The Federal Government has made a U-turn on its earlier statement on the legal aspect of the Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership signed with the United Kingdom on Tuesday.
This development comes after criticism from Nigerians over
the nature of the Memorandum of Understanding signed with the UK.
The Nigerian Minister for Trade and Investment, Doris
Uzoka-Anite, in a statement on her X handle, retracted her earlier statement,
emphasising that there was no such legal agreement between Nigeria and the UK.
Uzoka-Anite said, “Earlier today, Nigeria signed a far-reaching MoU with the United Kingdom for Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership.
“Regrettably, our earlier report erroneously suggest that
Nigeria has signed a Memorandum of Understanding that allows lawyers licensed
in the United Kingdom to practise in Nigeria.
“We wish to state emphatically that there is no such
provision or agreement in the MpU.”
The minister reiterated that Nigeria does not have a Mutual
Recognition Agreement with the UK and made no commitment under the MOU or
elsewhere, to allow UK-licensed lawyers practise in Nigeria.
“As it currently stands, foreign licensed lawyers (including
those licensed in the UK) cannot practise in Nigeria, as categorically stated
in the MoU.
“We recognise that cross jurisdictional practice between
Nigeria and the United Kingdom is still an ongoing conversation amongst
relevant stakeholders within the legal practitioners community in Nigeria, and
this was reflected in the MoU,” she added.
On Tuesday, a statement by the UK’s Department of Business
and Trade, and a tweet from Nigeria’s Minister of Trade and Investment
disclosed that Nigeria was signing a deal to remove barriers preventing UK
lawyers from practising international law in Nigeria.
The Nigerian Bar Association had also condemned the
purported agreement, stating that the statement credited to the minister was
“ridiculous, unpatriotic, and uninformed.”
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