Itโs been really a long way coming and now we are here! Letโs do great things together ๐ค
A. O. Yusuf Esq.! (AICMC), ACIARB (Uk), MILA.
Itโs my Call to Bar! โค๏ธโ๏ธ
#calltobar2025
Can a person be admitted to bail where no criminal charge has ever been brought against him?
The decision in LAWAL V. C.O.P., KADUNA STATE & ANOR provides a useful
clarification of the relationship between unlawful detention and the remedy of
bail.
Does a Presidential candidate need to disclose his primary and secondary school qualifications on his Form EC9? The law may already have answer.
The President's submission of his Form EC9 to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has reignited an interesting legal debate.
The controversy is not merely that he did not attach his primary and secondary school certificates. Rather, it is that the sections of Form EC9 designated for those qualifications were left blank, while only his university degree was disclosed and attached.
A number of commentators have argued that this omission is fatal because a university degree necessarily rests upon primary and secondary school education. According to that view, a candidate must disclose those earlier qualifications to demonstrate that he has been educated up to at least School Certificate Level as required by Section 131(d) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (As Amended).
That argument immediately reminded me of one of the appeals I argued in 2019 before the Court of Appeal in P.D.P. v. A.P.C. & Ors. (2020) 9 NWLR (Pt. 1729) 213.
Coincidentally, I represented the Appellant in that case and advanced a similar argument that is now being canvassed in the public space. The Court of Appeal, however, rejected it.
Having revisited the decision in light of the present debate, I am of the humble view that it might provide a strong answer to the constitutional issue now being discussed
CRIMINAL APPEALS: MUST A SOLE APPELLANT JOIN CO-ACCUSED AS RESPONDENTS?
There has long been some uncertainty among legal practitioners as to whether, in a criminal appeal, an Appellant is required to include his co-accused as a Respondent in the Notice of Appeal. I have personally grappled with this question. When I sought the views of colleagues, I received divergent opinions, reflecting the lack of consensus on the issue.
I recently stumbled upon the decision of the Supreme Court in F.R.N. v. Lamido (2026) 12 NWLR (Pt. 2054) 351, which provides much-needed guidance on this issue. I thought it worth sharing, as it may be helpful to other practitioners who are currently grappling with, or have at some point grappled with, the same question.