Governor Abubakar Bello of Niger on Thursday, called on the members of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to support the ongoing efforts of the Federal Government to effectively check corruption in the country.
Bello made the call in Minna while inaugurating the first National Executive Committee Meeting of the NBA under the leadership of Abubakar Mahmud, the national president of the association.
He said that the support would make the country a safe haven for investors and in turn boost the economy.
“I urge you to look inward and support the fight against corruption so that Nigeria will become a safe haven for investors,’’ he said.
Bello, who was represented by his deputy, Ahmed Ketso, however, enjoined the legal practitioners to adhere strictly to the ethics of their profession.
He said that the state government was working on the possibility of reviewing its obsolete laws which were last reviewed in 1989.
Also speaking, Mahmud said that the NBA would do everything possible to protect the independence and integrity of the legal profession in the country.
“Members of NBA will not renege in their responsibility, that is why the meeting will discuss challenges and other topical issues affecting the legal profession,’’ he said.
Earlier, Justice Maria Dzukogi, Chief Judge of the state, called on the legal practitioners to look into the issue of ethics, training and dressing code of lawyers toward improving the judiciary.
“Those whom we borrowed this dressing code from have since updated theirs. So we should do something in Nigeria to bring our legal practice in tune with modern realities,’’ she said.
Dzukogi decried a situation where some members of the NBA wrote frivolous petitions against Judges, saying that those that engaged in such activity should put their facts together before doing so.
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