The Nigerian Bar Association Annual General Conference, ‘Lagos 2009’ ended tody. It was a week-long programme which was held at the Ocean view Expo Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos from the 16th to the 21st of August 2009.

The theme of the conference was ‘Underdeveloped Nations, Failed Economies and the Future of the Legal Profession’. The conference was declared open by the Vice President of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, ably represented by the Hon. Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Chief Michael Kaase Aondoakaa, SAN.
The Conference resolved as follows:

1. That in order to address the gloomy state and practice of Democracy in Nigeria, the Nigerian Bar Association recommits itself to challenging Public Officers who undermine public good for personal interest as well as the culture of impunity and non accountability so prevalent in the polity.
2. That the efforts of the Federal Government in resolving the Niger Delta crises is commendable, NBA however urges all stakeholders to work towards addressing the inequities that led to the crisis.
3. That the quick intervention of the security agencies in containing the Boko Haram crises is applauded, but strongly deprecates the extra judicial killings of the leaders of the sect and indeed all forms of extra judicial killings in the country.
4. That credible, free, and fair elections are the sine-quo-non to democracy and can only be achieved in Nigeria where the electoral processes are transparent and the stakeholders see elections as the only legitimate means to obtaining the mandate of the people to govern. That the report of the Justice Uwais Electoral Reform Committee is key to any meaningful electoral reform in the country and urges the National Assembly to as a matter of national imperative bring about legislation to implement the report to its fullest.
5. That all registered political parties in Nigeria must allow for internal democracy within their parties so that qualitative and acceptable candidates could emerge from the process, as the absence of such a process is antithetical to the very notion of democracy.
6. That the NBA shall be actively involved in entrenching a credible electoral process including but not limited to voter education.
7. That NBA commends the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and indeed its Governor, Mr. Sanusi Lamido Sanusi for the recent steps taken to restore sanity and confidence in the banking industry and urges the Bank to continue to take whatever steps required in that direction.
8. That the legal framework for investment in the Nigerian economy should be reviewed to make the investment climate more competitive and favourable to the country in line with global best practices.
9. That NBA shall play a pivotal role in the development and entrenchment of cogent principles of corporate governance and encourage all relevant stakeholders and agencies to join hands with it in this direction as the current regime is weak and inadequate.
10. That the intricate relationship between law and development is noted and therefore the Bar rededicates itself to live up to its responsibility as a catalytic agent of change, economic development, and political stability in Nigeria.
11. That to accelerate infrastructural development in the country through private sector participation, the existing legal and regulatory framework for Public/Private Partnerships in Nigeria should be reviewed and strengthened in line with global best practices.
12. That the varied and often conflicting legal regimes and institutional frameworks regulating the telecommunication industry should be streamlined and harmonized for effective regulation of the sector.
13. That there should be an effective legal framework to curb the prevalence of e-fraud in Nigeria, in accordance with global best practices.
14. That lawyers are encouraged to evolve a robust and viable partnership and succession plan in law firms that would lead to the development of mega firms in order to improve the quality and sustainability of legal practice in Nigeria.
15. That to ensure transparency and meritorious considerations, the Bar should be effectively involved in the processes of the appointment of Judges and the conferment of the Rank of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN).
16. That the relationship between the Bench and the Bar should be improved towards quick dispensation of justice especially through the adoption of Alterative Dispute Resolution (ADR) processes and the NBA shall sensitize its members on the use of the Multi-door Courthouse window.
17. That all forms of corruption and insincerity both at the Bar and Bench are stongly condemned.
18. That the criminal justice delivery system, including the prison system, should be overhauled and reformed to ensure quick dispensation of justice, while guaranteeing the fundamental human rights of citizens as enshrined in the constitution.
19. That torture in all its forms is condemned and urges both the government and civil society groups including the NBA to take positive steps to prevent it in Nigeria.
20. That the child is key to the future of any society and therefore his or her rights must be protected. States in Nigeria that are yet to domesticate the Child Rights Act are therefore called upon to do so without further delay.
21. That the negative effects of stealing public funds on the economy is quite enormous and therefore urges members of the Bar to live up to their professional responsibility by not allowing themselves to be used by their clients as agents for money laundering.
22. That the new Lagos State High Court Civil Procedure Rules has made a positive impact on the justice delivery system, but to realise its full potential, there should be continuous training for judges and lawyers; employment of qualified legal practitioners to man the registry and continuous review of the rules to meet with emerging challenges.
23. That the media should continue to live up to its responsibility in exposing corruption without embarking on ‘trial by media’.
24. That in order to enhance the disciplinary procedure for dealing with erring legal practitioners, the Body of Benchers is called upon to employ fulltime prosecutors to handle such matters as they arise.
25. That henceforth, general elections of the NBA shall be held in the month of July by delegates, while the AGC will continue to be held in the month of August.
26. That the NBA expresses its gratitude to the people and government of Lagos State for its warm hospitality in immeasurable support and unparalleled commitments in ensuring the resounding success of this year’s conference. In this regard NBA is proud of its illustrious member, Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN, the Governor of Lagos State, for bringing honour to the legal profession by his exemplary leadership.

Dated at Lagos this 21st day of August, 2009

Muritala Abdulrasheed, Esq
National Publicity Secretary

Official Communique | Nigerian Bar Association | Annual Genral Conference originally appeared on The Nigerian Lawyer on August 21, 2009. Feel free to forward to a friend.

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So if the management of the CAC is reading this, could you please do something about this? The world has gone online. Even the CAC has a website and does online registrations. So it only stands to reason that there should be a category for registering online businesses if only so that folks like me can get on with business.

Registering My Online Business originally appeared on The Nigerian Lawyer on July 10, 2009. Feel free to forward to a friend.

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