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Weaponisation of the war on terror and the sidestepping of human rights norms: Seeking a balance between the terrorism (prevention) (amendment) act 2013 and Nigeria’s obligation under international human rights law: Weaponisation of the war on terror and the sidestepping of human rights norms: Seeking a balance between the terrorism (prevention) (amendment) act 2013 and Nigeria’s obligation under international human rights law
No full textIn an era of escalation in terrorism and terrorist related criminalities, the international system continues to innovate on how best to contain its scourge, particularly within the confines of established democratic norms. As a response to Security Council resolution 1373 adopted on 28 September 2001, United Nations (UN) member states began to craft domestic counterterrorism legislations to criminalise terrorist activities on their home-soil, as well as extraterritorially. Responding as other nations, Nigeria enacted the Terrorism (Prevention) (Amendment) Act 2013. However, the Act and others like it, have thrown up troubling questions about weaponization of the war on terror, and the need to balance the war with the protection of human rights. This article examines the continued sidestepping of human rights norms in the war against terror. It presents this conflict within the context of Nigeria’s domestic counterterrorism law, highlighting some dangerous provisions in the Act which directly impugns on its obligation under International Human Rights Law (IHRL). It advocates an urgent review in the Act that will reflect the current mood of the UN human rights system, as well as the country’s obligation under IHR
Compensation for lands compulsorily acquired by the state: Issues of non-completion of acquisition, non-payment of compensation and potential unjust enrichment: Compensation for lands compulsorily acquired by the state: Issues of non-completion of acquisition, non-payment of compensation and potential unjust enrichment
No full textThe exercise of eminent domain by the State to undertake compulsory acquisition of property for public benefit was used by the British colonial administration to secure lands for public infrastructure such as roads, streets, public service institutions and others. The post-independent governments assumed this power and applied it to acquire lands and properties for public purpose or benefit from the 1960s to date. However, compulsory acquisitions have been fraught with problems such as non-completion of laid-down acquisition processes and non-payment of compensation to owners of property immediately before the acquisitions were made, even though the public institutions on whose behalf executive instruments were issued to initiate the acquisitions have occupied the lands or properties. This study focused on why this situation occurs, and whether or not it is just. Analytical legal research methods were used to investigate the issues of the study through critical review of constitutional provisions, enactments, regulations, case law, and legal texts. The findings show that the acquisition processes tend to exclude the owners immediately before the acquisition, and the acquisitions by the State remain valid since they were based on appropriate legislation. However, the rightful owners tend to lose their property by operation of law or due to barriers imposed by limitation statutes. The article concludes that this situation borders on potential unjust enrichment to the State which gains property without payment by operation of the rules created for compulsory acquisition.< p>
Contested wills and testaments in Ghana: exploring the legal claim for reasonable provision for dependants: Contested wills and testaments in Ghana: exploring the legal claim for reasonable provision for dependants
No full textGhanaian law allows persons to execute Wills as the legal means by which property acquired during one’s lifetime could be disposed of, in the event of death. The law follows the intentions of the testator by leaving everything to the unfettered discretion of the testator since the law presumes that the instincts and sentiments of the testator may be safely trusted to secure a better disposition as compared to a distribution prescribed by the stereotyped and inflexible rules of a general law. However, there are instances where dependants of the deceased, whether deliberately or inadvertently, are not provided for in the Will of the deceased testator. This Article seeks to explore the legal claim for reasonable provision out of the Will of a deceased testator in favor of dependants of the testator. The article would identify the safeguards in the laws of Ghana which allow for dependants who are somewhat left out of the Will of a deceased testator to be catered for. The article would also consider the jurisprudence of the Superior Courts of Ghana on the legal claim for reasonable provision out of the Will of a deceased testator in favor of dependants of the testator. As a whole, it is believed that this study would go a long way to highlight the mechanisms for assessing the legal claim for reasonable provision for dependants out of the Will of a deceased testator and would further make suggestions towards strengthening the law and jurisprudence on the area of law.
 
An overview of the impact of sexual and gender-based violence on mental and reproductive health: Examining the legal framework, with a view of bringing perpetrators to justice.: An overview of the impact of sexual and gender-based violence on mental and reproductive health: Examining the legal framework, with a view of bringing perpetrators to justice.
No full textIn recent times women have been seen by members of terrorist groups as objects used to satisfy their sexual urges, render domestic services, act as spies, recruits, suicide bombers or used in trafficking light arms and ammunitions. Prior to this period most common types of sexual violence where imbedded in harmful cultural practices such as female genital mutilation or early child marriage. Other forms of sexual violence are in forms of gang rape by armed robbers and cultist in the Southern part of Nigeria or members of terrorist groups, in the Northern part of Nigeria. Most times victims do not report such violence against them because of societal norms and stigmatization, hence perpetuators are not brought to justice. The resultant effect is that victims are often traumatized which in turn affect their mental health. Their reproductive health is not equally speared as most victims end up with vesico vagina fistulae (VVF) and in extreme cases die from complications as a result of the violation. The general aim of this paper is to examine the impact of sexual based gender violence on the victims mental and reproductive health, specific emphasis will be on sexual violence committed by terrorist groups in armed conflict while examining the legal framework available to a victim for redress. The paper will conclude with recommendations for restorative justice for victims of SGBV, proffer solutions on how perpetuators can be identified and brought to justice.
 
When the pigeons refuse to fly: Legal perpesctives on the deployment of chemical weapons in Syria: When the pigeons refuse to fly: Legal perpesctives on the deployment of chemical weapons in Syria
No full textIn recent times, several hostilities have taken place all over the world. However, these hostilities have been non-international in character and outlook, with the attendant gory effects more pronounced in the 20th and 21st Century warfare. The type of weaponry engaged in such hostilities have been in the spotlight in International Humanitarian Law (IHL). The deployment of chemical weapons in the Syrian war and its adverse effect on the civilian population have become a global concern. The effectiveness of the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development and Production, Stockpiling and use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction, and other legal instruments relating to the protection of victims of Non-International Armed Conflicts, have been questioned. Although, scholars had in times past advocated for the restriction and prohibition of the use of chemical weapons in armed conflicts, the Syrian situation has again exposed the need to devote urgent attention to providing more effective sanctions for perpetrators of this heinous crime. This paper seeks to explore the legal implications of the deployment of Chemical Weapons in Syria, by canvassing arguments for more concerted efforts to guard against the use of Chemical Weapons in armed conflicts and ensure more adequate protection for civilians. This will give effect to and promote the core values of IHL.
 
Financial Innovation and its Governance: A Cross-case Analysis
Get PDFOver the past decades, financial innovation has catalysed the development of economies in many ways. Despite this, the introduction, commercialisation and use of innovations in finance in new and unexpected ways in society has led to negative impacts globally. To this end, scholars are becoming interested in understanding how financial innovations can be managed to ensure a positive net benefit globally. Using a qualitative research design, this paper investigates the questions of how innovation takes place and how it is governed within the insurance broking industry. The study further engages in a cross-case analysis where findings from the empirical work are discussed in relation to previous empirical study conducted in the asset management and bank customer relationship management space. Findings suggest the existence of a more nuanced continuum of practices, ranging from unstructured approaches through informal to formal models where the phasing of innovation activities was clearly punctuated by decision gates
Assessing teacher motivation and its outcome on performance in public basic schools in East Gonja District of Ghana
Get PDFThe study explored the extent and adequacy of motivation within the Ghana Education Service (GES) and its effect on teaching. The population for the study was all teaching staff in the East Gonja District. A Survey design was used in the study and a questionnaire developed by the researchers was administered to teachers in 25 schools out of 69 zoned schools giving a 36% representation of the entire population. Random sampling method was used to select four teachers from each of the selected schools to give a total of 100 respondents. The study revealed that promotion, salary increment, cash rewards and study leave with pay were motivating factors to teacher performance. The study also unraveled poor management commitment to teacher performance, and finally, the relationship between years of experience and job satisfaction depicted that teachers with more years of teaching experience were more motivated and satisfied than the youth. It is recommended that management pays attention to factors that motivate teachers so as to improve performance and also give some form of incentives/appreciation to especially longer serving and industrious teachers
Segments of cognitive responses towards local food safety concerns amongst international students in Ghana: Segments of cognitive responses towards local food safety concerns amongst international students in Ghana
No full textDespite the attention paid to food safety research, few empirical works have used a non-reductionist perspective to understand how international consumers cognitively respond to local food safety conditions. Using the tri-component theorisation and the two-step clustering approach with the Kruskal Wallis test on a sample of 109 international students in Ghana, this study provides a non-reductionist cognitive segment of international students towards local food safety conditions in Ghana. The findings revealed that there are three cognitive segments of international consumers towards local food safety conditions, namely self-regards, pessimists, and epicureans. Self-assureds respond to their own self-cognition towards local food safety concerns but deny the cognition of others, moderately respond affectively and sometimes avoid local foods. Pessimists have a highly sensitive cognitive response towards local food safety conditions, high affective responses and avoid the consumption of local foods as a result, while epicureans do not cognitively respond to local food safety conditions, have low affective reactions and consume local foods regardless of the food safety conditions. The implications of these findings in the context of local food preparation, packaging, and handling as well as food safety regulations and marketing are discusse
The challenges of internally displaced persons and the way forward: the Nigerian experience: Internally displaced persons and the way forward
No full textInternally displaced persons (IDPs) are usually forced to flee or leave their homes, particularly in situations of armed conflict. They are displaced within their national territories and are generally subject to heightened suffering and vulnerability in many cases. It is also essential to state that the issue of internal displacement has become prominent because of the realisation that peace and reconstruction in conflict-ridden societies depend on the effective settlement and reintegration of displaced persons. Nigeria is a country that has a history of conflicts and displaced people. There has been a challenge in finding lasting peace through the employment of conflict resolution techniques and also the challenge of catering for the welfare of internally displaced persons in the country. However, peace and development without taking into account the settlement, return, and reintegration of IDPs. These desirous objectives are proving quite difficult in Nigeria as many challenges confront the government, policymakers, and humanitarian NGOs in providing the IDPs with their rights and needs. Some of the challenges can easily be overcome while some are more tasking requiring concerted efforts and massive resources to overcome. The aim of this article is to highlights the significant challenges confronting IDPs and provides some solutions to these challenges. In adopting the doctrinal method in discussions, the article finds that enormous challenges abound that confront IDPs in Nigeria, and it finds that there is the need for the government to find urgent solutions to the challenges of IDPs for the wellbeing of IDPs
Towards a conducive investment climate within Ecowas: The case for the amendment of sections 27 and 28 of the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre act 865 of 2013: Towards a conducive investment climate within Ecowas: The case for the amendment of sections 27 and 28 of the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre act 865 of 2013
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Since the independence of Ghana, she has been at the forefront of the integration of the African continent and for that matter the West African sub-region. Many developing countries are moving towards adapting to international and regional arrangements to enhance their relevance and leverage on trade and investment opportunities for their socio-economic development. Ghana is considered as having one of the safest and most conducive investment climates for doing business in Africa. This stride is attributed to its enduring democratic and legislative environments. The gains made so far in this respect seem to be losing its steam due to the far-reaching conflicting provisions that exist between the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre Act 865 of 2013 which regulates the investment activities in Ghana and that of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) provisions in the Protocol on Free Movement of People, Goods and Services. Through a qualitative desktop analysis of the legal literature available, this paper argues that some provisions of Act 865 specifically sections 27 and 28 of Act 865 are in violation of Ghana’s obligation under the ECOWAS protocols. On the backdrop of article 36(4) of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana, this article identified such provisions in Act 865 and proposes an amendment to conform with the Community laws of ECOWAS to engender socio-economic development and political security of the subregion