The federal government has inaugurated a committee of high-powered law experts from various fields to review, update and consolidate archaic Nigerian laws within six months.
The law review and update are viewed as part of the ongoing efforts of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to promote the rule of law and access to justice in line with the policy objectives of enabling socio-economic growth and advancing legal reforms.
Inaugurating the committee on Thursday, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), asked the committee members to be meticulous in the execution of the task placed before them.
Fagbemi challenged the law experts to focus on identifying outdated laws which are not in line with contemporary needs and values and to harmonize conflicting laws, to ensure uniformity and consistency.
“I would like to inform you all that this is a project which is particularly dear to my heart, and I have always been concerned about our seeming inability to update the Laws of the Federation (LFN) since 2004, to enable clarity, predictability, consistency and uniformity in our body of laws.
“You are all aware that the general purpose of the law is to protect public interest and regulate human behaviour and interactions between corporate entities.
“The law is constantly dynamic and evolving, hence, there is a need for continuous review or reform of our body of laws to address contemporary socio-economic developments, resolve conflicting and obsolete provisions with the ultimate aim of improving the administration of justice and promotion of rule of law.
“As you are aware, the review, update and consolidation of the Laws of the Federation, 2004 is long overdue in order to reflect and consolidate legislative developments (inclusive of repeals, amendments and enactments) from 2004 till date, in furtherance of the law development mandate of the Federal Ministry of Justice.
“The expected key areas of focus for the committee in the instant exercise are identification of outdated laws which are not in line with contemporary needs and values, as well as harmonization of conflicting laws, to ensure uniformity and consistency.
“This is with a view to attracting socio-economic growth and investment, promoting efficiency and adapting to technological advancements.
“This Committee has been deliberately set up with individuals with vast professional experience and technical expertise in various aspects of the justice sector.
“I realize that there is a lot of work to be done and I would like to thank you all for accepting the call to serve our nation in this capacity.
“Let me particularly express gratitude to the leadership of the National Assembly, the Nigeria Law Reform Commission and Nigerian Institute for Advanced Legal Studies, for also supporting this initiative.
“Please be assured that the Federal Ministry of Justice will always be available to provide institutional support and assistance where required, in order to ensure that the Committee achieves its mandate.”
Terms of reference for the committee chaired by Olawale Fapohunda (SAN) alongside the chairman of the Nigerian Law Reform Commission, Professor Jumai Audi as co-chair, include to “coordinate the collection, collation and compilation of LFN up to 2024, work with relevant government agencies in harmonizing the Laws of the Federation up to 2024 and to cross-check, edit and proof-read all the legislations to be collected.”
Others are “identify all legislations not included in the 2004 edition of the Laws of the Federation and update same, identify outdated or redundant laws in the current Laws of the Federation that need repeal and merge laws addressing related matters to eliminate redundancy.”
