Don’t Politicise Law School, NBA Warns NASS

The President, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr Olumide Akpata, has advised the National Assembly not to perceive the establishment of law school as constituency project, by arbitrarily embarking on further decentralisation of the training grounds for law graduates.
Akpata spoke in Ado Ekiti, at a press conference heralding a three-day NBA Legal Education Summit in Abuja, with the theme: “Reimagining Legal Education in Nigeria”.
Tactically faulting the recent establishment of six law schools by the Senate, thereby increasing the tally to 12 in the country, Akpata said the Senate should bear in mind that the existing campuses were grossly underfunded, and that it would be wrong to establish more under this context.
The NBA president also appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to broker truce with the striking members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) so that they can return to work and save the country’s ivory towers from total collapse.
Condemning how the National Assembly had allegedly politicised the establishment of law school campuses, the NBA boss posited that: “The law schools are grossly underfunded. It has one of the worst budgetary provisions.
“Presently, the school has six campuses. It is pitiable seeing the conditions of the six campuses. It is like somebody trying to play game while trying to set up another six when the existing ones are underfunded with some lawmakers trying to locate them in their constituencies.
“It is wrong for anyone to politicise the establishment of law school, because it is too important to be seen as constituency project,” he said.
Other discussants at the event will include Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo (SAN); the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN); Minister of Education, Mallamm Adamu Adamu; the Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission, Prof. Abubakar Adamu Rasheed; and Aare Afe Babalola (SAN).