Fapohunda Felicitates With Ekiti Law Officers, Highlights Ministry's Achievements

By 

Abasi-Femi Oguntayo

Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Ekiti State, Olawale Fapohunda, has felicitated with law officers in the State and used the medium to highlight some of the achievements of his ministry since his assumption of office last year November.

In a new year statement signed by the commissioner, he appreciated the law officers in the ministry for the support he had received from them so far saying he was particularly grateful to the Solicitor-General and Permanent Secretary and Directors of the various departments. He wished them a happy and healthy new year.

In reference to the ministry's report card in the last two months, Fapohunda who listed the achievements of the ministry under his watch, said: "Our report card at least in the last two months will shows that we have repainted the Ministry of Justice Office Complex as the first step in a continuous process of renovation. We have obtained approval and the funds for the purchase of a 60 KVA generator as an immediate solution to the near absence of electricity supply in the Ministry.   

"We have repaired the broken roofs across many of the offices including the library. We expect that this will prevent the frequent incidents of flooding, whenever it rains. We have also increased the number of available office space by acquiring additional spaces with the complex. Our goal is to make the office as comfortable as practicable for law officers and support staff alike.  

Fapohunda also revealed that: "We have commenced the process of Human Resources Development. I am particularly pleased that we have been able to establish the Ministry of Justice Academy. The vision behind the academy is to facilitate the continuous professional development of law officers and administrative staff within the Ministry. The academy facilitated expert presentations from the Law Pavilion and the Law firm of Aluko and Oyebode in December 2018. 

Furthermore, the Okemesi Ekiti born Lawyer disclosed that "we have within the reporting period drafted four important Bills. The Administration of Civil Justice Bill, The Administration of Criminal Justice Law Amendment Bill, The Protection of Private Property Bill (Anti Land -Grabbing Bill) and the Sustainable Development Goals Bill. The last two bills have been approved by the State Executive Council for onward transmission to the House of Assembly. We also drafted five Executive Orders on areas relevant to strengthening good governance in Ekiti State .

"We took concrete steps to reverse the tradition of Law Officers paying for witnesses and experts to attend court hearings. At the end of 2018 we had made appreciable efforts in clearing the backlog of monies owed Law officers this regard. We are firmly committed to finding a permanent and sustainable solution to this issue.

Speaking on the last major intervention of his ministry in 2018, the Commissioner said "it was the administrative restructuring of the Ministry. In furtherance of our commitment to provide effective and efficient legal service to the government and people of Ekiti State, we announced far-reaching changes in the administration of the Ministry. We created three new departments. That of Monitoring and Evaluation, Corporate and Commercial Law and merged the Department of Law Review and Legal Research and Statistics into one department. (The Department of Law Review and Legal Research) We placed thirty- Six Legal Officers in MDA’s in the State as Legal advisers and appointed six Special Assistants in the office of the Attorney- General".

"2019 promises to be an activity filled year for us. The inclusion of the cost for the construction of a new office complex for the Ministry of Justice as a budget item in the 2019 Ekiti State Appropriation Bill was for us one of the highlights of 2018. We look forward to the breaking of ground for the complex within the first quarter of 2019. We will intensify our professional development programmes. 

"Efforts will be made to attract national and international law experts as resource persons to facilitate the curriculum of the Ministry of Justice Academy. We hope to conclude public consultations around the novel Administration of Civil Justice Bill and the amendments to the Administration of Criminal Justice Law within the first quarter of 2019" he said.

The Attorney General who thanked the law officers in the State for their hard work and resilience in 2018, charged them to keep up the good work in 2019.

 According to him, keeping the Ministry of Justice moving forward was a major task for all of them.

 BELLOW IS THE FULL TEXT OF THE 2019 NEW YEAR STATEMENT TO LAW OFFICERS IN THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE BY OLAWALE FAPOHUNDA, HONOURABLE ATTORNEY- GENERAL & COMMISSIONER OF JUSTICE, EKITI STATE

2019 NEW YEAR STATEMENT TO LAW OFFICERS IN THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE BY OLAWALE FAPOHUNDA,  HONOURABLE ATTORNEY- GENERAL & COMMISSIONER OF JUSTICE, EKITI STATE

1.     Good Morning Colleagues, Today as you observe the New Year holiday with family and friends, I want to wish everyone a happy and healthy New Year.

2.     This is always a hopeful time, as we celebrate the end of one year and the beginning of another. 2018 was indeed a significant one for Ekiti State and the Ministry of Justice. It witnessed the change in administration and my appointment as the Attorney- General of Ekiti State.

3.     In furtherance of the marching orders given to me by Mr. Governor, I have had to literally hit the ground running. I am grateful for the support that I have received this far from Law Officers in the Ministry. I am particularly grateful to the Solicitor- General and Permanent Secretary and Directors of the various departments.

4.     Our report card at least in the last two months will show that we have repainted the Ministry of Justice Office Complex as the first step in a continuous process of renovation. We have obtained approval and the funds for the purchase of a 60 KVA generator as an immediate solution to the near absence of electricity supply in the Ministry.  We have repaired the broken roofs across many of the offices including the library. We expect that this will prevent the frequent incidents of flooding, whenever it rains. We have also increased the number of available office space by acquiring additional spaces with the complex. Our goal is to make the office as comfortable aspracticable for law officers and support staff alike.

5.     We have commenced the process of Human Resources Development. I am particularly pleased that we have been able to establish the Ministry of Justice Academy. The vision behind the academy is to facilitate the continuous professional development of law officers and administrative staff within the Ministry. The academy facilitated expert presentations from the Law Pavilion and the Law firm of Aluko and Oyebode in December 2018.

6.     We have within the reporting period drafted four important Bills. The Administration of Civil Justice Bill, The Administration of Criminal Justice Law Amendment Bill, The Protection of Private Property Bill (Anti Land -Grabbing Bill) and the Sustainable Development Goals Bill. The last two bills have been approved by the State Executive Council for onward transmission to the House of Assembly. We also drafted five Executive Orders on areas relevant to strengthening good governance in Ekiti State .

7. We took concrete steps to reverse the tradition of Law Officers paying for witnesses and experts to attend court hearings. At the end of 2018 we had made appreciable efforts in clearing the backlog of monies owed Law officers this regard. We are firmly committed to finding a permanent and sustainable solution to this issue.

8.     Our last major intervention in 2018 was the administrative restructuring of the Ministry. In furtherance of our commitment to provide effective and efficient legal service to the government and people of Ekiti State, we announced far-reaching changes in the administration of the Ministry. We created three new departments. That of Monitoring and Evaluation, Corporate and Commercial Law and merged the Department of Law Review and Legal Research and Statistics into one department. (The Department of Law Review and Legal Research) We placed thirty- Six Legal Officers in MDA’s in the State as Legal advisers and appointed six Special Assistants in the office of the Attorney- General.

9.     2019 promises to be an activity filled year for us. The inclusion of the cost for the construction of a new office complex for the Ministry of Justice as a budget item in the 2019 Ekiti State Appropriation Bill was for us one of the highlights of 2018. We look forward to the breaking of ground for the complex within the first quarter of 2019. We will intensify our professional development programmes. Efforts will be made to attract national and international law experts as resource persons to facilitate the curriculum of the Ministry of Justice Academy. We hope to conclude public consultations around the novel Administration of Civil Justice Bill and the amendments to the Administration of Criminal Justice Law within the first quarter of 2019.

10. All these have been made possible because of the confidence reposed in us by Mr. Governor. It is our hope that in 2019 we will continue to justify this confidence in a manner that delivers professional, effective and efficient legal services to the Government and People of Ekiti State.

11.  I want to thank you all for your hard-work and resilience in 2018.  Keep it up in 2019. Keeping the Ministry of Justice moving forward is a task for all of us.

12.    Finally, as we celebrate this season, let us remember the families of Okeya and Adedayo in our prayers.May God bless and keep those we've lost in His heavenly place. May He grace their families with His holy comfort. And may He bless and watch over the legal community and Ekiti State.

I wish you all a year full of possibilities. May it be well with you and all yours. Happy New Year.

Olawale Fapohunda

Honourable Attorney- General & Commissioner of Justice, Ekiti State

@Ado Ekiti

1/1/19