INTRODUCTION

The Nigerian Bar Association Annual General Conference, ‘Kaduna 2010’ was held at the Murtala Square, Kaduna from the 22^nd to the 27^th of August 2010.

The theme of the conference was ‘Nigeria at 50: Looking Back, Looking Forward’. The conference was declared open by Mrs Hairat Balogun, a very respected a senior member of the Bar and  a life Bencher.

The Conference resolved as follows:

That for Nigeria to move forward, it must develop a mechanism for conducting credible, free and fair elections; and that politicians must imbibe the culture of tolerance, self control, discipline and the courage to accept electoral outcome.

That all stakeholders in the electoral process, particularly INEC and security agencies must live up to their constitutional and legal responsibilities by ensuring credible elections.

That the electorate must actively participate in the electoral process by living up to their civic responsibilities and ensuring that their votes count.

That all electoral offenders irrespective of their status must be punished in accordance with the law to serve as a deterrent to future offenders.

That the Bar, as the vanguard of the society, should continue to speak out against all forms of misgovernance and stand firm in the defence of the rights of the people.

That the jumbo pay being enjoyed by the members of the National Assembly cannot be justified in view of the abject poverty in the country and should therefore be reviewed downward.

That the level of insecurity in the country is appalling and governments at all levels must live up to their responsibilities, particularly in view of the huge sum of money allocated as security votes.

That effort must continue to be made to review our legal training and practice such that it will reflect the culture and aspirations of our people.

That the review of the constitution must be people-oriented to truly reflect the wills and aspirations of the people.

That the recent passing of the Nigerian Content Bill into Law is a good step in the right direction in the development of our economy and that effort must be made to ensure its full implementation.

That there should be a comprehensive review of Oil and Gas Laws as well as the land Use Act to address agitations in respect of ownership and participation in the Oil and Gas development.

That the NDDC Act should be reviewed to address current constraints in the areas of funding and provision of sanctions for defaulting oil companies

That the government should set the agenda for corporate social responsibilities for public and private corporations.

That as part of the mechanism for dealing with crime, the Criminal Justice (Victims Remedies) Bill should as a matter of urgency be passed into law and the judiciary must be innovative in the application of the existing laws so that victims of crime could obtain better restitution and adequate compensation.

That to enhance the administration of justice, adequate and qualified justices and other judicial personnel should be appointed to ensure speedy judicial proceedings, particularly at the appellate level.

That the endemic corruption within the judiciary, which is with the active collaboration of some members of the Bar is highly condemned and that the NBA shall continue to expose such despicable practices.

That the National Judicial Council should live up to its responsibilities by looking into the corrupt allegations against Judges and apply adequate sanctions for those found wanting.

That specialized courts should be established to enhance efficiency in the justice delivery system.

That law firms should evolve practice management standard to ensure quality practice and efficient management of law firms.

That the Federal Government must take urgent and appropriate measures to address the incessant problems arising from the issue of indigenes/settler conflict.

That the Federal Government should adequately fund the National Human Rights Commission and that the Human Rights Commission amendment bill, passed by the National Assembly, should be assented to by the President of the Federal Republic without further delay

That there should be established an appropriate institutional framework for monitoring and protection of child rights.

That the National Assembly should as a matter of urgency, pass the FOI Bill before the end of the current legislative year.

That the young lawyers should be innovative and imbibe the virtues of hard work, honesty, discipline, self sacrifice, which are the only means to success in the legal profession.

That the NBA should continue to seek for the enforcement of a  robust corporate governance code that would avert future occurrence of situations such as the Banking and capital market crises.

That there should be an immediate engagement of all stakeholders in the legal profession to determine the possibility of reform or abolition of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria.

That the branches of the NBA should devise appropriate strategy to ensure that members of the Bar pay their practicing fees as and when due.

That the Council of Legal Education, rather than the National Universities Commission should be the appropriate body to grant Universities approval to establish and accredit faculties of law.

That all universities running unapproved faculties of law should be sanctioned and lawyers participating in such program should be appropriately disciplined.