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By Henry Uche
Deeply worried by the aberrant disregard and disrespect for the Rule of law, repression and other forms of malfeasances bedeviling the progress of Nigeria, Global Rights- Nigeria (Advocates Of Sustainable Justice) in collaboration with Network of University Legal Aid Institutions (NULAI) is set to discuss these challenges and related issues impeding the progress of the country.
A statement delivered by Global Rights revealed that the discourse slated for Monday, July 25, 2pm (Nigeria Time) taking place virtually via (https://globalrights.us18.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9473f7f4197c2a54a54e06f20&id=0e749990ff&e=7566dd4b4f) would see the convergence of experts drawn across disciplines among whom is the Head of Global Rights, Ms. Abiodun Baiyewu, Prof. Chidi Odinkalu, Prof. Sam Erugo, Mr Lagi Innocent, Maxwell Kadiri, Ier Jonatha and Mr Jide Ojo.
With the theme: Rule of Law Vs Ruled by Law: Restricting Civic & Economic freedom of Nigerians, the experts will dissect the act of repression of Human Rights, attempts by the current administration to stifle the civic space, gaging dissent voices and the concept of the Rule of Law and the extent of its applicability in Nigeria, especially in the context of economic life and the civic space.
“The concept of the rule of law is a rudimentary principle in every thriving democracy. The rule of law encompasses sine-qua-non features of democratic governance such as the legitimacy of government, separation of power, checks and balances, safeguarding human rights and an independent judiciary.
“Ironically, the Nigerian government has been very complicit in negating the rule of law. In fact, Nigerians are instead being ‘ruled by law’. Nigeria has witnessed quite a horrendous history, from the repressive military regime to the crackdown of civic voices; from police brutality to a corrupt political class; the list is endless. It seems as though the concept of the Rule of Law is a farce when juxtaposed with the Nigerian reality,”
“Suppression of human Rights and stifling of civic space has become an increasingly worrisome trend. This trend has manifested in, among others: Proposed draconian NGO regulatory bills; the shut-down of NGOs particularly in the North-East under the guise of ‘security expediency’; and the profiling of organizations, as well as the harassment of their staff and board by the Department of State Security,” Baiyewu bemoaned.
According to her, several attempts have been made by the Federal Government to introduce legislations that were invariably tools for oppressing dissenting voices or even invariably stifling the economic life of the people such as the recent ban on Twitter activities in Nigeria, which makes it increasingly impossible to express divergent views with the Nigerian government and not face the repercussion of intimidation.
“In 2020, the Nigerian Government surreptitiously passed the Amended Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA 2020) under the guise of improving the ease of doing business in Nigeria. Despite some laudable provisions on beneficial ownership and the ease of doing business in Nigeria.
“The government managed to reincarnate the totalitarianism that was defeated in the NGO Bill through several sections of the CAMA, in particular, giving the government power to take over a non-profit organizations, remove its trustees, merge it with another non-profit organization without its consent or desire to be so merged, and also power to appoint an “interim manager” to manage the affair of the organization indefinitely, and without need to approach the courts.
“More so, certain government regulations have also been argued to be stifling the economic life of Nigerians, are these regulations subject to rule of law? E.g. 50 stamp duties on every bank transaction? The scope of CBN in setting regulations vis a vis consumer rights protection. The key question for debate is: Is Nigeria Practicing the Rule of Law or it is Strictly Being Ruled by Law? The discourse shall reveal,” she affirmed.
