NBA, Falana, others disagree on six proposed law school campuses
The Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) Council for Legal Education, Body of Benchers and some lawmakers on Monday kicked against the move by the Senate to enact a law for the establishment of six new campuses for the Nigerian Law School.
However, arguments for rejecting the move were faulted by some other senators, and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana.
The law bodies had explained that they were against the establishment of the new campuses because the existing ones could accommodate all the law graduates being produced yearly by universities if well-funded.
Also, they argued that enacting legislation to establish campuses for NLS would amount to taking over the powers of the Council for Legal Education.
However, those who supports the new campuses argued that the current ones were overstretched.
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The stakeholders bared their minds at a one-day public hearing organised by the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, chaired by Senator Opeyemi Bamidele.
The proposed legislation is titled, “A bill for an Act to Amend the Legal Education (Consolidation etc.) Act by Establishing Campuses for the Nigerian Law School, and other related matters,” and was sponsored by Senator Smart Adeyemi.
The bill, seeks for six additional campuses in Kogi, Borno, Kebbi, Anambra, Delta and Ekiti states.
The Council for Legal Education had also obtained approval for the establishment of a campus in Port-Harcourt, Rivers State.
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Speaking, Senators Ike Ekweremadu (PDP Enugu West) and Seriake Dickson (PDP Bayelsa West) called on their colleagues to be cautious on the proposal.
Ekweremadu said, “The establishment of new campuses or law schools should be left at the discretion of Council for Legal Education as empowered by the Act that set it up in 1962.”
Also, the President of the NBA, Olumide Akpata (SAN), said the move was unnecessary as the existing six campuses were underfunded.
 Council for Legal Education, Body of Benchers and some lawmakers on Monday kicked against the move by the Senate to enact a law for the establishment of six new campuses for the Nigerian Law School.){kind=link}