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Law is the heart of every civilized society; without it the society will be in chaos. It is very foundational and therefore the basic societal infrastructure. Law molds, transforms and advances the society. It also serves the purpose of social engineering. Law can not engineer the society where the people are either ignorant of the law of their nation or do not want to obey even the law they know.

Where people are ignorant of the law, the law can’t play its social engineering role. Ignorance of the law makes the people victims and contributes largely to common lawlessness in the Nigerian society. Ignorance of fact may be a defence but ignorance of the law is not a defence in law court. Ignorance of law is a disease and as well a curse; “But this people who knoweth not the law are accursed” (John 7:49 KJV, Open Bible.)

It is ridicules to accuse Nigerians of lawlessness whereas a regular Nigerian is not just ignorant of the law but does not know of the existence of certain laws meant to regulate his life and activities and where to find the laws. For this reason Pocket Lawyer Law Digest was founded to bridge this gap of ignorance by serving as a medium for communicating Nigerian laws to Nigerians and other individuals or groups who may need knowledge of Nigerian laws.

What then is “POCKET LAWYER LAW DIGEST”?

Pocket Lawyer Law Digest is a monthly law publication designed to furnish non-lawyers basic information on various Nigerian laws particularly these “everyday” laws that affect our daily lives which Nigerians ought to know but unfortunately many do not know and therefore become victims and even constitute problem to other citizens in Nigeria.

The mission of this digest is to communicate at primary level the Nigerian statute and case laws, regulations for the time being in force to non-lawyers in Nigeria that is regrettably concealed in government gazettes saved outside the reach and knowledge of a normal Nigerian.Its vision is to translate the highly lawless Nigerian society into law esteemed, law conscious and law abiding society by bringing our laws to the notice of regular Nigerians non-lawyers and any other persons.

Pocket Lawyer Law Digest will aid Nigerians to attain the requisite mental structure level required of everyone existing in a modern society like ours and will enable peace and societal empowerment and development. If the law is meant to rule the people, the people must know the law first before obeying it.

Pocket Lawyer Law Digest is a mode of its kind in facilitating societal legal literacy, is packaged in soft and hard copies for convenience of various social strata. It is written in as very simple English as possible for easy comprehension of anyone who can read signpost or use normal cell phone. It is a published monthly and is intended to assist in eradicating ignorance of the law among Nigerians.

This premier law digest is issued just to provide basic legal information to readers on the areas of law it treats. It is neither intended to be a legal advice on the areas of laws it treats nor a substitute for legal advice on a particular legal challenge one may have. We hereby advice that one always consult a qualified legal practitioner for legal advice on any particular legal challenge one may have.

O. C. Ngangah, LL.M.

Founding Editor

FROM THE FOUNDING EDITOR’S DESK

Let the Law Rule

Every human being has eye. Anyone who cannot see with his eye is said to be blind. A blind person cannot move anywhere unless he is led by another. In that case, that other person becomes his eye or he will experience fatality. The eye therefore determines the direction of one’s movement. The same is applicable to a society. The law is the eye of any given society. No society can fully   see well through any single human being no matter how intelligent the person maybe. Any society though have eye (law)but don’t know and can’t see (live by) with it is blind and corrupting. Like human being, the law determines the direction in which the society moves: to progression or regression. The Law molds, translates and advances the society. Man has without success been on a search for rulership in man; however, no mortal man can rule better than the law. Man as a ruler in a society should rule by the law and not by the dictates of his mind. In a society where rule of law thrives everybody is a stake holder. No rulership of man can tilt more towards peace, equity, advancement, justice and humanity in any society than the rule of law. In spite of this eternal truth, yet rule of law has been neglected, rejected and thrown into the waste bin in our society consequently, workable certainty, meaningful peace, love, justice, equity, advancement and other qualities of a good society elude us. Let’s all therefore arise to uphold the rule of law like Ezra: knowing the law, living the law, with all our mind, heart, spirit and soul. Until then a developed and equitable society shall remain a fleeting illusion.

O. C. Ngangah, LL.M.

Founding Editor