already winning the war against Okada road outlawry until “gentleman” Ambode entered and the battle flagged.  Now, though the first thing BOS did was sign an Executive Order to declare a traffic and environment emergency, free-wheeling outlawry still reigns on Lagos roads.

    The governor should walk his talk on this score.  Visit the Mile 2-Oshodi-Oworonshoki expressway (now under reconstruction) and see the menace of Okada, zooming against on-coming traffic, on an express on which, by law, they have been barred!

    And the Danfo commercial minibuses?  Sheer yellow peril, in that same corridor!  Of course, with no sanction in sight, private motorists have joined the bedlam — driving against the traffic from Oshodi to Mile 2!  Only God knows how many lives this brazen show would claim, if not checked.

    Words are rife that the administration is pondering working out some cohabitation with the Okada operators.  Whatever deal is cut, it should not include a triumphant legal return to expressways.

    Indeed, any thinking that concedes mass transportation to two wheels, with all its inherent dangers, can only amount to net-retardation in 21st century Lagos.  Some “choices” are just no choices!

    Still, away from traffic anarchy, BOS has displayed trite wisdom, which nevertheless cost Ambode dear  — the wonders of continuity and low-hanging fruits.

    While Fashola zestfully harvested the BRT, low-hanging fruits the departing Tinubu government had planted, Ambode wilfully shunned the housing estates the Fashola governorship started.

    For at least four years, those estates, under construction, stayed arrested.  But BOS, in three months — well, 100 days — raced to complete the Igando arm, rightly named for the public icon of contemporary mass housing, Alhaji Lateef Jakande.

    Wisdom of continuity; pleasure of low-hanging fruits; blessing of 100 days!

    It’s good the governor has pledged rapid completion of these estates, scattered in different locations.  But he should also ensure the allocations conform to the original protocols, so that the houses don’t end up with trader-shylocks; but with those who sorely need them.

    Learning from the Ambode pitfall is smart thinking for BOS early in his tenure.  But as the Bible says, the beginning is nothing.  The end is everything.

    Which is why BOS should also move fast to complete those Ambode era projects, particularly those ones that promise maximum impact on the people.

    One is the Oshodi transport interchange and shopping hub.  That completed, it could transform Oshodi into a 24-hour polite business hub; and boost city-wide security.

    Another is the gleaming Airport road.  It’s sheer bliss for motorists.  But it’s also pure hell for pedestrians, linking Ajao Estate to the opposite Mafoluku.  The many pedestrian bridges, on that road, need fast completion.

    Yet another is finishing the Epe-Eredo artery, which incomplete end rather plagues the Mojoda-Odo Ayan folks.  The other leg is completing the Epe-Ejinrin-Itoikin end of the project.

    As the administration grinds on, these two uncompleted ends will pose local challenge to “home boy” and Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat.  If not given attention, it could well be another avoidable unforced error at election time!

    It’s reassuring though that BOS has committed himself to completing all the Ambode-era projects.  When he does and at commission time, he should give the former governor his due mention, recognition and honour.

    Not even Ambode deserves the black-out he gave Fashola, at the commissioning of the Okota-Amuwo Odofin-Mile 2 link-road.  The former governor was there, ironically as Works minister.  But no one acknowledged he, as governor, did and opened no less than 70 per cent of that vital artery!

    BOS, after 100 days?  Slow and steady!  But even that would win the race, only if the governor pushes less of individual success; but more of collective glory.

    That was the Ambode pitfall.  BOS must learn from that fatal slip.

  • Who are the new SAN designates?

    The Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC), will on September 23 confer 38 lawyers with the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN). Ahead of the conferment, Legal Editor, JOHN AUSTIN UNACHUKWU looks at the profiles of some of the awardees.

    The Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC), at its 138th plenary session on July 4, 2019 elevated 38 lawyers to the highly coveted rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).

    LPPC Secretary Hadizatu Mustapha said the new SANs would be conferred with the rank on September 23, 2019. Six days to that day, here are a few of them:

    Apata

    Adedayo Toba Apata (Dayo Apata) has 30 years’ cognate experience and diverse competence in legal, human, material and financial stewardship giving substance to good governance in Public Administration and excellent delivery of public services.

    An indigene of Ekiti State, he attended the University of Ibadan and obtained a Bachelor of Laws Degree (LL.B (Hons.) in 1984. He got his Barrister at Law (B.L) certification from the Nigerian Law School in 1985. He went on to obtain a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the University of Ado-Ekiti in 2010.

    Mr. Apata began his professional career in 1986 as a Prosecuting Officer for the Nigerian Customs Service (as a Youth Corps member) and subsequently secured appointment into the Federal Ministry of Justice in 1987. He rose through the ranks to become the Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary.

    In the course of his career, he served as Legal Adviser to various Ministries, Departments and Agencies including Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, Ministry of Education and National Planning Commission, where he doubled as the Head Coordinator of the Secretariat of the National Economic Council.

    In August 2017, Apata was appointed as the Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Justice, a position which he presently occupies. He has facilitated reforms in the areas of administration of justice, capacity building, staff welfare and personnel management among others, which has improved the overall engagement and visibility of the Federal Ministry of Justice in a positive light.

    Adedoyin Rhodes-Vivour

    Mrs Adedoyin Rhodes-Vivour graduated from the Faculty of Law, University of Lagos (UNILAG) in 1980. She was admitted as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in 1981. She returned to UNILAG and bagged a Master of Laws degree, in 1986. In 2002, Rhodes-Vivour was conferred with the Master of Arts degree in  International Peace and Security, by Kings College London, University of London. She was sworn in as a Notary Public of Nigeria in 2007.

    Read Also:

    Rhodes-Vivour began her career as a Pupil State Counsel in the Lagos State Government Ministry of Justice in 1983 rising to the position of Principal Legal Officer prior to her resignation having garnered experience in the Directorate of Public Prosecutions and the Departments of Civil Litigation and Commercial Law.

    She resigned from the Ministry of Justice in 1990, pursuant to the invitation from the then Lagos State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice Lagos, to take up the challenge of setting up the Legal Department of a state majority owned company. She resigned from the corporate field in 1997 to establish the law firm, Doyin Rhodes-Vivour & Co. (Legal Practitioners & Arbitrators).

    Rhodes-Vivour has garnered nearly four decades experience in the legal profession during which she made significant contribution to the legal profession in Nigeria and gained international recognition.

    She was the pioneer Chairperson of the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Business Law [NBA-SBL] Arbitration and ADR Committee from 2005 to 2010. She has served on the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Nigerian Bar Association. She is an active member of the Lagos Branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA). In 2012, she was presented an award by the Lagos Branch of the NBA in recognition of her distinguished service to the legal profession. She worked relentlessly with the Inaugural Council of the Section and other committee chairpersons under the leadership of the pioneer Chairperson of the section in laying the foundation of the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Business Law. During her tenure as pioneer Chairperson of the NBA-SBL Arbitration and ADR Committee, the NBA-SBL conferred her with the Chairperson of the Year Awards in 2006 and 2009 respectively.

    Rhodes-Vivour is internationally recognised as one of the world’s leading arbitrators. She is listed in various publications including Who’s Who Legal and Guide to the World’s Leading Commercial Arbitration Experts [Expert Guides] as one of the preeminent professionals in the world.

    In editions of Who’s Who Legal, she has been described as “second to none for her skill and versatile thinking” and as an arbitrator who “garners strong praise from market sources for her first-class practice”.

    Malik

    Aikhunegbe Anthony Malik is from Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State. He attended Baptist Primary School, Inalende, Ibadan, Oyo State between 1977 and 1982, Onireke High School, Links Reservation, Ibadan between 1982 and 1987 and Akpekpe Secondary School, Auchi, Edo State in 1988.

    Malik obtained his Bachelor of Law Degree from the University of Ibadan in 2000 and his Barrister at Law (B.L) certification from the Nigerian Law School in School in 2002.

    He was at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife and obtained his Master of Laws [LL.M] in 2012. Malik also possesses a Certificate in International Criminal Justice and Administration and another Certificate in Public Prosecution.

    Malik has held several special duties at national level.

    He was Special Assistant to the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, between August 2007 and March, 2011, Board Member/Legal Adviser, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), August, 2008 – March, 2010, Legal Adviser, Joint Tax Board between February 2009 and April, 2010. He was also Secretary, Coordinating Committee of the Murtala Mohammed Airport.

    Professionally, Malik was Secretary of the Committee which planned and organised the Nigerian Bar Association Conference on the Review of the Performance of election Petitions Tribunals in Nigeria on  March 15and16, 2012. Other posts include Secretary, NBA Abuja Disciplinary Committee, 2014 to 2016, Secretary, Nigerian Bar Association Committee on Boards and Parastatals, 2014 to 2015, Member, Conference Planning Committee, NBA-AGC, 2015, among others.

    He started his professional experience as an intern at AfeBabalola, SAN & Co. and is now Managing Partner, Alegeh& Co.

    At university, Malik won the award for the Overall Best Participant Prize at the 5th Human Rights Training Seminar for Law Students (Organised by the Constitutional Rights Project (CPR), Kaduna, 1999.

    Sule

    Usman Ogwu Sule was born into the family of Alhaji Sule Ogwu Ocholi and Hajia Salemetu Otiyodo Sule at Agbeji in Dekina Local Government Area of Kogi State. He had his primary school at the RCM Primary School Agbeji in 1977. He attended the Ochaja Boys Secondary School, Kogi State between 1977 and 1982.

    Sule studied Law at the Ahmadu Bello University Zaria. 1988/1990 (Diploma in Law) and proceeded for his LLB between 1990 and 1995. He was at the Nigerian Law School 1996 and was called to Nigerian Bar in 1996.

    Sule worked at the Kogi State Ministry of Justice and also as a legal draftsman at the Kogi State House of Assembly, until he resigned to set up his own his law firm of U.O. Sule and Co. in Lokoja, Kogi State.

    Usman was an active bar man and brought Lokoja Branch to limelight on Bar activities. He was elected as the National Welfare Secretary between 2010 to 2012 under President J. B. Daudu SAN. He was also elected Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Legal Adviser under President Okey Wali SAN between 2012 and 2014.

    He served as an NBA Prosecutor from 2012 till 2017 at the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee and was a member of the NBA Committee on Confab head by Awa Kalu SAN in 2014.

    He got his LLM from the Benue State University, Makurdi, in 2006.

    Sule is married with kids amongst whom are Hafsat, who was called to the Nigerian Bar 2018, Farida who is about proceeding to the Nigerian Law School.

    Omoaka 

    Godwin Omoaka bagged an LL.B from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, in 1997. He obtained his B.L degree from the Nigerian Law School in September 1999.

    He is a Partner in the Dispute Resolution practice group of one of Nigeria’s foremost law firms, Templars Barristers and Solicitors. He also doubles as the Head of the Real Estate practice group in Templars Barristers and Solicitors.

    Omoaka has 20 years of active arbitration and courtroom experience relating to a wide variety of disputes in the oil and gas industry, construction industry, taxation, anti-bribery and corruption etc., spanning different areas of law namely, complex commercial and taxation law issues, general civil litigation, energy law, copyright law, securities transactions, commercial arbitration and other forms of alternative dispute resolution.

    He is also a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, United Kingdom, Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR) Accredited Mediator, a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Mediators & Conciliators, a Standing Conference of Mediation Advocates member.

    Other organisations include membership of the London Court of International Arbitration, the Lagos Court of Arbitration and the Lagos Chamber of Commerce International Arbitration Centre.

  • Collapse of institutions in Nigeria

    Institutions are the legal and to some extent, moral structures crafted by the leadership of any system or country for optimal conditions for effectivity and the reduction of uncertainty to the barest minimum.  These rules assign rights and responsibilities among other things to economic, political and social interactions.  By this token, institutions are anchored to the rule of law in order to robustly govern political and socio-economic systems.  In addition, they are not fixed once and for all, understandably because the grammar of human challenges, problems, aspirations and sensitivities is always changing with respect to its morphology and content.  Institutions or structures are about the universality of human experience.  They are also an age-long phenomenon.  No country or system can experience greatness in all its ramifications without paying sufficient attention to these structures that are a world away from a cosmetic exercise.

    But unfortunately, the Nigerian political leaders are yet to begin to see institutions as the solid foundations of a robust society.  This scenario which is enshrined in bad politics, and failed leadership leads to the retardation of development on a sustainable scale.  Arbitrariness and abuse of power make it difficult for our leaders at all levels to respect institutions, let alone focus on co-ordination of their activities.  Thus, for example, the manner in which the immediate past Chief Justice of the Federation –Walter Onnoghen was removed from office recently showed that Nigeria was/is on the verge of an abyss.  The role of the Nigerian Judicial Council (NJC) was thoroughly crippled by the president, while the 8th Senate that was supposed to protect the Nigerian Constitution kept mum.  In Nigeria, the president is the institution.  He is the law, enforcer of law and final arbiter.  Justice Ayo Salami was removed with ignominy as president of the Court of Appeal by Dr. Goodluck Jonathan when the latter was the number one citizen of Nigeria.  The principle of the separation of power remains alien to the executive arm headed by the president, who exerts his influence sometimes very dangerously on the legislature and the judiciary.  He does this at the peril of the generality of the people.  No respect for the rule of law.

    Read Also:

    Nigeria has many institutions which have been substantially crippled by the powers that be.  Even occasionally, the real power behind the throne makes the country more unlivable, more painful and messier than the “actual” leaders.  The bottom line is the inability of the system to make progress in a myriad of ways.  Thus, for example, the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) is charged with the responsibility of implementing policies by the National Council on Privatisation (NCP).  Other policies include the preparation of public enterprises approved by the NCP for privatisation and commercialisation.  Accounts are also supposed to be thoroughly audited or updated to ensure financial discipline among those driving these commercialised enterprises.  But in practical terms, this is a ruse as executive corruption involving top government functionaries and their business associates is increasing at an exponential rate across Nigeria.  This deviant behaviour keeps most Nigerians in a deprivation/poverty trap perpetually. Corruption in a broad sense, is the major underlying factor for not respecting institutions/structures or laws in this country.

    The Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) inaugurated in 2000 by the Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) founded in 2003 were/are to investigate financial crimes such as advance fee fraud (popularly called 419 fraud) and money laundering among others. These agencies have received and investigated many cases with a view to reducing corruption to the barest minimum in the country.  Huge amounts of looted monies have been retrieved while some individuals are serving jail terms.  In 2006, 31 of the state governors were investigated for corruption. There is no doubt that these two agencies are seriously needed.  Indeed, the fear of ICPC and EFCC is the beginning of wisdom to some degree.  But many Nigerians are now getting more apprehensive that these two agencies might be turned into a vendetta against political enemies. An application of a double standard of morality has the capacity to rubbish both ICPC and EFCC.

    The Maina case cannot be forgotten in a hurry.  Abdulrasheed Maina was alleged to have mismanaged huge pension funds when he was saddled with the responsibility of cleaning up the mess in the pension affairs sector in 2010.  He ran away from Nigeria following a public outcry against the manner in which this case was being handled by the powers that be.  Up to now, this case is inconclusive. A selective application of justice and morality by EFCC and ICPC makes a mockery of justice and fairness.  It seems to me that EFCC and ICPC have been shackled (to a large degree) to partiality.   It is an irritation to Nigerians and humanity generally to turn these two agencies into propagandist organisations.  There should be no sacred cows in the Nigerian socio-economic and political space.  Again, Nigerians deserve to know how much has been returned by the looters and how these monies are being spent by the government.  Greater transparency is of the essence.

    The Nigerian academia is also not showing sufficient respect to the structures put in place for robust intellectual growth.  Thus, for example, in recent times, the university council has become an avenue for making a fortune at the expense of the system.  The vice-chancellor, like an emperor controls the council who holds meetings upon meetings that involve huge honoraria without solving critical issues bordering on a healthy intellectual environment.  Not unexpectedly, the university manager today, is very resentful of criticisms no matter how constructive.  Evidence of institutionalisation of moral, academic corruption can be gleaned even from promotions exercise, where certain weak lecturers are easily elevated to higher levels at the expense of the strong ones. This has demoralising effects on profound intellectual productions in Nigeria. In April 2018, the Socio-economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) reported that the Nigerian higher institutions were notorious for corrupt practices.  These include examinations malpractices, misappropriation of university funds, and short-circuiting employment procedures.  Nobody seriously monitors anybody.  Currently, the Federal University, Oye-Ekiti is in crisis arising from alleged misappropriation of funds.

    The Buhari government has a lot to do to sanitise the filthy political and academic landscape in the interest of all. We cannot just continue like this.  Is Nigeria in the Stone Age period? It was reported recently in the local newspapers that a captain in the Nigerian Army went to a police station in Taraba State to forcefully release a suspect in connection with kidnapping. If this story was true, then Nigeria was in a much bigger mess than ever before. Boko Haram overlords are pitilessly mowing down some soldiers.  The remaining soldiers too are busy killing policemen while the latter group continues to harass and/or murder some innocent civilians almost on a weekly basis.

    The Ike Ekweremadu saga in Germany, despite its crudity was/is an eye opener for our leaders across the board.  They need to embrace selflessness and high ideals instead of the current hedonistic life-ways. Our leaders can only ignore this warning at their own peril. Amassing wealth at the expense of the ordinary Nigerians is now a highly punishable offence in the people’s court devoid of legal, technical jargon. It is the height of godlessness for our political/academic leaders to impoverish Nigerians, and thereafter begin to spend their ill-gotten monies in saner parts of the global village. Leadership is not a tool for economic, financial and political oppression and exploitation.  This underscores the reason why the political class cannot afford to rubbish established institutions.  Respect for the rule of law is critical to good governance.

     

    • Ogundele is Professor of Settlement and Public Archaeology, University of Ibadan.

  • SANs seek improvement in legal education

    •Olanipekun, Gadzama hail Ngige on appointment as Council of Legal Education chairman

    Senior lawyers have urged the Council of Legal Education to find new ways to boost the quality of tuition Law School students receive.

    They urged the council to introduce students to “complementary competencies,” which can help equip them for critical roles and duties.

    The lawyers included a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), Chief  J-K Gadzama (SAN),  Femi Falana ( SAN) and Prof Fabian Ajogwu (SAN).

    They spoke at a reception last week, organised by friends of Chief Ngige (SAN) who was named chairman of the Council of Legal Education by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    The Silks also congratulated Ngige for his appointment and expressed confidence in his ability to advance the course of the Nigerian Law School.

    Ajogwu, who spoke on “Rethinking legal education in Nigeria to meet needs of 21st century,” urged the council to expose students to knowledge that would enhance their efficiency.

    He said: “Students must be exposed to the rudiments of business – having a basic understanding of the tools that managers use to understand and evaluate business opportunity and provoke and sharpen their critical thinking skills.

    “Also the basic tenets of New Technology must be made known in such learning platforms. The increasing speed and sophistication of information technology is reshaping virtually every aspect of our world.

    “Lawyers who expect to operate in this new environment must understand how technology is reshaping the markets in which their clients compete, as well as the practice of law itself, including the use of “big data,” he said.

    He suggested that to equip students for critical roles and duties, “learning platforms must endeavour to introduce students to the array of complementary competencies designed to integrate knowledge and techniques from other disciplines into the curriculum.”

    Olanipekun, who was chairman on the occasion, described Ngige as: “One of those who made the legal profession robust and interesting. He deserves to be honoured; he is a lawyer to the core.”

    He added: “We are producing lawyers in their thousands every year, but nobody thinks or suggests what lawyers would do tomorrow. I pray that for every Nigerian lawyer, tomorrow would be rosy. But how do we plan a rosy tomorrow for ourselves?  Younger ones must learn from the older ones, Rome was not built in a day or two but one step at a time.”

    For Gadzama, “Emeka is somebody you can go to any length to sacrifice for. He is a man of deep intellect, wisdom, truthful; you must appreciate him as a good and dependable friend. He interacts very well, has creativity, foresight, and above all, he is hardworking.”

    The Director-General, Nigerian Law School, Prof. Isa Hayatu Chiroma (SAN), said: “We will work together to move the Law School forward. The Council which comprises the NBA President, 36 Attorneys-General, Deans of Faculties of Law of Nigerian Universities, 15 NBA Representatives as members, about 100 people sitting as council under him will formulate good policies or approve policies for the school will make the Law School at par with such schools in other climes.”

    President of the League of Anambra Professionals (LAP) Chijioke Okoli (SAN) described Ngige as a “very dependable ally”.

    He added: “Emeka is a lawyer’s lawyer, he fights on the side of the people, besides courtroom, there is this issue of character, he is as constant as the Northern Star, unrelenting in his commitments and convictions, hardworking, integrity and  he will tap into the untapped resources that the Nigerian Law School has.”

    Former Country Representative of the International Bar Association (IBA) in Nigeria, Chief Richard Oma Ahunaruogho, stated that “having somebody like Chief Emeka Ngige who knows the feeling of the Bar as Chairman of the Council of  Legal Education is a great thing.”

    He called for the ceding of the NBA House in Abuja to the Nigerian Law School “for the training of our young children.”

    Chief Guy Ikokwu said of Ngige: “Ikemba means a strong man and Ngige has been a strong man in the NBA.

    “Ngige has attended all the meetings of the NBA and contributes greatly to the development of the law.”

    M.K Ahmad said: “We must envisage the law and future of the law by rethinking the legal profession. We will help the honouree to achieve his vision for the Nigerian Law School. A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle.”