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Six-year-old girl, 15 others arrested in Myanmar over retired-general’s death

16 persons, including a six-year-old girl, have been arrested in Myanmar over the assassination of a retired general.

Local media said he was shot dead in Yangon last month.

A former ambassador to Cambodia, Cho Tun Aung, was gunned down outside his home on May 22 in an attack claimed by an anti-junta group calling itself the “Golden Valley Warriors”.

Myanmar’s military seized power in a 2021 coup, plunging the country into a complex, multi-sided civil war involving pro-democracy guerrillas and resurgent ethnic minority armed groups.

Most fighting is confined to the countryside and smaller towns but grenade and gun attacks on junta-linked targets are regularly reported in Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city and commercial hub.

The Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper said 16 members of the Golden Valley Warriors — 13 men and three females — had been arrested in various locations.

Those held include the wife and six-year-old daughter of the suspected shooter, identified as Myo Ko Ko, the state-run newspaper said, without explaining what the girl is accused of.

The report said Myo Ko Ko and another suspect rode to the general’s home on bicycles and shot him before fleeing to a safe house.

The junta has suffered significant territorial setbacks in recent months but analysts say it is far from defeat, with a powerful air force supplied with Russian jets and military backing from China.

Valedictory speech by Hon. Justice M. L. Uwais, GCON, retired Chief Justice of Nigeria, delivered on Monday, 12th June 2006 at the Supreme Court of Nigeria, Abuja

On the 24th December, 1942, my father, Malam Abdullahi Uwaisu, died. I was six years old. He was an employee of the Nigerian Railway Department, as the Nigerian Railway Corporation was then known. It fell on my late mother, Hajia Hajara to bring me up singlehandedly together with my sister Hajiya Asamau and half-brother Alhaji Shehu Abubakar.

As God would have it, my mother remarried two years later to a school Headmaster, Malam Muhammadu Jumare. He it was that suggested that I should enrol in the Native Authority Elementary School, Kaduna, where he was teaching. My mother agreed and so I started my education there. However, after the first year at the school, my step-father was transferred in 1946 to Tudun Wada Elementary School Zaria.

I too had to transfer to the school. But as there were only two classrooms in the School, there were by that year only classes 1 and 3, I therefore could not join class 3 since I did not pass through class 2. For that reason I had to repeat class 1. I shared this school, amongst others, with Alhaji Rilwan Lukman, former Adviser to the President on Petroleum and Energy who was in class 3.

In 1950, I got admitted into Zaria Middle School where I had 2 years stint before I got admitted into Barewa College, Zaria. This was an elitist School. While educations in the two previous schools were free, fees were paid at Barewa College. In those days it was 12 Nigerian Pounds per annum. My Mother who by this time had got separated from my step father would have to struggle through trading to meet the responsibility. This she did with little or no help from anyone except the monthly rent that she collected from the house my late father left for us.

In 1956, the Northern Nigeria Government headed by the late Sir Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto, took a decision to grant to all the students in Barewa College scholarship, thus making education in the school free like in the Elementary and the Middle School. Not only that, it was decided to return to the students’ parent all the fees paid from 1952 to 1956. The sum of 48 pounds was refunded to my mother who asked me to mention what I would like her to buy for me from the amount as a present. I chose a bicycle whose price was 8 pounds then. It was “Robin Hood’ brand. By this act, I became the first student in my class to possess a bicycle. This was a source of pride for me.

From Form 3 in Barewa College, I was able to obtain holiday jobs during the school’s vacation periods, the longest being 3 months to enable the expatriate teachers return to United Kingdom during summer for their leave. I secured temporary jobs at various times with Paterson Zochonis Ltd (PZ), the Veterinary Department of Zaria Native Authority and the United African Company Lid. (UAC). The salaries I earned from the jobs made me one of the richest amongst the students in my class. However this did not spoil me because my beloved mother kept on warning me to remember that I was an orphan and that I must behave myself and study hard. She was a stern disciplinarian who would not spare the rod.
While at Barewa College, before I completed my education, I developed interest in studying law. This came about by chance. I got encouragement from the legal practitioners then practicing in Zaria without their intending or knowing it.

These were the late Mr. Noel Grey,Kenneth Grey, who lives and practices in Kano, the late Hon. Justice Beckley of Lagos State High Court, the late Mr. Sawyer, from Lokoja and lately Alhaji A.G.F Razak, SAN. So on completing Form 6, in 1957, I applied for a Northern Nigeria Government scholarship to study law in the United Kingdom. I was invited in 1958 by the Northern Nigeria Scholarship Board for interview but somehow the telegram containing the invitation got to me late and so I missed the interview for that year. This was what made me to resign my appointments as Accounts Clerk with the Nigerian Tobacco Company Ltd. in Zaria early in 1959 to take up a civil service appointment as Publicity Assistant, in the Ministry of Information in Kaduna, in order to ensure that I did not miss the next interview in 1959 for which I applied.

After the interview took place, I was successful but there was still one hurdle to jump. There were other successful candidates. The government practice then was that the Ministry of Finance would have to approve the number of students who succeeded at the interview that would be granted scholarship particularly to travel abroad for studies.
Again, luck was against me and I was dropped. This was an inside information that was divulged to me by a relation that was a confidential secretary in the Ministry at the material time. I resigned to my fate. However, as luck would have it, soon after, the Government of Northern Nigeria decided about the same time in 1959 to have a crash-programme for training matured students to become lawyers for the purpose of being employed as the Magistrates and State Counsel in addition to training younger people on scholarship as lawyers.

The training was to take place initially at the Institute of Administration Zaria which later became a part of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. Under a special arrangement with the Inns of Court in London, the students were to take Part I of the Bar Examination at the Institute and if successful to proceed to London to complete the course by taking Part II of the Examinations. The 1959 Programme was advertised in the newspapers and I applied as a civil servant. I was not even invited for the interview.

Amongst those successful were Hon. Justice Saidu Kawu and Hon. Justice A.B Wali who both became Justices of the Supreme Court. In the meanwhile, I was transferred to Kano where I worked with late Alhaji Muhammadu Dungus, who was a Senior Information Officer. When the second advertisement for the training in 1960 was advertised I was reluctant to apply. It was him that encouraged me to do so. By that time I had got married to my first wife Saratu in January,1960. As luck would have it, I was this time around called for the interview and later selected for the training. I received a telegram to that effect. My happiness was without limit, I so valued that telegram that I am still in possession and keeping custody of it. Twelve of us were admitted to the course in July 1960.

Those who succeeded too have been called to the English Bar with me are Hon. Justice M. M. A. Akanbi, CFR who was President of the Court of Appeal and the immediate past Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Related Oftences Commission (ICPC), late Hon. Justice Shebu Usman Mohammed, who was Chief Judge of Kaduna State and later Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria for a short period before his death in February 1993, late Hon. Justice Umaru Maidama, who was a Justice of the Court of Appeal, late Hon. Justice Anthony Aina Ekundayo, who was a Judge of the High Court of Kwara State, and late Hon. Justice Adamu Minijibir of the High Court of Kano State. Of the class of 12 nine of us got to England and only six of us got to be called to the English and Nigerian Bar. And of the same number (12), only Hon. Justice Akanbi and myself today remain alive. I am the last to relinquish public service by retiring today. Alhamdu Lillahi (Thanks be to Allah).

On completing my training and called to Bar, I was transferred from the Ministry of information of the Northem Nigeria to the Ministry of Justice as a Pupil State Counsel. I rose through the ranks to become Solicitor General and Permanent Secretary. I served in the State Counsel Chambers in Jos and the Headquarters in Kaduna. I travelled extensively to prosecute criminal and defend civil cases in Jos, Bauchi, Yola, Mubi, Maiduguri, Makurdi, Lokoja, Ilorin, Minna, Zaria which are provincial Headquarters then.

I served under the late Hon. Justice Mohammed Bello, GCON, my immediate predecessor-in-office as Chiel Justice of Nigeria, when he was the Director of Public Prosecutions (D.P.P) of Northem Nigeria. After the coup d’état of 1966, he was succeeded as D.P.P by Hon. Justice Mamman Nasir, GCON, former President of the Cour of Appeal. That was what brought us together up to 1968, when the civil servants of former Northern Nigeria were deployed to the 12 States created by General Yakubu Gowon. I found myself, together with Hon. Justice Nasir and Hon. Justice Umaru Abdullahi, CON, President of the Court of Appeal and others deployed to the Ministry of Justice of North-Central State as its nucleus officers. Hon. Justice Nasir became the Solicitor-General whilst I was his number two as Senior State Counsel. The years 1968 to 1972 saw him and myself working together at very close quarters. During those years I rose to the rank of Principal State Counsel and Solicitor-General. My appointment to the last post did not come about easily.

In 1969, Hon. Justice Mamman Nasir was appointed the first Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice of the North-Central State. I did not immediately succeed him as Solicitor General. I remained Principal State Counsel until 1971. An incident happened in 1970 when he proposed in the Estimate of the State for the creation of the Office of Solicitor-General, so that I could be promoted to it. While the State Executive Council was considering the proposal, some unfavorable remarks were made against me by the incumbent Military Governor of the State. Hon. Justice Nasir, who was a member of the Executive Council, put up a defence on my behalf. The debate between him and the Governor got heated and Hon. Justice Nasir at one stage threatened to resign his office of Attorney-General.

The incident was leaked to me and knowing how hard I had been working for the State without promotion, I threatened to resign my appointment. It was Hon. Justice Nasir who prevailed on me not to do so, since the Ministry would collapse if both of us left at the same time. Common sense and reason prevailed, the proposal in the Estimate was accepted and immediately the Budget was passed, Hon. Justice Nasir put up a recommendation to the State Civil Service Commission for my promotion and that was how I became the Solicitor-General.

In 1972, I was asked by the Chief Justice of Northern Nigeria, the late Sir Nigel Reed after consultation with Hon. Justice Mamman Nasir, as Attorney-General of North-Central State, whether I would like to go to the North-Eastern State as an Acting Judge of the High Court of that State, in order to help clear the backlog of murder cases in the State, which had then only one High Court Judge in acting capacity. I was then 36 years old. I did not want to go to the Bench then as my ambition was to do so at the age of 45. I was, at that time, enjoying appearing in the Supreme Court and the High Court as counsel. The proposal was not attractive to me even if it was to last for 6 months only as suggested by Sir Nigel Reed, Hon. Justice Mamman Nasir persisted that I should not turn down the invitation since it was a great honor and recognition of my capability. So I accepted the bait and ever since I was not allowed to return to the Ministry of Justice and the Bar which I loved, I remained on the Bench until today.

When late General Murtala Mohammed, a classmate, school housemate of mine at Barewa College, staged a coup d’état in 1975, a Chief Justice (now Chief Judge) was to be appointed for old Kaduna State as the North-Central State later came to be known. Three Judges were to be appointed for the State, we were Hon. Justice A.W.E. Wheeler, late Hon. Justice Shehu Usman Mohammed and myself. Since Hon. Justice Wheeler was senior to both of us and was in fact our training officer in the erstwhile Ministry of Justice of Northem Nigeria, he was proposed for the post of Chief Justice. The Military Governor of the State would rather have an indigene and so nominated me for the office. I had to turn his choice down because my sense of fairness would not allow me to accept the office. And so Hon. Justice Wheeler became the first Chief Justice of Kaduna State. When he went on his 3 months annual leave in May 1976, I was made Acting Chief Justice of the State in his absence.

When the Federal Court of Appeal was created on 1st October of that year. I was the choice of Hon. Justice Arthur Wheeler for appointment to it. However, I was not keen because I did not fancy being posted to all its divisions, which were the 5 regional headquarters of the former Regional Governments of Nigeria. What influenced my mind was the condition of my sick stricken mother in Zaria and the construction of a house which was going on in Kaduna with a loan from the Nigerian Building Society. Nevertheless, I found myself and Hon. Justice Mustapha Akanbi, together with others, appointed to the Court on 1st January, 1977.

Luckily and due to the influence of Hon. Justice Mamman Nasir, who had earlier in November, 1976, became a Justice of the Court, I found myself, with him and late Hon. Justice S. J. Ete, deployed to the branch of the Court in Kaduna. Early in 1978, Hon. Justice D.O. Ibekwe, who was the first President of the Court of Appeal, died. He was succeeded by Hon. Justice Mamman Nasir, who moved to Lagos. Hence, I became the second Presiding Justice of the Court in Kaduna. Hon. Justice Adenekan Ademola, OFR took the place of Hon. Justice Nasir. I variously sat in the Divisions of the Federal Court of Appeal at Lagos, Ibadan and Benin but not Enugu before I was appointed to the Supreme Court on 15th August, 1979, together with late Hon. Justice Augustine Nnamani, JSC.

I was not very happy about the appointment because it was going to take me further away from my sick mother who would not like to leave Zaria or live with me wherever I might be. She too was vehemently against me accepting the appointment. I therefore went to late Sir Darnley Alexander to protest the appointment and lack of consultation with me before it was made. His response to me was that it was too late for me to protest since the appointment had been announced to the whole world and that it was never the practice anywhere, for an officer who was to be promoted to be consulted before being so elevated. I therefore had no choice but to accept my fate. As for my mother, she would have none of it. I had to rely on my maternal uncle, the late Sarkin Auchan, Alhaji Zakari Ya’u, who was her younger brother to prevail on her.

Reluctantly though she gave her blessing after I promised that I would travel to Zaria at the end of every month to see her. So it had been until she died in Zaria on the 20th January 1990, when l happened to be there for the award of honorary degree to late Hon. Justice Mohammed Bello, JSC, GCON, Chief Justice of Nigeria by the Ahmadu Bello University. This gave me opportunity to participate in her funeral. May her soul rest in peace and may Allah (SWT) grant her Aljanah (Paradise). Amen.

Alas, she was not destined to see me become the Chief Justice of Nigeria and thereby observe crowning of the fruits of her labour.

I was appointed as the Chief Justice of Nigeria on 19th December, 1995, after being a Justice of the Supreme Court for 16 years. While being sworn-in on the same day at the State House, Abuja, the Head of State, late Sani Abacha, GCON, in his speech stated as follows:-

“The ceremony which you have just witnessed marks the beginning of a new chapter in the judicial history of our great country. Hon. Justice Mohammed Lawal Uwais, by his appointment as Chief Justice of Nigeria has assumed leadership of the judiciary after 16 years as Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

The choice of a successor to Hon. Justice Mohammed Bello, as Chief Justice of Nigeria was a painstaking task. Government was mindful of the seniority of the serving members of the Supreme Court and was determined to ensure that the most senior justice of the Supreme Court took over from Honorable Justice Bello after retirement.

Happily, Justice Bello’s successors as we have seen, is no less a legal giant. Justice Mohammed Lawal Uwais’ training, experience and intellectual capacity have adequately prepared him for the exalted office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria.

His rich professional background explains the high expectation engendered by his appointment, especially at this critical time in our history. We expect Justice Uwais will bring his vast experience, maturity and foresight to bear on the judiciary”.

Since my appointment as a Justice of the Supreme Court in 1979, I had the luck to work under no less than 5 Chief Justices of Nigeria. They are Sir Darnley Alexander, GCON, Hon. Justice Atanda Fatayi-Williams GCON, Hon. Justice George Sodeinde Sowemimo, GCON, Hon. Justice Ayo Gabriel Irikefe, GCON and Hon. Justice Mohammed Bello, GCON, all of whom have departed this world. I have also worked at different times with no less than 54 Justices of the Supreme Court.

In my capacity as Chief Justice of Nigeria, I succeeded in bringing about a number of changes in the manner in which the Supreme Court conducts its affairs. In 1998, I was able to convince General Abdulsalami Abubakar as Head of State, to appoint more Justices of Supreme Court. For the first time ever since the 1979 Constitution came into operation, the court got its full complement of 16 Justices. This enabled me to change the sitting arrangement of the Justices c the Court in September to mark the beginning of the legal year and have new Senior Advocate of Nigeria sworn-in. I also introduced 3 terms for the court in the Legal Year, during which arrangements of panel change.

The Chief Justice of Nigeria is the ex-officio Chairman of the National Judicial Council, the Federal Judicial Service Commission, and the Board of Governors of the National Judicial Institute. The administration of these statutory bodies has been most demanding; I have tried my level best in the manner in which I performed the functions.

In reply to my letter of 6″ March, 2006 to His Excellency the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, GCFR, giving him notice of my retirement, he stated as follows in his letter of 2lst April 2006 to me:-

“I note with delight that having traversed the judicial landscape of Nigeria for almost half a century out of which over 27 years have been spent in the Supreme Court, you are retiring in good health, in spite of the turbulent waters of Public Service at the top level. This gives cause for celebration and giving thanks to the Almighty Allah for His blessings.

I must however, admit that your retirement at a time when your Lordship’s experience, hard work, integrity and humility were very much in demand and when the reforms initiated by this Administration, with particular reference to the Judiciary, are beginning to take root, is a great loss to me as a person, the administration and, indeed, Nigeria as a whole.

The return of democratic governance in our country in May 1999 with its emphasis on separation of powers between the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary has been a major challenge to all of us especially against the backdrop of military rule for almost two decades, I am however happy to say that under your leadership the Judiciary has been able to restore public confidence in the Judicial process through the enthronement of the rule of law.

Let me at this juncture express the nation’s gratitude to you for the meritorious service you rendered to your fatherland in the past 47 years. Nigeria will certainly miss your exemplary leadership and commitment to the rule of law. It is our hope that the legacy you are leaving behind will continue to be the guiding principles of the Judiciary so that we can move Nigeria forward”.

This should mark the end of this address. However, I need to thank my brothers, Hon. Justices of the Supreme Court for their support and cooperation during the years that we worked together.

As we worked strenuously there had been periods of stresses and pressures which tasked us. But I am glad that we came through all that cheerfully and remained friends, maintaining mutual respect and affection. I will certainly wish to thank all the staff that worked closely with me both alive and dead. Working with me is most demanding but you have weathered it very well.

Whatever success I record, has been in no small measure due to your support and hard work. I will remain ever grateful to you all.

I now come to my dear wives, Hajiya Saratu and Hajia Mariam whom I got married to in January, 1988, as well as my children particularly the youngest ones. You all have been wonderful. You withstood the demands of my office that is the office of Chief Justice of Nigeria. You could not have my attention at most times that you needed it. You suffered in silence Whatever accolade or success I scored, I dedicate all to you. For that would not have been achieved without the love, support and understanding that you showed to me. I pray to Almighty Allah to reward you abundantly, Amen.

This is my story. I have been very lucky in life, Thank to Almighty God.

With these words I come to the end of the address. I thank you all for coming to this special session and for your friendship, admiration and your very kind words. God bless you all.

Alhamdu Lillah.

For Tinubu and Sanwo-Olu

By Lasisi Olagunju

“When lions battle, jackals flee.” Isaac Newton wrote that to his bitter rival, Gottfried Leibniz. It was a barbed remark on their feud over who between them first invented calculus. The more you read of the mutual respect those two had for each other, the more you wonder why they ended their respective careers in very bitter, reckless animosity; the more you also ponder over the cost of that fight and whether it was worth the troubles.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos are two big men who are not equals. One is the boss, the other the boss’s boy. They are not equals, so, there cannot be a rivalry between them over feats and achievements. But they fight; and it is right here in the open. I’ve heard people demanding to know what they are fighting over. We do not know. Let no one talk about Lagos speakership. The sack of Mudasiru Obasa, which was as abortive as Dimka’s coup of 1976, was just what it was – a symptom; it was a reaction to something; there was an underlying cause. What was it?

Sanwo-Olu and his boss are no Isaac Newton and Gottfried Leibniz, and so their fight couldn’t be over who takes the priority on a matter designed to help humanity. If there is a delectable Queen Cleopatria somewhere, I would have drawn a parallel between what is unfolding in Lagos and what unfolded between Rome’s Octavian (Augustus Caesar) and Mark Anthony. But there is no seductress in the mix, I will, therefore, not deliver to age what it is no longer capable of tweaking.

So, what did Sanwo-Olu do? Or what did he not do? Both sides are not talking. All we’ve seen was an ungracious rejection of a friendly gesture; the snub of a handshake by the more powerful potentate. We’ve also seen a convenient skip of the junior power where he ought to speak.

Some people are happy, clinking glasses over the power buffetings in Lagos. They drink to the health of the feud; they wish it greater vigour; they wish its fire is unquenchable. These are people who do not like Lagos and its politics at all and who have been their victims. They see the fight as the elixir that would cleanse the land of all its sins and cure it of its sicknesses. They talk of power and its excesses. They point at Akinwumi Ambode, the man who was brought low so that Sanwo-Olu could ride high. They remember Babatunde Fashola, who escaped breathlessly simply because he was like Coca-Cola, more popular and successful than the parent company. They point at a Governor Bola Tinubu of Lagos who serially used three deputy governors in a tenure of eight years. If I were the president, I would also look at these unedifying statistics and repack my big and small intestines.

A leader should be very careful on the way he treats his people, particularly the companions who look up to him. There was an Orangun of Ila who bulldozed his way to power with charms and then elevated the humiliation of his principal chiefs to an art. An Ila historian wrote that the king’s “humiliating treatment (of the chiefs) reached intolerable proportions when he frowned at seeing the Iwarefa (the kingmakers) in decent attires.

When a chief made a new garment, he was obliged to excise the breast and patch it with a rag.” But every reign, no matter how glorious or inglorious, must come to an end. How did it end for that oba? He didn’t die on the throne. His character gave him a fate which made him a farmer outside of power. Ó fi’gbá ìtóòrò mu’mi nínú oko (he drank water with ìtóòrò melon calabash on the farm). I suggest you read ‘The Orangun Dynasty’, a very rich 1996 book on the history of the Igbomina stock of the Yoruba, authored by Ila Orangun’s very first university graduate, Prince Isaac Adebayo; check pages 40 and 41.

A leader is a masquerade; he must not tear his own veil. When a leader makes and unmakes subordinates, he rends his own cover. “Ènìyàn l’aso mi” is a Yoruba expression which, in English means “people are my clothes; they are my covering.” As a Yoruba proverb, it emphasizes the importance of people in people’s lives. Whatever clothes the masquerade wears is that ‘thing’ that makes the wearer an Egungun. He must protect it because it is his store of power. But my people say power is like medicine; it intoxicates. A researcher adds that “ultimately, the accumulation of power becomes dangerous even to its owners.” Is that why someone saw “a link between mask and menace”?

So, when we interrogate the use of power by the one we have come to call Lagos, we should always remind him that the costume is the sacred adornment which people see, respect and venerate in the masquerade. For a leader, his principal boys and girls are his costume, they are his cover. He needs them when harmattan comes with its fury. And harmattan will come whenever the masquerade repairs back to the grove when the festival is over, and it will be over.

Even lions, kings of the jungle, rely on strong bonds within their prides for survival and well-being. There is an old Irving King song on this: “The more we get together/The merrier we’ll be.” That song emphasizes human interconnectedness; the support embedded in community.

Jackals are opportunists, and they are many in this Lagos fight. Newton’s feuding-lion imagery is an evocation of the themes of strength, of hierarchy, and of consequence. It defines the strained relationship of one big expert with the other big man. The other part of his proverb ‘bombs’ the miserable jackals, minions who lurk around the battlefield, who thrive in chaos and on scraps from the feuding powers.

American novelist, Herman Melville, says a thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men. We should not live our lives as if we exist only for ourselves. Public ‘spanking’ of a governor for unknown and unsaid sins is petty. A president should have snubbed rebuff as his option of engagement. If I were him, If a ‘boy’ offended me, I would just ‘face front’ and concentrate on delivering the Chinaware I carry unbroken. If your load is a pot of palm oil, avoid stone throwers.

But the president is not a pacifist. He enjoys fighting wars after wars. He is like Sango, who desperately desired a fight but found no one to fight. Sango looked round and pounced on the wall and wrestled with it. There was also an Aare Ona Kakanfo who itched for a battle and could get none. He stoked a rebellion at home against himself and, by himself, violently put it down. Because of this and many more like it, the man was nicknamed Aburúmáku (the wicked one who refuses to die).

Are there no elders again where the feuding feudal lords come from? Borrowing lines from Ulli Beier, I would say that now that men appear to have failed to stop this war, women should be called upon to come and kill the fire. Our mothers are like Osun, “the wisdom of the forest, the wisdom of the river. Where the doctor failed, she cures with fresh water. Where medicine is impotent, she cures with cool water.”

The first lady should therefore step out, open her Bible (KJV) to Mark 4:39 and read to her husband: “And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.”

If she does that, I will be encouraged to give the president two lines from William Shakespeare: “Come, wife, let’s in, and learn to govern better;/ For yet may England curse my wretched reign” (2 Henry VI, IV, ix, 4).

If our president’s reign won’t be cursed for wretchedness, he should prioritise the people’s welfare over serial petty fights with his boys. Nigerians are panting at home and reeling in pain at work; on the road, they groan. They are not entertained at all by presidential beer parlour brawls like Musician Ayinla Omowura’s last fight. You don’t become king and still keep trysts with crickets. No.

The views expressed by contributors are strictly personal and not of Law & Society Magazine.

Adieu, the quintessential jurist Justice Muhammad Lawal Uwais, CJN, GCON — Izinyon, SAN

By Dr Alex Izinyon, SAN


The glorious exit of this all-around epitome of a legal iconoclast and jurist, though painful as a human experience, calls for a celebration of the life of one of the finest legal minds to have sojourned on this planet.

He was an embodiment of justice, hard work, tenacity of purpose, and an astute judicial administrator whose footprint will remain indelible in the sand of time for many generations both now and hereafter.

I dare say many write-ups on this jurist are inevitable, but none can capture all of this noble jurist. Permit me, therefore, to use the age long jurisprudence of the six blind men of Hindustan and the elephant in this tribute.

Recall the six blind men who were to describe the elephant after their blind encounter took different positions, each arriving at vastly different conclusions on what an elephant is like.

It remains an indisputable aphorism till date used to illustrate the limitations of individual perception and the importance of multiple views in arriving at a complete understanding of things.

I rest on this platform, therefore, to posit just a part of the Hindustan analogy. But unlike the proverbial Hindustan six blind men and the elephant, I have seen with my eyes wide open this part.

Here was a jurist very amiable, effable mien, always full of smiles and pleasantties which do not affect his legal disposition and tenacity of purpose in dispensing justice.

Yes, let me pick these as my own, which I have seen and read about this legal enigma. Adieu, the great law lord.

Dr Alex Izinyon SAN, PhD, OFR

Uwais resisted using his office to favour family and cronies with key appointments in the judiciary during his tenure — Odinkalu

Law teacher and rights Advocate, Prof. Chidi Odinkalu, has made a call to the leadership of Nigeria’s judiciary, urging that they infuse integrity into the system by avoiding cronyism in all ramifications.

Odinkalu, a former chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), warned that cronyism erodes the ethics and integrity of public institutions.

In a post on his verified X handle on Sunday, Odinkalu paid tribute to the onetime Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Muhammadu Uwais, who died on Friday at the age of 88.

Read Also: Mohammed Lawal Uwais, 12 June 1936 – 6 June 2025

He eulogised the late Uwais not only for his brilliance on the bench but also for upholding professionalism and impartiality in the judiciary for the 11 years he spent in office as CJN.

The former NHRC chair and human rights lawyer deplored what he described as the erosion of ethics and the growing nepotism in the judiciary in recent years.

He observed that Uwais’s fidelity to principles enabled him to resist using his office to favour family and cronies with key appointments in the judiciary during his tenure as CJN.

The ever-candid Odinkalu stated that Uwais maintained a strict separation between his official duties and family interests, a standard he said has diminished in the nation’s judiciary after the eminent jurist retired from the Supreme Court in 2006.

“In 27 yrs at @SupremeCourtNg, 11 of which he spent as #CJN, Mohammed Lawal Uwais did not appoint his son, daughter, wife or mistress as judge or SAN. By contrast, Olukayode Ariwoola spent only 2 yrs as CJN & littered the entire place with his family,” he stated.

Odinkalu had consistently spoken against the last leadership at the Supreme Court for appointing several relatives to key offices in the judiciary.

Some of the appointments were made into the bench, the bar and the Supreme Court bureaucracy.

According to him, such appointments often stand in the way of integrity, neutrality and professionalism in the justice system.

Los Angeles in flames as protesters storm major highway, clash with law enforcement over Trump’s crackdown on illegal migrants

Los Angeles is under siege as protesters set fire to driverless cars and authorities rain down a hail of rubber bullets on demonstrators as they march against President Donald Trump‘s crackdown on illegal migrants.

Horrifying scenes showed Waymo cars erupting into flames and emitting toxic gases as rioters chained themselves to furniture and created blockades to grind Downtown Los Angeles to a complete halt on Sunday night as violence stretched into a third day.

Trump sent in 2,000 National Guard troops and placed 500 Marines on standby, while the LAPD has authorized the ‘use of less lethal munitions’ to regain control of the city.

The conflict has sparked a war of words between Trump and California Governor Gavin Newsom, who accused him of intentionally inflaming tensions. 

Trump hit back with a Truth Social post on Sunday, demanding both Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass apologize for the LA riots, insisting those involved are not ‘peaceful protesters’ as the duo had claimed, but instead ‘troublemakers and insurrectionists.’

Extraordinary vision captured the moment these rioters set fire to the Waymos and celebrated the carnage by dancing on the roof of cars and waving Mexican flags high above the flames.

‘Burn, burn, burn,’ the protesters cheered. 

At least five Waymo self-driving cars were set alight and vandalized, prompting an indefinite shutdown of Los Angeles St north of Arcadia, and south of Alameda amid safety concerns about the lithium batteries.

‘Burning lithium-ion batteries release toxic gases, including hydrogen fluoride, posing risks to responders and those nearby,’ authorities said. 

One protester repeatedly smashed the driver side window of a Waymo which had been surrounded by demonstrators as flames engulfed another car nearby.

Waymo has now halted all services in and around the under-siege protest areas in an effort to protect the remainder of the fleet.

Each self driving robotaxi is estimated to be worth about $150,000. 

Earlier in the evening authorities faced an uphill battle to contain violence on the 101 Freeway, where more than 2,000 protesters commandeered northbound and southbound traffic, grinding motorists to a complete halt as they marched with flags and signs high above their heads.

Motorists stuck on the unmoving freeway were instructed to turn around in an effort to clear the traffic, as even more rioters gathered on overpasses and ramps.

The freeway was briefly reopened but authorities had to shut it down once again as demonstrators began tossing missiles off the overpass and damaging cars below. 

Independent journalist Cam Higby claimed demonstrators were setting tinder alight and firing rocks from the overpass, aiming at police patrol vehicles as they passed by. 

In nearby Alameda and Temple, arrests are now underway as officers report ‘people in the crowd are throwing concrete, bottles and other objects.’

At least two officers were injured after motorcyclists ploughed through rioters and ran straight over the top of authorities. Both of the riders have been detained by police as the officers are treated by medical personnel on the scene. 

Elsewhere, officers were reportedly struck by fireworks as they worked to break up a violent crowd, while protesters were filmed brandishing 3D creations of Trump’s severed head on a pole. 

At the Los Angeles City Hall, authorities on horseback were locked in a tense standoff with even more demonstrators, sparking fears from local law enforcement officers that they were in for a ‘rough night.’

Further arrests have been made throughout the Civic Center area of Downtown LA. 

Protesters gathered outside the Metropolitan Detention Center were warned that the LAPD incident commander had approved the use of ‘less lethal munitions’ to break up the crowd.

This came as authorities declared the area an ‘unlawful assembly’ and warned any protester who chose to stay would be subject to arrest.

The LAPD began issuing rolling dispersal orders and declaring some of the protests acts of ‘unlawful assembly’ as violence ramped up on Sunday afternoon. 

Protesters within regions now under a dispersal order have been warned to evacuate now or face arrest. 

Demonstrations even reached the upscale AC Hotel Pasadena by Sunday afternoon after the arrival of emergency vehicles.

While that protest had not descended into violence, those who had gathered chanted ‘ICE is not welcome here’ and blasted songs in Spanish in a display of solidarity. 

At the site of another dispersal order near Temple Street and Main Street, demonstrators are ‘using chairs, garbage bins and other items to blockade the street.’

Authorities issued a separate warning that the city has been placed on ‘tactical alert’, meaning all of the department’s officers are now on notice that they could be called up for service at any given moment. 

Officers who are already on duty are not allowed to end their shift until they have been relieved by their commanders, and residents of Los Angeles are warned that low priority calls may go unanswered while the alert is ongoing. 

These officers will now join the 2,000 California National Guard troops Trump earlier deployed to Los Angeles to quell the protests, which he called ‘a form of rebellion.’

Trump issued an extraordinary directive on Sunday vowing to ‘liberate Los Angeles’ from illegal aliens which have ‘invaded and occupied a once great American city.’ 

A combined effort led by Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, and Attorney General Pam Bondi will restore order, Trump said. 

He has directed his key personnel to ‘to take all such action necessary to liberate Los Angeles from the Migrant Invasion, and put an end to these Migrant riots.

‘Order will be restored, the Illegals will be expelled, and Los Angeles will be set free,’ Trump wrote on Truth Social on Sunday afternoon.

Trump lamented the current state of the city, expressing concern that ‘a once great American City, Los Angeles, has been invaded and occupied by Illegal Aliens and Criminals. 

‘Now violent, insurrectionist mobs are swarming and attacking our Federal Agents to try and stop our deportation operations.’

But he vowed ‘these lawless riots only strengthen our resolve’ as images emerge of troops on the ground in the downtown area of the city ready to defend the city from more violent demonstrations.

The president congratulated the National Guard on doing a ‘great job’ in the city in the early hours of Sunday morning, although they hadn’t arrived yet. 

But Governor Newsom shared a very different perspective just hours later, revealing he has urged Trump to ‘rescind the order [and] return control to California.’

‘We didn’t have a problem until Trump got involved,’ Newsom said in his extraordinary rebuke.

‘This is a serious breach of state sovereignty — inflaming tensions while pulling resources from where they’re actually needed.

‘These are the acts of a dictator, not a President.’ 

Mayor Karen Bass echoed those statements, telling CNN: ‘This sows chaos that is not warranted nor needed in the city of Los Angeles.

‘It’s as though troops were rolled out in a provocative manner and I do not see how that is helpful to Los Angeles right now, it’s not the type of resources that we need in the city.

‘We do not need to have our city under siege.’ 

Former Vice President Kamala Harris joined in on the Democrat pile-on on Sunday, denouncing the ICE raids which sparked the civil unrest.

‘Deploying the National Guard is a dangerous escalation meant to provoke chaos,’ Harris wrote in a statement on X. 

‘In addition to the recent ICE raids in Southern California and across our nation, it is part of the Trump Administration’s cruel, calculated agenda to spread panic and division.’ 

Early Sunday, the violence was limited to a small area in downtown Los Angeles, with the rest of the city of 4 million people largely unaffected. Since then, pockets of protests have began popping up in broader parts of the community.

The arrival of the National Guard and federal reinforcements follows days of protests that began Friday in downtown Los Angeles before spreading on Saturday to Paramount and neighboring Compton.

Hegseth had warned on Saturday that ‘active duty Marines’ were on ‘high alert’ as the riots created havoc on the streets. 

On Sunday, Noem said the National Guard would ‘keep peace and allow people to be able to protest but also to keep law and order.’

The troops included members of the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, according to a social media post from the Department of Defense that showed dozens of National Guard members with long guns and an armored vehicle.

Governor Newsom called Trump on Friday night and they spoke for about 40 minutes, according to the governor´s office. It was not clear if they spoke Saturday or Sunday.

Newsom described Trump’s decision to call in the National Guard as a ‘provocative show of force’ that would only escalate tensions. 

He added that Hegseth’s threat to deploy Marines on American soil was ‘deranged behavior.’ 

Rioters have also been warned that the use of non-lethal munitions has been authorized to maintain order, prompting a warning from the LAPD urging people to ‘leave the area’ to avoid the ‘pain and discomfort’ such weapons can bring.

But the escalation comes in response to rioters using flaming projectiles and throwing rocks at authorities, as they set fire to cars in their path of destruction. 

They were met by federal agents in riot gear and gas masks. The mob was warned to leave in both Spanish and English.

Tear gas and smoke filled the air as confrontations between immigration authorities and demonstrators extended into a third day.

These riots were set against the backdrop of Trump’s latest immigration raid, targeting the safe haven of Los Angeles on Friday.

DHS said in a statement that the recent ICE operations resulted in the arrest of 118 immigrants.

Trump’s border czar Tom Homan said those arrested included child sex offenders, gang members and national security threats.

‘They arrested a lot of bad people yesterday and today,’ Homan asserted. ‘We’re making Los Angeles safer.’

Homan also remarked that ICE agents were often wearing masks as they conducted raids because they were worried about their families being doxxed.

By Saturday night federal agents reported having arrested more than a dozen ‘agitators who impeded agents in their ability to conduct law enforcement operations. 

Culled from Daily Mirror

Ex-minister attacked with axe over alleged extramarital affairs

A former Cabinet Minister and longtime Binga South Member of Parliament, Joel Gabbuza, is recovering in hospital after sustaining serious injuries in an alleged axe attack linked to a suspected love triangle.

The incident reportedly occurred late on Friday, June 7, 2025.

According to sources familiar with the matter, Gabbuza was attacked by a man who accused him of having an affair with his wife. The motive behind the violence is believed to be personal, although police have yet to issue an official statement on the matter. Unconfirmed reports suggest the assailant fled the scene, and investigations are ongoing.

In the aftermath of the attack, false rumours of Gabbuza’s death circulated widely. However, his family has confirmed that he is alive and responding to treatment.

“He is receiving treatment at Hwange Colliery Hospital. His condition has improved from last night; he is now able to speak,” Gabbuza’s son told CITE in a brief telephone interview. He added that arrangements were being made to transfer the former MP to Mpilo Hospital in Bulawayo for further medical care.

Gabbuza’s political career spans over two decades. He was first elected to Parliament in 2000 under the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) and served as MP for Binga. Following electoral boundary changes in 2008, he represented Binga South until his recall in October 2023.

During the Government of National Unity from 2009 to 2013, Gabbuza served as Zimbabwe’s Minister of Water Resources and Development. He left the post when Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri was appointed to head the restructured Ministry of Water and Climate.

Further updates on the incident and Gabbuza’s condition are expected as investigations continue.

ALDIN mourn the loss of its esteemed Board of Trustees’ Chairman, Justice Muhammad Lawal Uwais

The Association of Lawyers with Disabilities in Nigeria (ALDIN) stands united with the legal community and the nation in mourning the passing of our esteemed Board of Trustees Chairman, Justice Muhammad Lawal Uwais, GCON. His departure represents an immense loss not only for ALDIN but also for the entire legal fraternity and the countless lives he touched throughout his remarkable career.

Speaking on behalf of the Association, its National President, Ikem U. Uchegbulam, Esq., described the late jurist as a trailblazer for the rights of individuals with disabilities. Justice Uwais was unwavering in his advocacy for justice and equality. Under his visionary leadership, ALDIN evolved into a powerful voice for lawyers with disabilities, promoting inclusivity while providing vital support, mentorship, and solidarity within our community. His legacy will continue to inspire our efforts as we strive to uphold his values and work toward access to justice and equal opportunities for all.

Justice Uwais was not only a distinguished jurist; he was a beacon of integrity and reform within the Nigerian Judiciary. Serving as Chief Justice from 1995 to 2006, his tenure was characterized by a steadfast commitment to judicial independence, ethical standards on the Bench, and the upholding of democratic principles. His landmark judgments advanced constitutional interpretation and civil liberties, earning him profound respect within and beyond the legal profession.

Even after retirement, Justice Uwais remained dedicated to serving the nation, notably as Chairman of the Electoral Reform Committee in 2007, where he proposed critical recommendations for electoral reforms that continue to shape national dialogue today.

During this difficult time, our thoughts and prayers are with Justice Uwais’s family and loved ones. We encourage our members and the broader legal community to honor his memory by continuing his noble work and advocating for positive change in society.

Signed,
Justice Christopher
Director of Media and Publicity, ALDIN National

Chidi Odinkalu and the art of peddling lies

By Muyiwa Adekeye  

Chidi Odinkalu has been consistent in peddling falsehoods about Malam Nasir el-Rufai. He has demonstrated a most cavalier approach to facts concerning a man with whom he is obviously obsessed, as again manifested in his most recent diatribe published in The Cable on 1 June 2025.

Like many who trifle with significant matters for their own narrow agendas, Odinkalu lied again about the circumstances that led to the unfortunate demise of His Highness, Dr. Raphael Maiwada Galadima, the Agwam Adara. The facts of the matter and the circumstances of this sad event could not be farther from the fiction that Odinkalu has been retailing with what looks like macabre pleasure over the years. Odinkalu’s preference for conspiracy theory cannot displace the fact that the late Agwam Adara did not attend and was not coming from a meeting with then Governor el-Rufai and certainly did not accompany Malam Nasir el-Rufai on any commiseration visit to Kasuwan Magani. Indeed, the then Governor interacted with him only during the regular meetings with the State Council of Chiefs. To hold on consistently to falsehood does not alter its essence as a blatant lie.

Read also: Re: El-Tufiakwa – Muyiwa Adekeye and the art of manufacturing consent

On 19th October 2018, His Highness, Dr. Galadima was kidnapped on the highway to Kachia along with his wife, Mrs. Victoria Galadima, after his car was attacked by armed men. The royal father was returning from Kaduna where he had attended a send forth ceremony held for a niece of his. The abductors released Mrs. Galadima a few hours later but held on to the monarch whom they killed after a week. News of the killing of the monarch, and the gruesome circumstances, had immediate consequences for law and order, requiring the Kaduna State Government to declare a curfew on Friday, 26th October 2018, on the advice of the security agencies.

The tension and agitation that accompanied the grief and sadness at the royal father’s death were fuelled by the lie spread on social media and in sections of the press immediately after the monarch’s abduction that he was kidnapped while returning from a specific meeting with the Governor. That is the false tale that Odinkalu has repeated in his latest opinion piece, reflecting his rejection of facts that do not fit his warped narrative. Nigeria clearly does not have to look across the oceans for denizens of falsehood who believe that lies can be passed off as truth once they are repeatedly designated as alternative facts.

Read also: El-Tufiakwa for El-Rufai

The testimonies of two eyewitnesses when the abduction happened debunk Odinkalu’s false tale. Mrs. Galadima, the Agwam Adara’s widow, and Mr. Stephen Audu Garba, gave eyewitness accounts to The Cross News, a publication of the Catholic Archdiocese of Kaduna. The November 2018 edition of The Cross News quoted Mrs Galadima as saying that the kidnappers abandoned her in the bush on the night of the abduction. Mr. Stephen Audu Garba told The Cross News that:

“It was on Friday, 19th October, when we went Kaduna for the send forth ceremony of his younger brother’s daughter. So, he was there to bless her before the actual wedding ceremony. We went through the programme halfway and after the blessing, we left for Kachia immediately. On our way back, some 30 to 40 kilometres to Kachia town, just immediately after we got to the village of Maikyali, we ran into an unpleasant situation -kidnappers. We didn’t know there was ambush. We ran into them, and we were forced to lie down on the road for some minutes along with some other people who were unfortunately caught in the unpleasant situation. They were instantly shot and killed, and some were abducted into the bush including His Royal Highness and his wife and we stayed there for some time, helplessly, until after some minutes when a military team came. We were rescued and taken back home late in the night.”

There had been an outbreak of violence in Kasuwan Magani on Thursday, 18th October 2018. Malam Nasir el-Rufai visited the Kasuwan Magani to commiserate with the people and assess the security situation. It was in Kasuwan Magani that the first ethno-religious crisis in Kaduna State broke out in 1981 during the Second Republic tenure of Governor Abdulkadir Balarabe Musa, which made the 2018 violence quite concerning across the State and, of course, to then Governor el-Rufai.

During its first term, the el-Rufai administration reduced the number of district heads across the state to 77 from 390. The Administration also began exploring how to introduce greater order in the structure and running of traditional institutions and furthering empowering them to become promoters of peaceful relations across the communities in their domains. The deliberations included discussing whether the naming of chiefdoms after tribes, rather than territory, was not inimical to the objective of uniting all communities within a chiefdom.

It is therefore very important to note that the administration adopted a policy to name traditional institutions after territory. In Kajuru LGA, the erstwhile Adara (named after a tribe) and Kajuru (named after a territory) chiefdoms had exercised traditional authority, but the Agwam Adara had his palace and the headquarters of his chiefdom in Kachia, the headquarters of Kachia LGA. Consistent with the policy to name chiefdoms after territory, the El-Rufai administration created Kufana Chiefdom in Kajuru LGA to exercise the functions hitherto exercised by the Adara Chiefdom. Kachia chiefdom was also established. All these adjustments are captured in the Traditional Institutions Law which was enacted in 2021. This law classified the chiefdoms and emirates in the state and prescribed the ruling houses and patterns of succession for each.

In 2017, the traditional councils of Kagarko, Kajuru, Lere and Kauru chiefdoms applied to be redesignated as emirates. The government granted the request from these four chiefdoms which straddled the three senatorial districts of the State: Lere in Kaduna North Senatorial District, Kajuru in Kaduna Central while Kagarko and Kauru are in Kaduna South Senatorial District. None of them exercised traditional authority outside their specified communities. When these requests for redesignation were approved in 2018, Odinkalu tried to spin it as an instance of compelling some chiefdoms to become emirates.

Chidi Odinkalu has form in posturing as the authority on Kaduna State matters. While many Nigerians spent the morning of 16th February 2019 digesting the postponement of the presidential election scheduled for that day, Odinkalu spent hours on live television trying to deny that killings of members of a specific community had taken place days earlier in a village in Kajuru LGA area. He kept on insisting that his network in Kaduna had told him there were no killings in Kajuru LGA contrary to the announcement by then Governor Nasir el-Rufai who had received the report from the military and other security agencies. Neither the site visits and the testimonies of the survivors nor the visuals confirming the killings moved Odinkalu who persisted in his claims that his network’s information was superior to official reports from the military and security agencies.

Odinkalu hung on to his lie and he was publicly admonished for his bad behaviour by leading, knowledgeable civil society figures. Eminent political scientist and civic leader Dr. Jibrin Ibrahim told Odinkalu in a tweet on 17 February 2019 to “please avoid misinforming people. #AllLivesMatter so you cannot get angry over the killing of some and falsely deny the killings of others. @elrufai is not the issue.”

In a bid to address his falsehoods, the Kaduna State Ministry of Justice initiated the prosecution of Odinkalu for injurious falsehood and incitement, which are offences in the Penal Code of Kaduna State. Mr. Odinkalu successfully evaded arrest and arraignment during the tenure of the El-Rufai administration. This effort to make him accountable for his actions is a key motivation in his persistent campaign of hatred and defamation against the former Governor.

The latest prompt for Odinkalu’s eruption of lies is a recent Federal High Court ruling in a matter on which neither Malam Nasir el-Rufai nor his lawyers were served with court processes before judgment was entered. Media reports indicate that the case, filed in March 2024, stemmed from the aftermath of the sorry events of February 2019 in Kajuru LGA. We will not join Odinkalu in litigating the matter in the media. We are certain the lawyers will handle this satisfactorily. Suffice it to say that in the Kajuru LGA case, as Dr. Ibrahim alluded to in the tweet quoted, not all lives mattered to Mr. Odinkalu and not being in possession of the facts did not discourage him from pontificating about those matters.

Muyiwa Adekeye is the Media Adviser to Malam Nasir El-Rufai

The views expressed by contributors are strictly personal and not of Law & Society Magazine.

Two Years Assessment of President Tinubu: The political governance fundamental

  • Redirecting Nigeria’s Development Agenda Beyond Economics

Dr. Olisa Agbakoba, SAN

Introduction: The Misdiagnosis Problem

President Bola Tinubu was elected on May 29, 2023. His first term in office will end on May 28, 2027. We are now at midterm. Many midterm performance assessments have been conducted, most based on economic factors: inflation rates, employment, exchange rate stability, GDP growth figures, poverty levels, and similar metrics.

A midterm assessment is generally based on economic performance, but in the case of Nigeria, I am not sure this approach is appropriate, given the underlying structural problems. The country suffers from a flawed federal system where power is excessively centralized, creating inefficiencies and bottlenecks that economic policy cannot resolve.

Wrong diagnosis leads to wrong treatment that produces wrong results. Nigeria must confront its structural political deficit otherwise, economic interventions will continue to yield suboptimal results, regardless of their technical soundness. I will therefore depart from assessing President Tinubu’s midterm based on economic factors alone. Let me explain.

The Structural Reality: 90% Dysfunction

Everyone knows that Nigeria operates a deeply flawed, over-centralized political system that cannot be characterised as a federal system. The result is 774 local governments and 36 states (90% of Nigeria’s governance architecture) fully depend on the Federal Government. Local and state governments are primarily collection points for federal allocations rather than centres of productive governance. The result is that economic activity is artificially concentrated at the federal level while the natural drivers of bottom-up economic growth (local governments and states) remain dormant and excluded.

The administrative governance structure is a huge hindrance to economic development. The administrative system is not designed to enable optimal economic performance but rather to control and regulate economic policy by layers of bureaucratic interference. Private sector is stifled by lack of innovation and entrepreneurship. The bureaucracy is simply too unwieldy to deliver optimal results to drive investment and economic growth.

More critically, this centralized economic planning excludes majority of Nigerians from economic participation. Over 200 million Nigerians are trapped in an informal sector that is unproductive and disconnected from formal economic opportunities. The political system allows the extraction of enormous economic value by rent-seekers and plutocrats who position themselves at the centralized chokepoints of resource allocation. 

The Economic Implications of Political Over-Centralization

Economies grow from the bottom up, not top down. This fundamental principle explains why countries with robust local governance structures consistently outperform highly centralized systems. When local governments cannot effectively manage local resources, local challenges, and local opportunities, the entire economic ecosystem suffers.

Consider the agricultural sector, which employs majority of our people. Agricultural productivity is inherently local—soil conditions, climate patterns, market access, and farming techniques vary significantly across Nigeria’s diverse geography. Yet agricultural policy is mostly formulated and implemented from Abuja, creating a one-size-fits-all approach to an inherently localized economic activity.

This centralized approach excludes smallholder farmers, local traders, and community-based enterprises from accessing credit, technology, and markets, trapping Nigeria’s largest economic sector in subsistence patterns while well-connected agribusiness interests capture the formal value chains.

International Perspectives: Learning from Successful Models

European economies offer instructive examples. Countries like Spain built significant portions of their economies around simple agricultural products—olive oil, grapes, and apples. The key difference lies not in the products themselves but in the governance structures that support their production and commercialization.

In Spain, regional governments have substantial autonomy over agricultural policy.  Local governments manage rural development programmes, and municipalities coordinate directly with farming communities. This multilevel governance approach allows for responsive, adaptive policies that reflect local conditions whilst contributing to national economic objectives.

Nigeria’s fixation on oil and gas reflects the centralized governance model where complex resources are managed from the centre. Meanwhile, simple crops that could drive broad-based economic growth—tomatoes, rice, yam, beans, cassava—remain underdeveloped precisely because the governance structures needed to support them are dysfunctional.

Tinubu’s Economic Reforms: Necessary but Insufficient

President Tinubu deserves credit for implementing long-overdue economic structural reforms. This is known as market correction. The removal of fuel subsidies and deregulation of the foreign exchange market were courageous decisions that previous administrations avoided due to political costs. These reforms are economically sound and necessary for long-term stability.

However, the critical question is not whether these reforms were correct—they were—but whether they can achieve their intended impact in the context of Nigeria’s governance structure. Economic reforms operate within political systems, and when those systems are fundamentally flawed, even the best economic policies produce suboptimal results.

Also, these federal-level reforms do not address the fundamental exclusion of majority of Nigerians from formal economic participation. Without complementary governance reforms that empower local institutions, these macroeconomic adjustments may worsen inequality by concentrating benefits among those already connected to formal economic networks.

The Missing Follow-Through

I believe the challenge with Tinubu’s economic reforms lies in their execution within a dysfunctional governance framework. Fuel subsidy removal was intended to free up resources for productive investment, but if state and local governments lack capacity and autonomy to deploy them effectively, reform benefits remain unrealized. Similarly, forex deregulation aimed to improve market efficiency will not happen if the regulatory environment remains centralized and unresponsive to local business conditions.  Efficiency gains cannot translate into broad-based economic growth.

The Foundation Problem: Building on Unstable Ground

Nigeria’s development challenge resembles building a 20-storey edifice on a cracked foundation. No matter how impressive the superstructure—federal economic policies, national development plans—the underlying cracked foundation will limit what can be achieved.

When local governments are not allowed to register births and deaths, and also not allowed to manage basic education, water, sanitation, health, when municipalities cannot issue driving licenses, the entire system operates below capacity. Local governments are the building blocks of economic development because they create the institutional environment within which businesses operate.

The Capacity Trap

Nigeria is in a capacity trap.  The federal government is overburdened with responsibilities it cannot effectively manage. Subnational governments are underpowered to handle functions they are best positioned to execute. This misalignment creates inefficiency at every level.

Federal ministries attempt to manage local issues from Abuja, creating bureaucratic delays and contextual mismatches. Meanwhile, local governments with intimate knowledge of community needs, lack resources and authority to address them. The result is governance that satisfies no one and develops nothing.

This administrative dysfunction manifests as excessive bureaucratic interference in private sector operations. Businesses face multiple layers of approvals, permits, and regulatory compliance that are designed more for control than facilitation. The unwieldy bureaucratic machinery creates bottlenecks that slow economic activity and discourage investment, while the distance between decision-makers and implementers ensures that even well-intentioned policies are poorly executed.

Without functional local institutions to provide basic services, regulate markets, enforce contracts, and facilitate access to credit and technology, informal enterprises remain trapped in survival mode rather than growing into productive businesses.

The Path Forward: Political Governance as Economic Strategy

Achieving Nigeria’s ambitious target of becoming a one trillion-dollar economy requires growth rates of 7-8% sustained. Such growth rates are impossible within the current governance structure because economic energy across all levels of society cannot be unleashed.

A revolution in political governance will admit a rush of new economic actors currently trapped, useless and unproductive in the informal sector. When local governments can effectively support local businesses, when communities can organize their own development initiatives, and when state governments can create enabling environments for regional economic clusters, Nigeria will witness an explosion of entrepreneurial energy that has been suppressed for decades.

Restructuring as Economic Imperative

The solution requires restructuring, rebalancing, or devolution. Regardless of terminology, the imperative is clear: Nigeria must transition from its current unitary system disguised as federalism to genuine multilevel governance where each tier has meaningful autonomy and responsibility.

Genuine multilevel governance is not merely a political preference—it is an economic necessity. Countries that achieve sustained high growth rates do so by mobilizing economic activity across multiple levels of governance. When only the federal level is truly functional, economic growth is artificially constrained by the capacity limitations of that single level.

More important, functional multilevel governance creates multiple entry points for economic participation, allowing entrepreneurs to access services and build businesses through local institutions rather than navigating federal bureaucracies in Abuja.

Implementation Framework: Executive Actions, Legislative Reforms and Administrative Restructuring

Implementing genuine multilevel governance will require constitutional amendment, but beyond constitutional amendment there are certain executive actions and administrative restructuring the President can undertake to redirect the country.

Executive Actions

The President can immediately transfer specific functions to state and local governments through executive orders. Issues like driver’s license, agriculture, microfinance banks, labor regulation, including minimum wage prescriptions, business incorporation, state taxes, trade within states, etc can be devolved administratively.

Legislative Reforms

The National Assembly can utilize Sections 4(1) and 315(1)(a) & (4) of the Constitution to replace the 1999 Constitution and prioritize devolution of powers and fiscal federalism. I recommend that the National Assembly create a new legislative list for Federal, State, and Local Government. Local Governments should have clearly defined legislative powers within the constitution.

Powers relating to infrastructure such as road construction and maintenance, street lighting, and waste management should be clearly assigned, along with primary healthcare, education, social welfare, business licensing, market regulation, tax collection (community tax, tenement rates), voter registration, conduct of local elections, and management of public facilities like cemeteries to local governments. Currently, State governments have largely usurped these functions and crippled the 774 local governments that are supposed to be a source of energy and economic activity. The same should apply to states.

Functions of state governments should be clearly set out by the constitution, as they are being usurped by the federal government. For example, is the Supreme Court suited to adjudicate chieftaincy, inheritance, and land matters from states? Should the Federal Government hold onto policing powers with one Inspector General of Police in Abuja overseeing policing of 200 million people? Should Federal Government control airports in the country, even when built by states?

The National Assembly must pass legislation that empowers subnational governments to take on more economic policy while providing the legal framework for intergovernmental cooperation. Revenue allocation formulae can be adjusted to match resources with responsibilities.

Administrative Restructuring

Federal ministries can be restructured to focus on policy formulation and standard-setting rather than direct implementation. This would free up resources and expertise to support subnational governments whilst reducing the federal government’s operational burden.

Most important, restructuring would transform the administrative governance approach from one of interference and control to one of facilitation and support. Rather than bureaucratic agencies, acting as gatekeepers that slow down economic activity, they should be enablers that help businesses navigate regulatory requirements efficiently.

Expected Outcomes: Multiplying Growth Centres

Proper political governance would create multiple centres of economic growth across Nigeria rather than concentrating activity in Abuja and a few commercial centres, unleashing the economic potential of over 200 million Nigerians currently marginalized in the informal sector and replacing rent-seeking extraction with broad-based economic participation.

Conclusion: The Imperative for Paradigm Shift

President Tinubu’s administration stands at a crossroads. The President must do a U-Turn and embrace fundamental governance restructure.

Without functional political governance at all levels, economic interventions will continue to produce disappointing results regardless of their technical merit. Nigeria’s challenge is not economic—it is political. The system of centralized economic planning has created a dual economy where a small elite captures enormous value through rent-seeking while over 200 million Nigerians remain trapped in unproductive informality.

A new scheme of political governance that recognizes that politics and economics is local will unleash a volcano of tremendous energy that will be unstoppable by anyone, to the ultimate benefit of economic development.

The wrong diagnosis has led to wrong results for too long. It is time for the right diagnosis and the right treatment: political governance reform is the foundation for sustainable economic transformation.

Dr. Olisa Agbakoba SAN

5th June 2025

The views expressed by contributors are strictly personal and not of Law & Society Magazine.

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