By Tony Iyare
The birth of two great scholarly works by two distinguished authors and accomplished alumni of United Christian Secondary School, Apapa, Lagos, our beloved alma mater, Prof Akpan Hogan Ekpo (69 set) and Justice Abiodun Azeem Akinyemi (77 set) on Economics and Law, are rich resources that promise to stimulate and enrich our thoughts on some contemporary issues.
Titled, “NIGERIA: A RESOURCE RICH ECONOMY IN DISARRAY”, this 402 page book is written by Akpan Hogan Ekpo, a renowned Scholar and Professor of Economics and Public Policy and former Vice Chancellor, University of Uyo. He was also pioneer Vice Chancellor, Akwa Ibom State University and Director General, West African Institute for Financial and Economic Management (WAIFEM), owned by the Central Banks of English speaking countries of West Africa.
Professor Ekpo obtained the BA (Cum Laude Hons) in Economics from Howard University, Washington, D. C. USA. He received the MA. (Econs) and Ph.D. (Econs) from the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. His areas of specialization include Economic Theory (Microeconomics and Macroeconomics), Economic Development and Public Finance. He has attended refresher courses at the World Bank Development Institute, Northwestern University and Harvard University. He has lectured in Universities in the U.S.A., Zimbabwe, and Nigeria.
Professor Ekpo has published extensively in his areas of specialization in national and international journals and has consulted for several national and international organizations. He was the first occupier Chief Anthony Ani Chair, Professor of Public Finance. He has over 160 publications comprising refereed journal articles, books, chapters in books, conference proceedings and other research outlets. He has attended over 90 national and international conferences and has presented papers in most of them.
Professor Ekpo has advised all levels of government (Municipal, State and Federal) in Nigeria. Between 1996 and 1999. he was Chairman. Ministerial Advisory Committee, Federal Ministry of Finance, Abuja. He was Technical Adviser to the Vision 2010 Committee. He was Editor of the Prestigious Nigerian Journal of Economic and Social Studies from 1997 – 2003. He serves in various government boards and boards of companies. Currently, he is Professor of Economics, University of Uyo, Uyo. Akwa com State – Nigeria.
He holds membership in the following Organizations
* American Economic Association, USA., 1978-present
* Royal Economic Society, England, 1978 – present
* National Economic Association, USA., 1980-present
* Nigerian Economic Society, 1975 ( Life Member)
* West African Economic Association, 1984-present
* Nigerian Political Science Association, 1987-present
* Nigerian Statistical Association, 1987-present
* East and South African Economic Association, 1990- present
* Nigerian Society for International Affairs, 1990 – present
* International Institute of Public Finance, Germany, 1997 – Present
* African Finance and Economic Association, 2000 – present
The second epic work is a 586 page book titled, “LAND LITIGATION IN NIGERIA (PRACTICE & PROCEDURE) written by Justice Abiodun Akinyemi, a Judge of the Ogun State High Court.
It may surprise us all that this is a novel work in this area in the country. All we have are theoretical books on land law, and many are decades old. This is the first book on land law that combines both theory and practice and written by someone who’s had active experience both as a courtroom trial Lawyer and a Judge.
With almost 40 years experience traversing both the bar and the bench, (21 at the Bar and 18 on the bench) and with the opportunity of tutelage under a legal giant-Gani Fawehinmi SAN, of blessed memory), Justice Akinyemi says “it will be a travesty of destiny if I, like many others similarly so opportuned, take the experience to the grave. I felt a sense of duty to give something back to a profession that has given me so much, for others to also benefit from.”
The price of the book is deliberately kept very low, so it can reach the hands of all those who should read it. Going by standard law book pricing, a book of this nature will still be considered cheap at N50k.
“But my aim is primarily to give to the profession a book that will not gather dust on bookshelves, but will find compulsory use on a daily basis by lawyers, students and judges, but more especially the young lawyers, still struggling to find their feet.
“Many lawyers and students fear land law. I wanted to make it look simple. And affordable. That’s why again, I am giving 20% discount to law students, and 10% discount each to Law teachers and young lawyers below 7 years at the bar.
“With this book, I feel a little sense of relief from the huge sense of guilt that I have carried for long. God granting me the grace, I intend to go further, so that my conscience can be completely satisfied that I have not just taken, but given something back,” Justice Akinyemi quips.
A graduate of the University of Lagos, where he bagged his LLB in 1982, Justice Akinyemi was called to Bar in 1983. He returned to the University of Lagos for his LLM between 1984-85. He’s a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitration Nigeria (FCIAb) and Member, International Association of Refugee Law Judges (IARLJ).