Why I Gave My Life To Championing ADR - BARR. BEN ODOH.
Barr. Ben U. Odoh has disclosed his main reasons for championing the course of Alternative Dispute resolution (ADR).
Barr. Odoh is an Ebonyi state born Alternative dispute resolution ADR expert. he is currently the personal assistant (Technical) to Ebonyi state Deputy Governor; Secretary Ebonyi state Justice sector reform team; Director, legal clinic Nigeria police academy; Lecturer, faculty of law Nigeria police academy; CEO Negotiation PowerHouse ltd (dispute resolution centre) based in Abuja and a branch in Abakaliki. he is also the principal partner Odoh Ben & Associates. He is also a member of over fifteen (15) professional bodies.
Barr. odoh, in an exclusive chat with celplusmedia started by unveiling the mandate given to Ebonyi state Justice sector reform team which he is the scribe, to include but not limited to, Domesticating the administration of criminal justice Act of 2015 in Ebonyi state. The Act is a federal law and has been domesticated in some other states like Enugu, but Ebonyi state is yet to do that. so, the act seeks to correct some of the imbalances that currently exist in the administration of criminal justice in Ebonyi state. According to him, the type of criminal justice system we have in Nigeria is retributive, retributive in the sense that it adopts punitive approach in punishing an offender without due recourse to the victim of crime and the society in which such crime was committed. the administration of justice should look at law as three-way traffic and not one-way traffic. that is, justice to the accused, justice to the victim and justice to the society. this simply implies that, the accused must be seem to get justice, the victim of crime must be compensated and the society in which the crime was committed need to be repaired and be restittuted into a pre-crime society. that is the first mandate of Ebonyi state justice sector reform team, he said.
Secondly, the Ebonyi state justice sector reform team is constituted and mandated to build Ebonyi state prison Farm. the prison farm will serve as a reformation and rehabilitation centre and will be managed by the prison service. the prison Farm is ( BATIN ) Best Alternative to Incarceration. the facility will accommodate only sentenced and convicted inmates. according to Barr. Ben
Odoh, the farm will have hostel and the inmates will be confined in the farm and will be given the opportunity to own their farms. Government will make the farm open for public patronage and the proceed from farm will be shared in 60:20:20 ratio. 60% will be saved for the inmates, 20% will go for feeding of the inmates and the last 20% will go government coffers. the 60% saved for the inmate will be released to the inmate as soon as the sentence is completed to start up life.
Barr. Odoh also revealed to celplusmedia that, the Ebonyi state justice sector reform team got the mandate to build citizens mediation centre, which has been put in place by the state Attorney General and Hon. commissioner for justice, who is the chairman of Ebonyi state justice sector reform team. the centre is open to both Ebonyi and non Ebonyi citizens residing in the state who are indigents to resolve their cases free of charge and at no cost, provided that its a civil matter.
In the same vein, the team is also mandated to build Ebonyi state multi- door court house. the multi - door court house according to him, is a place where those who don't want to go to court can go and resolve their matter and as well get justice, but will be a private justice unlike the conventional public justice in court.
The team is also saddled with the mandate of building a sexual assault referral centre. the centre will be a place where victim of rape will receive both medical and attention.
Finally the team also got the mandate to train all the traditional rulers in Ebonyi state on palace mediation and customary arbitration. These mandate given to the team, when fully operational will ensure that the administration of justice in Ebonyi state is streamlined in such a way that justice will seem to be served both in court and out of court. Barr Odoh stressed that the supreme power of prosecutorial discretion provided for Attorney General of a state under section 211 of 1999 constitution, in which the Attorney General of a state has the power to initiate, commence, continue, discontinue and takeover any criminal matter in court, will be streamlined so as to allow for mediation between the accuse and the victim before such such power is exercise, so as to prevent abuse in the interest of justice and public interest, which was clearly spelt out in section 211 (3) of 1999 constitution.
He stressed further that the law they seek to domesticate intends to mainstream Alternative dispute resolution ADR into both criminal and civil law in Ebonyi state, and urge lawyers to embrace ADR though, according to him, lawyers no longer has option as ADR has be made compulsory for them as provided for, in rules 16 (3d), rule of professional conduct 2007. this provides that ''in representation of client, the lawyer shall not fail or neglect to generate remedial option first before resorting to litigation,'' and rule 55 provides that ''if a lawyer resort to litigation without generating remedial option first, that shall be held in professional misconduct''.
On why he is championing the course of Alternative dispute resolution ADR, Barr Odoh said ''i want to be called a child of God''. according to him, Matthew 5:9 says ''Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.'' so i decided to be a peacemaker so that i can be called a child of God. since i gave my life to ADR, my life never remained the same. ADR is part of me and am incurably Obsessed with ADR , He said.
Barr. Ben Odoh said that the best full meaning he gave to the acronym ''ADR'' is African dispute resolution and not ''Alternative'' He reiterate that amicable resolution of conflict is in Africa nature, litigation is alien to Africa. it was the colonial masters who came and saw our customary judicial system, how we were able to settle our dispute amicably, decided to destroy it and introduce theirs which is litigation into our judicial system on the premise that ours are manipulative and coined with ignotic tendencies, so decided to sanction us to avoid ours which is Africa dispute resolution and sticked to theirs which is litigation. when i became angry in spirit, i said no, we need to bring back the glory of our customary judicial system. we must not copy all they do, most of what we do here are alien to our culture, so why don't we use all the legal arsenal within us and promote our own, so these are some of the things that informed my giving my life to Alternative dispute resolution ADR, and i have no regret doing that, he posited.
Barr. Odoh maintained that ADR is not necessarily a free service as many ignorant lawyers may think, as it is an aspect of law and that he makes more money in ADR than he do in litigation. he however, describe those lawyers who says they don't do ADR as having limited knowledge of the law. he urged them to seek for more training and think outside the box. according to him , lawyers should be able to do both ADR and litigation so as to know the case that should be entertained in court and those to be settled out of court, such will also give them more money. He however, stated that his passion for ADR is limitless, because ADR is both scripturally and statutorily provided for, so i live, breath and chew ADR. i have given my life to ADR and everything about me is ADR. i am ADR personified, he stated.
He however, maintained that the level of awareness and acceptability of ADR is very low in Ebonyi state , but will not be discouraged because with time it will gain prominence. he said that his educative TV program '' SETTLE WITH LAUGHTER'' is meant to achieve three things; awareness, acceptability and skill. the program seeks to create the knowledge that they exist, alternative dispute resolution.Secondly, to inculcate in the mind of people the willingness to use the alternative dispute resolution process that are in existence. and lastly, is how to make people effectively and productively use alternative dispute resolution. the program is an hour program that comes up every Saturday 9:00 am - 10:00 am and the repeat on every Tuesday 10:30pm -11:30pm on SALT TV Abakaliki. you can also watch the program on youtube chanels and other social media platforms "SETTLE WITH LAUGHTER'' . except on twitter which is "SETTLE WITH LAFTA.
Barr. Ben Odoh, also said that apart from championing the course of ADR through TV program, he also do something for people to read. we have research centre for ADR and the centre has written book on ''Church Conflict Management'', the book is almost in over 18 countries right now, and churches like Anglican and Assemblies of God has made it compulsory for their pastors. In Abia state, our book on ''Traditional Dispute Resolution'' are being used by traditional rulers to settle disputes. we have been able to establish ADR centre in Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike. we have also established ADR centre for University of Benin. we have equally researched ADR in Nigeria for a book published in Germany by Amazon. right now, we have the only journal in Nigeria that is journal on ADR law journal. all these , are our own way of giving back to the society, he concluded.celplusmedia.blogspot.com
Barr. Odoh is an Ebonyi state born Alternative dispute resolution ADR expert. he is currently the personal assistant (Technical) to Ebonyi state Deputy Governor; Secretary Ebonyi state Justice sector reform team; Director, legal clinic Nigeria police academy; Lecturer, faculty of law Nigeria police academy; CEO Negotiation PowerHouse ltd (dispute resolution centre) based in Abuja and a branch in Abakaliki. he is also the principal partner Odoh Ben & Associates. He is also a member of over fifteen (15) professional bodies.Barr. odoh, in an exclusive chat with celplusmedia started by unveiling the mandate given to Ebonyi state Justice sector reform team which he is the scribe, to include but not limited to, Domesticating the administration of criminal justice Act of 2015 in Ebonyi state. The Act is a federal law and has been domesticated in some other states like Enugu, but Ebonyi state is yet to do that. so, the act seeks to correct some of the imbalances that currently exist in the administration of criminal justice in Ebonyi state. According to him, the type of criminal justice system we have in Nigeria is retributive, retributive in the sense that it adopts punitive approach in punishing an offender without due recourse to the victim of crime and the society in which such crime was committed. the administration of justice should look at law as three-way traffic and not one-way traffic. that is, justice to the accused, justice to the victim and justice to the society. this simply implies that, the accused must be seem to get justice, the victim of crime must be compensated and the society in which the crime was committed need to be repaired and be restittuted into a pre-crime society. that is the first mandate of Ebonyi state justice sector reform team, he said.
Secondly, the Ebonyi state justice sector reform team is constituted and mandated to build Ebonyi state prison Farm. the prison farm will serve as a reformation and rehabilitation centre and will be managed by the prison service. the prison Farm is ( BATIN ) Best Alternative to Incarceration. the facility will accommodate only sentenced and convicted inmates. according to Barr. Ben
Odoh, the farm will have hostel and the inmates will be confined in the farm and will be given the opportunity to own their farms. Government will make the farm open for public patronage and the proceed from farm will be shared in 60:20:20 ratio. 60% will be saved for the inmates, 20% will go for feeding of the inmates and the last 20% will go government coffers. the 60% saved for the inmate will be released to the inmate as soon as the sentence is completed to start up life.
Barr. Odoh also revealed to celplusmedia that, the Ebonyi state justice sector reform team got the mandate to build citizens mediation centre, which has been put in place by the state Attorney General and Hon. commissioner for justice, who is the chairman of Ebonyi state justice sector reform team. the centre is open to both Ebonyi and non Ebonyi citizens residing in the state who are indigents to resolve their cases free of charge and at no cost, provided that its a civil matter.
In the same vein, the team is also mandated to build Ebonyi state multi- door court house. the multi - door court house according to him, is a place where those who don't want to go to court can go and resolve their matter and as well get justice, but will be a private justice unlike the conventional public justice in court.
The team is also saddled with the mandate of building a sexual assault referral centre. the centre will be a place where victim of rape will receive both medical and attention.
Finally the team also got the mandate to train all the traditional rulers in Ebonyi state on palace mediation and customary arbitration. These mandate given to the team, when fully operational will ensure that the administration of justice in Ebonyi state is streamlined in such a way that justice will seem to be served both in court and out of court. Barr Odoh stressed that the supreme power of prosecutorial discretion provided for Attorney General of a state under section 211 of 1999 constitution, in which the Attorney General of a state has the power to initiate, commence, continue, discontinue and takeover any criminal matter in court, will be streamlined so as to allow for mediation between the accuse and the victim before such such power is exercise, so as to prevent abuse in the interest of justice and public interest, which was clearly spelt out in section 211 (3) of 1999 constitution.
He stressed further that the law they seek to domesticate intends to mainstream Alternative dispute resolution ADR into both criminal and civil law in Ebonyi state, and urge lawyers to embrace ADR though, according to him, lawyers no longer has option as ADR has be made compulsory for them as provided for, in rules 16 (3d), rule of professional conduct 2007. this provides that ''in representation of client, the lawyer shall not fail or neglect to generate remedial option first before resorting to litigation,'' and rule 55 provides that ''if a lawyer resort to litigation without generating remedial option first, that shall be held in professional misconduct''.
On why he is championing the course of Alternative dispute resolution ADR, Barr Odoh said ''i want to be called a child of God''. according to him, Matthew 5:9 says ''Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.'' so i decided to be a peacemaker so that i can be called a child of God. since i gave my life to ADR, my life never remained the same. ADR is part of me and am incurably Obsessed with ADR , He said.
Barr. Ben Odoh said that the best full meaning he gave to the acronym ''ADR'' is African dispute resolution and not ''Alternative'' He reiterate that amicable resolution of conflict is in Africa nature, litigation is alien to Africa. it was the colonial masters who came and saw our customary judicial system, how we were able to settle our dispute amicably, decided to destroy it and introduce theirs which is litigation into our judicial system on the premise that ours are manipulative and coined with ignotic tendencies, so decided to sanction us to avoid ours which is Africa dispute resolution and sticked to theirs which is litigation. when i became angry in spirit, i said no, we need to bring back the glory of our customary judicial system. we must not copy all they do, most of what we do here are alien to our culture, so why don't we use all the legal arsenal within us and promote our own, so these are some of the things that informed my giving my life to Alternative dispute resolution ADR, and i have no regret doing that, he posited.
Barr. Odoh maintained that ADR is not necessarily a free service as many ignorant lawyers may think, as it is an aspect of law and that he makes more money in ADR than he do in litigation. he however, describe those lawyers who says they don't do ADR as having limited knowledge of the law. he urged them to seek for more training and think outside the box. according to him , lawyers should be able to do both ADR and litigation so as to know the case that should be entertained in court and those to be settled out of court, such will also give them more money. He however, stated that his passion for ADR is limitless, because ADR is both scripturally and statutorily provided for, so i live, breath and chew ADR. i have given my life to ADR and everything about me is ADR. i am ADR personified, he stated.
He however, maintained that the level of awareness and acceptability of ADR is very low in Ebonyi state , but will not be discouraged because with time it will gain prominence. he said that his educative TV program '' SETTLE WITH LAUGHTER'' is meant to achieve three things; awareness, acceptability and skill. the program seeks to create the knowledge that they exist, alternative dispute resolution.Secondly, to inculcate in the mind of people the willingness to use the alternative dispute resolution process that are in existence. and lastly, is how to make people effectively and productively use alternative dispute resolution. the program is an hour program that comes up every Saturday 9:00 am - 10:00 am and the repeat on every Tuesday 10:30pm -11:30pm on SALT TV Abakaliki. you can also watch the program on youtube chanels and other social media platforms "SETTLE WITH LAUGHTER'' . except on twitter which is "SETTLE WITH LAFTA.
Barr. Ben Odoh, also said that apart from championing the course of ADR through TV program, he also do something for people to read. we have research centre for ADR and the centre has written book on ''Church Conflict Management'', the book is almost in over 18 countries right now, and churches like Anglican and Assemblies of God has made it compulsory for their pastors. In Abia state, our book on ''Traditional Dispute Resolution'' are being used by traditional rulers to settle disputes. we have been able to establish ADR centre in Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike. we have also established ADR centre for University of Benin. we have equally researched ADR in Nigeria for a book published in Germany by Amazon. right now, we have the only journal in Nigeria that is journal on ADR law journal. all these , are our own way of giving back to the society, he concluded.celplusmedia.blogspot.com
Great. Dedicated and passionate about Justice, Barr. Odoh is destined for greatness
ReplyDeleteIndeed, greatness resides in Barr. Ben Uruchi Odoh.
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