LAST week, I began an examination of the issues relating to the closure of Nigeria’s borders, its effect on the nation’s economy and production of locally made goods. This week, I intend to proceed on a discourse of the pros and cons of the closure while identifying areas government can improve upon to address problems which brought about a need for the closure in the first instance.

IN August 2019, Nigeria announced and enforced the closure of its border with the Republic of Benin. The operation under the codename ‘Ex-Swift Response’ was a collaborative security operation involving the Nigeria Immigration Service and Nigeria Customs Service together with Nigeria Police Force and the Armed Forces. As with virtually all governmental policies and actions, the continued closure of the border continues to divide Nigerians. While the government claims to have acted in the best interests of the economy and Nigerians, some Nigerians and citizens of neighbouring countries most affected by the closure, continue to condemn it and called for an immediate reopening of the borders.

LAST week I considered arguments often advanced by both sides of the debate regarding the prohibition of retired judges from legal practice. I stated the position in countries like India and some states in the United States of America that have relaxed the prohibition, where judges now enjoy the ability to engage in some form of legal practice after retirement. However, without a doubt, there are certain considerations that are unique to Nigeria which in my estimation make it imperative that the prohibition be revisited here.

ISSUES relating to the independence of the Judiciary have pervaded the country’s political landscape in recent times. Many discussions on the issue have focused on the need to guarantee financial independence of the judiciary by ensuring that the budgetary needs of that arm of government are not tied to the executive. I have also in the past emphasised the need for such independence. However, I have overtime, identified certain factors such as reforms to the process of appointment of judges and the need for certainty of tenure as being of paramount importance in any meaningful discussion on the subject of judicial indolence.

In recent times, there has been an increase in the arrest and arraignment of persons alleged to have published false and misleading information against public figures. The first of these was that of a blogger who was arrested, arraigned and subsequently remanded in prison in connection to publication relating to a cleric. Since then there have been more of such incidents, including journalists of main stream media outlets. Understandably, these arrests have attracted scrutiny from the public. While some have condemned what they see as highhandedness on the part of the complainants who in most cases are elected government officials, some have argued that the right to freedom of speech comes with a responsibility to keep within the law and that anyone who fails to keep within accepted boundaries must be subjected to the law. However, most notably has been the perspective that the complainants should simply have filed civil actions against those they claim to have peddled wrong and injurious information concerning them. Those who hold this view argue, albeit wrongly, that such false and injurious publications give rise only to a right of action in a civil claim. It is for this reason that I intend to briefly highlight the fact that the publication of false and misleading information can give rise to criminal prosecution. In doing so, it is not my intention to validate the various prosecutions that are ongoing or to suggest that such prosecutions are always the best way of dealing with wrongful and misleading publications. Rather, it is my aim to draw the attention of stakeholders, particularly members of the fourth estate of the realm, to the fact that certain actions may bring them on a collision course with the law so that they may accordingly be guided in the exercise of their profession. 

Nigeria is at the moment faced with several problems ranging from dilapidating infrastructure in every facet of public life, poor or inadequate medical facilities, ill-equipped educational institutions etc.

ON September 28, 2019, residents of states such as Oyo, Ekiti and Ogun will be restricted to their homes from 7.00 am to about 9.00 am or 10.00 am. The restriction, which is observed in several other states of the Federation on the last Saturday of every month, was first introduced by the military to force Nigerians to remain indoors and clean their surroundings. However, 20 years after the end of military rule, Nigerians are still stuck with this relic from our past.

The House of Representatives through a press conference called by the Speaker, was particularly at the forefront of the demands for answers from the South African authorities.

I AM a good beneficiary of quality primary education as my formal classroom education ended at primary school. Everything I am today is due to the quality education inculcated in me by my teachers at Emmanuel Primary School, Ado-Ekiti in those days. It was this that made it possible for me to read at home to pass my GCE Ordinary Level and GCE Advanced Level and went ahead to obtain my B.Sc (Economics) of the University of London in 1959 and LL.B of the same university in 1963, both by private studies.

After five decades, it is clear that in Nigeria, the quality of legal education needs to be improved in order to meet the ever-dynamic international standards