The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) will lead other prominent Nigerians in the legal profession, media, and academics on discussions regarding how to salvage the image of the Nigerian judiciary at the 2024 Gavel International yearly conference slated for November 29, 2024.....CONTINUE READING THE ARTICLE FROM THE SOURCE
The AGF will deliver the keynote address at the event, with the theme: “The Judiciary as the Last Hope of the Common Man: Media and Legal Perspectives.”
The lecture is to be chaired by the co-founder of Aluko & Oyebode Law Firm, Mr. Gbenga Oyebode. Oyebode also serves as Chairman of Nestle Nigeria Plc and Lafarge Africa.
He also sits on the boards of EnterpriseNGR Professional Advocacy Group, Carnegie Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and the Rele Arts Foundation.
Highly disciplined, he is passionate about developing education in Nigeria, especially within the Justice system.
Former General Secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr Dele Adesina (SAN) will deliver the main lecture.
He is the founder and Principal Partner of Dele Adesina LP and a Life Bencher.
Adesina is an alumnus of the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), Ile-Ife where he graduated in 1981. He was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1982 after graduating from the Nigerian Law School.
He obtained his Master of Laws Degree from the University of Lagos.
A legal practitioner with over 40 years in practice, he was elevated to the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) in 2007. He was a former member, Board of Regents, the Governing Council of Covenant University Ota and former Pro-Chancellor and Chairman, Governing Council of Ekiti State University Ado Ekiti.
Adesina is a prolific writer, author, and commentator who has published two major law-oriented books – The Force of Justice (2010), and New Developments in Law and Practice in Nigeria (2018).
The Publisher of Gavel International, Mustapha Ogunsakin, a former associate of The Guardian judiciary beat, said the 2024 lecture is designed to kick off conversations on the restoration of confidence of citizens in the country’s judiciary, which appears to be at an all-time low.
“During the #Endsars protests in 2020, a very major court building, the Lagos High Court, Igbosere was razed by a mob. We saw horrendous pictures of the burnt iconic building, particularly one of the arsonists in a lawyer’s garb of wig and gown, with a machete in his hand.
“For me, that is very scary imagery. We must begin to restore the hope of the common man in the judiciary because the alternative is anarchy,” he said.
Ogunsakin noted that the legal and media professions saddled with direct constitutional roles in the judicial system must take the lead in restoring confidence in the judicial system.
“While the role of the legal profession is statutory, the media has the responsibility to represent the people by covering and reporting court proceedings, except it has to do with national security or cases involving minors.
“That is why the constitution made provision for a public gallery in every court where journalists occupy to report cases and disseminate to the public,” he stated.
He said the faculty for the lecture comprises notable lawyers, journalists, and academics who will give perspectives on the subject.
Notable among the discussants is a professor of Literature and Literary Analysis at the University of Lagos, Prof Hope Eghagha, who will speak on how Nigerians currently perceive the judiciary.
According to Ogunsakin, he will be joined by a foremost journalist and expert in judicial reporting, Mr Richard Akinnola; a Lagos-based lawyer, Mrs Joke Layi-Babatunde; a jurist and expert in criminal law and proceedings, Mrs Tomi Ajayi, and the foremost human rights activist, Mr Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN).
Gavel International news portal has over the years hosted lectures and conferences in pursuit of its guiding principle – the rule of law.
In 2015, Gavel International presented a book: “For the love of their Nation, Lawyers as Agents of Change in Nigeria’’, authored by the publisher, Ogunsakin.
The public presentation of this book was done by the then Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo (SAN). Others in attendance at the event included the then Attorney General of Ondo State, Mr Eyitayo Jegede (SAN); the first SAN from Bayelsa State, Chief Anthony George-Ikoli (SAN); a former Attorney General of Lagos State, Mr Ade Ipaye and a host of others.
