Former President Goodluck Jonathan says arbitration hearings
for contracts entered by the federal government with international
organisations should be heard in Nigeria, not the United Kingdom.
Arbitration is an alternative to conventional litigation,
mostly used for the resolution of commercial disputes.
According to NAN, Jonathan spoke on Saturday in Yenagoa, the
Bayelsa capital, during the launch of the book titled ‘Arbitration and Dispute
Resolution in Nigeria’.
The book was written by Collins Daniel, traditional ruler of
Abureni kingdom in Ogbia LGA of Bayelsa.
The former president advised the bodies responsible for
arbitration or resolving disputes in the country to work hard to ensure
arbitration for government contracts are done in the country, for proper
understanding.
“All the contracts the Nigeria government entered with
international organisations, arbitrations are always done in the United
Kingdom. Can’t we do some of these arbitrations in Nigeria?” Jonathan asked.
“I don’t know why it must be the United Kingdom — why it
must be outside Nigeria. I think we need to work hard, so that some of these
things will be done here in Nigeria.”
Jonathan added that resolving some disputes outside the
court room is better as the process will be short, less expensive and make
people morally bound to the terms of resolution.
“As non-lawyers, we look at issues of resolving disputes in
two different ways — one that takes place in the courtroom and one that takes
place outside the courtroom,” the former president said.
“We think that society is so complex, going to court for
judges to settle our disputes solves all our problems, because judges decide
based on the facts presented to them. That is why people still get back home
and start fighting — more especially, issues like land cases and chieftaincy
cases.
“So, I believe solving disputes outside the courtroom will
be a better and shorter way than going through court processes.”
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