Abuja, Nigeria — Nigeria’s legal, political, and business elite gathered in an extraordinary show of influence and prestige on April 29, as the public presentation of Ukala’s Manual on Appellate Practice in Nigeria and Selected Essays and papers by Emmanuel C. Ukala, SAN, transformed into one of the most high-profile legal events of the year.

Held at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre, the ceremony marked the 70th birthday of renowned legal luminary Emmanuel C. Ukala, SAN whose contributions to appellate advocacy were celebrated alongside the unveiling of his latest works.

The event drew an exceptional cross-section of Nigeria’s power structure, including senior members of the judiciary, top government officials, lawmakers, and leading figures from the private sector—underscoring Ukala’s far-reaching influence across institutions.

A Gathering of Power and Prestige

Representing the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba, JSC, joined other top judicial figures, and heads of key courts across the country.

The keynote address was delivered by Justice Benedict Kanyip, while the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tsoho, represented by Justice Sylvanus Oriji, paid glowing tributes to the author.

Also in attendance was the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, accompanied by his wife, Justice Eberechi Suzzette Wike, JCA—a reflection of the deep personal and professional ties linking many attendees to the honoree. The couple, like Justice Moore Aseimo Abraham Adumein, JSC were once protégés in Ukala’s Efe Chambers in Port Harcourt.

A native of Mbiri, in Ika North East Local Government Area of Delta State, Ukala established his chambers in Port Harcourt in 1986.

A Legacy Beyond the Courtroom

Published by Bar and Bench Publishers Ltd, under the leadership of Dr. Ogwu James Onoja, SAN, the book is already being described as a defining text on appellate jurisprudence in Nigeria.

In his welcome address, Dr. Onoja, who chaired the organizing committee, framed the event as more than a book launch, calling it a celebration of scholarship, mentorship, and enduring excellence in the legal profession.

“This is not merely the unveiling of books,” he said. “It is a celebration of legacy, of jurisprudence, and of the future of appellate advocacy in Nigeria.”

Influence Across Generations

Tributes poured in from colleagues and former protégés, highlighting Ukala’s role in shaping generations of legal practitioners. Among them was Justice Adumein, who delivered remarks on behalf of alumni of Ukala’s chambers, describing the author’s career as one defined by discipline, intellectual rigor, and mentorship.

The event also drew an unusual political presence, with nearly the entire Rivers State House of Assembly and all 23 local government chairmen attending—an indication of Ukala’s influence beyond the legal sphere.

A Defining Moment for Legal Scholarship

Legal observers say the scale and stature of the gathering reflect both the significance of the publication and the standing of its author within Nigeria’s legal community.

Ukala’s Manual on Appellate Practice in Nigeria is expected to become a key reference for practitioners, judges, and students, offering a comprehensive analysis of appellate procedures at both the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

As Nigeria’s justice system grapples with increasingly complex legal challenges, the event underscored a broader message: that scholarship, mentorship, and institutional memory remain central to the evolution of the law.

For many in attendance, the ceremony was not just a celebration of a book, or even a career, but a rare convergence of influence, legacy, and the enduring power of legal thought.

The European Union has warned that Meta may be failing to stop children under 13 from accessing its platforms, including Facebook and Instagram, raising concerns about exposure to inappropriate content and the risk of a significant financial penalty.

Following a probe under the Digital Services Act, EU regulators said Meta’s safeguards were ineffective, noting that children could easily bypass age restrictions by entering false birth dates and that reporting tools for underage users were difficult to access and use.

“Terms and conditions should not be mere written statements, but rather the basis for concrete action to protect users, including children,” said Henna Virkkunen.

Under its own policies, Meta requires users to be at least 13 years old, but EU officials said enforcement measures were insufficient and failed to adequately assess risks posed to younger users.

If the findings are confirmed, the EU could impose a fine of up to six percent of Meta’s global annual turnover. However, the company could avoid penalties by implementing corrective measures.

Meta has rejected the claims, stating it already has systems in place to detect and remove underage users and will continue to engage with EU authorities.

The investigation, launched in May 2024, is part of broader EU efforts to regulate Big Tech and improve online safety for children. Regulators are also examining issues such as platform design, including features they describe as potentially “addictive,” and their impact on users’ wellbeing.

The EU is considering further measures, including a bloc-wide age limit on social media use, as pressure mounts following similar restrictions introduced in other countries.

A coalition of private sector players is pushing back against what it describes as widespread extortion and illegal taxation on Nigerian highways, launching a nationwide effort to compel state authorities to clarify lawful road levies.

Benid Industries Limited, in partnership with Sanity Multi-Efforts Limited, has formally written to revenue agencies across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), demanding transparency on approved taxes, payment channels, and their legal basis.

The initiative, announced by Benid Industries CEO Idoko Bartholomew Chukwuma, is positioned as a response to the 2025–2026 Presidential Tax Reform Policy introduced under Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Mounting Complaints of Highway Extortion

Chukwuma said commercial drivers across the country continue to face harassment from unauthorized individuals who set up roadblocks to collect illegal fees—practices he argues undermine federal tax laws and divert revenue away from government coffers.

“These activities not only violate existing regulations but also impose significant financial burdens on businesses,” he said, citing losses running into millions of naira monthly due to multiple and often undocumented charges.

The company also referenced the Joint Revenue Board Communiqué of December 2025, which sought to streamline tax collection and eliminate duplications, but which stakeholders say remains weakly enforced.

Nationwide Push for Transparency

The outreach, coordinated through SMEL under the leadership of Dan Olaitan Dada, has drawn support from transport unions, manufacturers, churches, and fleet operators.

According to Chukwuma, the goal is not confrontation but clarity.

“We are simply asking for transparency,” he said. “States should clearly outline lawful levies, approved payment channels, and the legal backing for each charge.”

He added that a clearly defined system would improve compliance, protect drivers from exploitation, and boost internally generated revenue (IGR) for state governments.

Cashless Policy vs Roadside Reality

The move highlights a growing disconnect between Nigeria’s push for a cashless, business-friendly economy and the realities on the ground, where many transactions on highways are still conducted in cash under questionable circumstances.

Industry players argue that without standardized enforcement, the government’s broader tax reform agenda risks being undermined by informal and illegal collections.

Interim Measures for Drivers

Pending official responses from state authorities, Benid Industries has issued directives to its drivers and affiliated operators to avoid confrontations, refuse unauthorized cash payments, and insist on official treasury channels.

Drivers have also been advised to report any extortion attempts to security agencies.

A Test Case for Reform

The coordinated effort is being described by stakeholders as one of the first major private-sector attempts to operationalize the federal government’s tax reform policy at the grassroots level.

For businesses and transport operators, the stakes are high: restoring order to Nigeria’s highways could not only reduce costs but also signal whether ongoing economic reforms can translate into real-world impact.

“This is about promoting law, safety, and sanity on our roads,” Chukwuma said. “It’s a collective step toward building a better Nigeria.”

Lagos, Nigeria — A Nigerian mother who sparked nationwide debate after criticizing a nursery school textbook has been invited for questioning by police, raising concerns about free expression, child safety, and the limits of online criticism.

Mary Udoka, a mother of two, drew widespread attention after posting a now-deleted video on Instagram condemning a passage in a children’s book she described as violent and inappropriate for young learners.

The book, English Language Foundation for Nursery School, authored by Ebhohimen Ayengbe, includes a story titled “The Old Man and the Dog,” which recounts a scene in which a dog is brutally punished for failing to guard food.

Udoka questioned whether such content was suitable for children under five.

Police Invitation Sparks Debate

Her lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, confirmed that she had been invited by the Nigeria Police Force.

In a statement, Effiong said his client would honour the invitation but challenged the basis for police involvement.

Read Also: FG targets ‘toxic’ learning materials, bans unapproved textbooks nationwide from 2026

“We will be reporting… not because we believe that Mary Queen committed any crime,” he said, adding that the author of the book should justify what he described as harassment.

As of the time of reporting, police authorities had not publicly clarified why Udoka was invited.

Petitions Filed, Government Responds

The controversy has since moved beyond social media.

Effiong disclosed that formal petitions had been submitted to both the Lagos State Government and the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council, urging an urgent review of the textbook.

According to him, the Lagos State Government has issued a preliminary response indicating that the book is not officially approved for use in schools within the state.

Mother Alleges Threats

In a follow-up video, Udoka claimed she removed her original post after receiving threats and repeated calls.

“My life is being threatened,” she said, alleging that people around her were being questioned by police over the video.

She maintained that her actions were driven solely by concern as a parent.

“I read something… that did not sit well with me,” she said. “I just want to ask a question.”

Author Pushes Back

Ayengbe has rejected the criticism, describing it as misleading and unfair.

“Nobody is asking me anything,” he said in a separate video, arguing that Udoka should have contacted him directly rather than going public.

He defended the story as a simplified folk tale designed to teach basic vocabulary, insisting there was nothing inappropriate about its content.

“It’s not a criminal book,” he added.

Wider Concerns Over Learning Materials

A review of the passage has raised additional concerns, including grammatical inconsistencies and questions about age-appropriate content.

Education experts generally advise that early learning materials avoid disturbing themes and prioritize clear, simple language—standards critics say may not have been met in this case.

The incident has ignited broader public debate over the vetting of educational materials, parental rights, and the role of authorities when disputes spill into the public domain.

As the case unfolds, it is likely to test not only Nigeria’s educational oversight systems but also the boundaries between citizen criticism and state response in the digital age.

At a high-profile legal gathering in Abuja, on Wednesday, Nigeria’s appellate system, long regarded as the backbone of judicial correction and fairness, came under rare, penetrating scrutiny, as Benedict Bakwaph Kanyip delivered a keynote address that questioned whether appeals in Nigeria truly deliver justice, or merely prolong litigation.

Speaking at the public presentation of Ukala’s Manual on Appellate Practice at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre, the President of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria dissected the mechanics, contradictions, and unintended consequences of appellate practice in the country’s legal system.

At the event which was also the celebration of Emmanuel Ukala, SAN’s 70th birthday ceremony, Kanyip, equally also serves on the International Labour Organization Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations, warned that while appeals are designed to correct judicial errors, there is no guarantee they produce just outcomes.

“The appellate process is meant to cure errors,” he noted, “but can it cure all errors? That remains the real question.”

At the heart of his argument was a stark reality: justice delayed can become justice denied. He pointed to cases that have dragged on for decades, including disputes that outlived the litigants themselves. In one striking example, a jurisdictional battle involving employment termination took 23 years to resolve—only for the claimant to die before the case concluded. The lesson, he suggested, is uncomfortable but clear: speed sometimes matters more than perfection.

Kanyip also exposed structural paradoxes within appellate decision-making. In one scenario, he illustrated how a majority ruling at the Supreme Court can override a broader consensus across lower courts—raising philosophical questions about fairness. “When six judges agree on a position but three determine the law, can that outcome truly be called just?” he asked.

The address further spotlighted controversial rulings and procedural inconsistencies, including disputes over massive financial awards and the interpretation of declaratory reliefs. Without naming motives, Kanyip questioned whether appellate courts sometimes overreach—particularly when granting reliefs not originally claimed or proven.

Beyond the courtroom, he hinted at systemic pressures within the legal profession itself. The pursuit of the prestigious Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) rank, he suggested, may be fuelling a surge in unnecessary or weak appeals, clogging already overburdened courts and diluting the quality of justice.

Quoting legal authorities and case law, Kanyip emphasized that not every judicial error warrants reversal and that appellate courts are not designed to retry cases emotionally or sentimentally. Instead, their role is to address only those errors that result in a miscarriage of justice, a threshold often misunderstood or misapplied.

Yet perhaps his most provocative argument was philosophical. The assumption that appellate courts inherently produce just outcomes, he said, is deeply flawed. The doctrine of precedent—central to common law systems—rests on the belief that higher court decisions are correct. But what if they are not?

He also challenged the culture of excessive appeals embedded in Nigeria’s constitutional framework, warning that it creates the impression that lower courts are incapable of delivering justice without supervision. This perception, he argued, undermines confidence in the judiciary and fuels a cycle of endless litigation.

Drawing comparisons with global judicial systems, Kanyip stressed that the role of a supreme court should not be to correct every error, but to clarify, develop, and stabilize the law on matters of public importance. Anything beyond that risks overwhelming the system and delaying justice for those who need it most.

His remarks come at a time when public confidence in Nigeria’s justice system is increasingly strained, with litigants and observers frequently lamenting outcomes as “judgment without justice”—a phrase that has gained traction in political and legal discourse.

In closing, Kanyip acknowledged the imperfection of both law and those who interpret it. Judges, he said, are human—and so are the systems they operate within. But he urged the legal community to confront uncomfortable truths about appellate practice and strive for reforms that prioritize fairness, efficiency, and genuine justice.

“Courts are not for truth,” he concluded pointedly. “They are for proof. And without proof, even the truth is powerless.”

Click here to download the paper.

Lagos, Nigeria — Air travellers and motorists are raising alarm over a sharp increase in parking fees at Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal 2 (MMA2), with reports of charges surging by as much as 150 percent.

Under the revised tariff, sedan owners now pay ₦3,500 for the first hour—up from ₦2,500—while SUVs are charged ₦4,000. Additional hours attract ₦2,500, and overnight parking has climbed to a steep ₦50,000. Lost tickets now cost ₦25,000.

The spike has triggered widespread backlash, with passengers describing the fees as “exploitative” and “unreasonable,” particularly against the backdrop of Nigeria’s rising cost of living.

Viral Backlash and Celebrity Reaction

Public outrage intensified after reality TV star Whitemoney revealed he was billed ₦206,000 for parking his car at the airport for four days.

In a video posted online, Whitemoney, whose real name is Hazel Oyeze Onou, said he was stunned to learn that overnight parking now costs ₦50,000.

“This is very outrageous,” he said, questioning whether the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, and relevant authorities are aware of the new pricing structure.

Passengers Hit With Steep Bills

Beyond celebrity complaints, everyday commuters say the impact has been immediate and severe. One traveller reported being charged ₦11,500 for just two hours of parking, fuelling accusations of arbitrary pricing.

The operator is said to have justified the increase as a measure to discourage long-term parking, arguing that the facility is designed primarily for short stays.

However, critics argue that the sharp hike effectively penalizes travellers who have limited transport alternatives, especially those catching early flights or arriving late at night.

Growing Calls for Intervention

The controversy has prompted calls for regulatory scrutiny, with some commuters urging government agencies to investigate the pricing model and ensure fair consumer practices.

Many travellers say the rising cost of parking is compounding an already expensive travel experience, as airfares and other logistics continue to climb.

As frustration grows, some passengers are abandoning airport parking altogether—opting instead for ride-hailing services or drop-offs to avoid the escalating fees.

For now, the MMA2 fee hike has become a flashpoint in a broader conversation about affordability, regulation, and the cost of mobility in Nigeria’s commercial capital.