Why legal profession is in decline, by lawyer

Can you give us an insight into your university days, how ac-tive were you in the university?

I was very active in the University of Ife, which I attended by choice, having been admitted to all the then 5 Nigerian Universities, namely, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Zaria, University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN), University of Lagos, (UNILAG), University of Ibadan (UI) and the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) Ile-Ife. I was offered a law degree program in all the four universities except UI, which offered me political science, because it had no law program then.

While in the university of Ife, I was an elected member of the Students Union Parliament and member of the Student Union Care taker Committee following the dissolution of the 1975/76 elected Students Union Executive.

I was chairman X-Ray Magazine, a very powerful student publication of the X-Ray club with student members like former NBA president O.C.J Okocha, (SAN) and Justice Ejembi Eko of the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt Division. I also served as political editor of the Pan African Magazine with late Chief Obafemi Awolowo as our patron and late Tunde Agunbiade ( who was also my classmate 1973-76) as the editor of the magazine.

The National Executive Committee Meeting of the NBA holds in Makurdi, your state capital this week, what is your message to NEC members?

The three NBA Benue state branches of Makurdi, Otukpo and Gboko are clearly happy to host NBA NEC again at Makurdi  branch. My message to NEC members is to enjoy the hospitality and peace of Benue state and makurdi in particular.

You seem to have interest in partisan politics from your university days, have you held any political office in the country?

Yes, I served as a Commissioner in Benue state during the Second Republic under the government of Governor Aper Aku and as Chairman Benue state local government service commission in the government of Governor George Akume. I also served in various Federal Boards such as Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Enugu Zone and I was a member of the Presidential Technical Committee on Local Government Reform in Nigeria ( 2003)

How would you appraise the practice of law in your early days with what obtains in the profession now?

Legal Practice when I started and what we have now are world’s apart. The judges then were judicially predictable and protective of both the Bar and the Bench, I remember my first court appearance was in 1977 before Justice Bate in the Jos High Court against Gali Brown Peterside SAN, who was then over 25yrs at the Bar. I was holding chief Solomon Lar’s brief and Peterside SAN, knowing I was a new wig started intimidating me, when Justice Bate noticed it, he said “ John do your case to the best of your ability, this court will protect you” I then took a preliminary objection which he upheld by the Court.

The rapidly declining standards in legal practice today is largely due to a declining Bar which has succumbed to the Nigerian factor of enthroning corruption as a way of life. The society produces the lawyers that run the administration of justice. Everybody now knows that progress either in legal  practices  or societal progression is no longer dependent on hardwork. The legal profession is in great decline, our younger lawyers, unlike in my early days have neglected learning in their youth. The result is a lost past and a bleak future.

The conviction of John Yusuf… of the police pension fund was attributed to the laws under which he was charged, what is your reaction to this and the existence of such laws in our statute books

The public outcry is a welcome development that will awaken the Nigerian conscience. The Catholic Bibhop of Sokoto Dioces, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah has given up and said; “Corruption, sad as it may sound, is the only thing that works in Nigeria”. The fault and error did not lie in the Criminal Code or the archaic nature of the Statute, even though there is need to update our Criminal Procedure Laws. The instant law did not outlaw a prison sentence.

The problem of indigenship and settlers in the Nigerian state has been blamed for most communal clashes in different parts of the country what solutions do you have for this?

The Nigerian state cannot runway from its shadows. Nigeria is an amalgamation of regions, communities, and primordial interests. Our 1999 federal constitution recognizes these differences and accomodates them in revenue allocation formular,, Ministerial slots and federal character appointments. Yet it wants to abolish indigenship because the large tribes who are more nomadic and more adventurous want to overrun the minorities and financially deprived Nigerian groups. Before and since independence, the issue of minority fears via commissions and committees have not been addressed nor protected.

Nigeria is a federation. Note the failed attempt by Decree no 14 of 1966 by General Ironsi at unification and the after effects viz, counter coup,  and the 30 month Nigerian civil war.

The Nigerian federation must continue to recognize and protect our primordial components.

Nigeria’s lack of advancement is not because of “ our tribes” because countries such as Switzerland run a successful and developed federalism with its plural counties and districts, jealously guarded.

Every Nigerian originally comes from a place/community and if there is need to change, the communal rules of such host commutes must be obeyed.

Welfare of younger Lawyers and possibly the old ones too, has been one of the challenges facing successive NBA administrations, how do we resolve this?

My suggested approach is pupillage, part of the problem is the unwillingness of younger lawyers to understudy the senior ones and devote their first 5years into learning the law.

Their rush  into the open market has caused the glot and while some younger lawyers have succeeded, older ones are being displaced and thus, the disorder.

My suggested solution is a comprehensive review of the administration of Justice system with the aim of providing more jobs within the system. A mere 100,000 Nigerian lawyers in a population of 160 million is even not a high proportion yet.

Can you say that what we have now qualifies for the NBA of your dreams, if not, which areas will you like NBA leadership to focus in order to improve the lot of Nigerian Lawyers?

Well the NBA of my dream is one that will become the pride of all Nigerian lawyers. Presently, less than 10per cent of Nigerian Lawyers border about the NBA. This is because the NBA is not attracting greater percentage of Nigerian Lawyers to participate in its programmes and activities. The vast majority of the lawyers are successfully living, acting and surviving outside the influence of the NBA, so, why do they need the NBA

How then can the NBA improve on this?

The NBA can improve on the situation by helping to create more job opportunities Nigerian lawyers within the Nigerian state and system, for example, if each of the 774 local government areas in Nigeria employ a legal officer each, that will take care of some 774 lawyers. Such opportunities will not only create employment for the lawyers concerned, but will also improve the standards of several other lawyers.

Delay in Justice delivery has been cited as a major cause of lack of confidence in the judiciary, how do we ensure speedy justice delivery in the country?.

We can only achieve this through comprehensive implementation of all the piles of reports awaiting action by the government. Key amongst these are recommendations for speedy trial of suspects, independent and improved funding for the Judiciary. Unless and until the Judiciary is properly funded, we cannot get the judiciary of our dream in this country.

How do we improve the quality of judges and judicial officers in the country?

Judicial personnel must not be allowed to run automatic promotions but subject them to input and out put and good conduct. Also, a tighter mode of appointing Judges must be put in place to make sure that the best for job gets it.

 

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