COVID-19: Lawyer Urges FG To Include Legal Services In Essential Services List

Barrister Gideon Okebu

COVID-19: Lawyer Urges FG To Include Legal Services In Essential Services

A Nigerian lawyer, Gideon Okebu, has advocated for the inclusion of legal practices as part of the essential services permitted to work during the lockdown directive and stay at home order of the Federal and State governments.

Okebu said in including lawyers as an essential services during the lockdown, would allow supposedly violators of the order and directive, to have access to their counsel and legal practitioners.

The lawyer stated the inclusion of lawyers in the essential services list, will be in lime with the directives of the Chief Justice of the Federation (CJN), who directed all courts in the country to sit in respect of urgent and time sensitive matters. 

Okebu’s advocacy contained in an email sent to this medium on Wednesday (today), adding that Legal Services as an essential service is pivotal to the legality, functionality and enforcement of the quarantine Order of the President and the various Governors who have made similar Orders. 

Barrister Okebu’s advocacy reads: “in keeping with our current reality, Legal services, particularly the services of advocates, should be specifically included as an essential service, which is exempt from lockdown measures. 

“The listing of Legal Services as an essential service is pivotal to the legality, functionality and enforcement of the quarantine Order of the president and the various Governors who have made similar Orders. In buttressing this point.

“It is also to be recalled that by virtue of the directive of the CJN to the Heads of all Courts (whether it be ultra vires his powers or not) Courts were directed to sit in respect of urgent and time sensitive matters. This meant that the Judiciary wasn’t completely shut down but has merely been partially shut down. If my foregoing assertion is false, where are the violators of the lockdown orders to be prosecuted?

“The need for the inclusion of Legal Services as an essential service has also been exemplified by the prosecution of violators of the lockdown order, such as the Caverton Pilots and Passengers; Funke Akindele and others and the 21 people arraigned in Plateau State yesterday. These people and others who will still be prosecuted in the nearest future, are entitled to the constitutional right to be defended by Attorneys. 

“However, they can’t be represented by attorneys who are under lock and key. Although some of the aforementioned examples were represented by counsel upon arraignment, there is the express need to list legal services as an essential service which is exempt from the lockdown measures because leaving the matter as is, would give room for multiple interpretation, which is dependent on the prerogative of the security personnel enforcing the lockdown on the roads. This situation creates the possibility of policemen turning back attorneys who have matters and clients to represent in Court.

“I therefore postulate that once any tier of government decides to make any lockdown order, enforce same and prosecute the violation of any such lockdown order, it becomes imperative to list the services of attorneys as an essential service”.

editor

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