By Innocent Anaba

Law, leadership and challenges of nationhood in the 21st century Nigeria, which is the theme of the on-going Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, annual  general conference in Calabar, Cross River State, took the centre stage of deliberation  with Professor Jonah Elaigwu, raising concern over the selective enforcement of laws and order in the country.

Prof Elaigwu, President of Institute of Government and Social Initiative, Abuja, who was the key note speaker, cited the anomalies in the practice of the country’s democracy and funny enforcement of laws and other.

He also gave the instance of the Nigerian Governors Forum, where a faction of 16 governors claiming to represent the forum as against the 19 governors majority.

He also noted as a challenge to the country, a situation, where the police cannot enforce a court order against the Federal or state governments.

Apart, he recalled the five lawmakers impeaching a governor in Plateau State; the quartering ofAnambra State lawmakers in Asaba, Delta State to impeach the Anambra State governor and the movement of Bayelsa State lawmakers to Lagos State to impeach D.S.P Alamieyeseigha as obvious signs of the abnormal system sanctioned by the authorities in  Nigeria at the time because it suited it.

Speaking in the same light, NBA President, Mr Okey Wali, SAN, said “one of our greatest challenges of nation building is the challenge of institution building.  In Nigeria, we all know where we are coming from but we may need to examine where and how we want to go and the role of the law and the Bar Association in all this.

”Law plays a very strong role in the society, so lawyers are always concerned with public issues,” he added.

In his contribution, Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Mohammed Adoke, SAN, on his part, said “There is no doubt that any society, which desires to bring about social justice, and development will ultimately address the functionality and centrality of law. In my respectful view, social justice and a developmental perspective to nation’s legal system requires that the rule of law must be sacrosanct. This fundamental concept entails that rights (including economic rights) are protected and that arbitrary powers of the State are curbed by the prescription of rules and codes that regulate and sanction.

”By the same token, in a constitutional democracy like Nigeria, the rule of law connotes not only that the judiciary is independent but that judicial orders and judgments of courts are obeyed and enforced. This is more so when only the courts of law are mandated to state with finality the position of the law as it governs the affairs of the society and the nation.

“Amidst the controversies that attend political rivalries and contests within and outside political parties; in the course of evolving sustainable constitutional principles for our democracy and in the face of security challenges, the courts have dispensed justice according to the law and our constitutional evolution has benefited immensely from their interventions.

”As we prepare to celebrate 100 years of nationhood, we must continue to have faith in the ability of the law to regulate our conduct both in public and private spheres and serve as a mechanism for resolving disputes.”

Further, he said “Democracy and liberalism that it engenders in the political space have also brought about its own challenges especially to the unity and corporate existence of our nation. The freedom of expression, association and freedom of thought and conscience guaranteed by the Constitution, have unwittingly become tools in the hands of politicians and their associates to promote division, hatred and discontentment in the polity. The quest for power and determination of certain persons and sections of the country to wrestle power from incumbent political office holders have led to the issuance of all manner of threats with grave implications for our national unity.