The Necessity for Revisiting Direct Corporate Human Rights Obligations in the Current Business and Human Rights Treaty Process

The international community has awoken to the reality that transnational corporations (TNCs) do not only control more resources than a good number of states. They wield enormous influence in the corporate world which greatly impacts on local cultures and initiatives. Many of these TNCs, who operate in developing states, engage in activities which frequently result in human rights abuses. Several states rely on the resources extracted by these large corporations as the main stay of their economies. Consequently, they lack the economic capacity and political will to effectively regulate the activities of the TNCs, leaving these entities to perpetrate human rights abuses in the local communities with impunity. Although the Human Rights Council, through the Inter-governmental working group on Business and Human Rights, has begun a treaty process on business and human rights to address these issues, the work of the IGWG, so far, has not adequately responded the root cause of the corporate impunity, which is their unwillingness and inability to hold corporate entities accountable for their harmful activities. Thus, this paper proposes that the issue of direct human rights obligations on corporate entities should be revisited in order to ensure that corporate entities do not escape accountability for human rights harm resulting from their activities.

Weak Institutions and Poor Governance in Nigeria: A Socio-Legal Perspective

The Nigerian state as a governance template has been dominated by the vexatious problem of underdevelopment since post-colonial history. Good governance and development as an intertwine concept have largely been elusive, rather, poor governance has dominated the Nigerian society, resulting from leadership problems, pervasive corruption, the existence of multiple centres of loyalty base regime, ethnic and religious interest among others, all indicative of weak, underperforming or non-performing institutions of government. This paper made an in-depth inquiry into the correlation between weak institutions and poor governance, highlighting the Nigerian situation. It critically analyzed the concept of good governance as the opposite of poor governance. This paper found that unless the Nigerian state cures itself of the malaise of weak institutions and procures a situation where both the leaders and the led imbibe the ethos of good governance, it will continue to struggle with the burden of poor governance and the concomitant lack of social development it breeds in the society.

The One-China Policy and Implications of U.S. Invariable Support for Taiwan

This paper discusses the concept of the one-China policy and how the United States support of Taiwan poses a challenge to stability in the region. The paper adopted the library descriptive instrument from historical research to come up with the available data in the paper. Findings show that, since 1949, the struggle between the Nationalist Republic of China and the Communist party escalated into a civil war which resulted in the defeat of Kuomintang and the establishment of the People's Republic of China (PRC), which took control of all mainland China. Only the island of Taiwan remained under the control of the ROC. Since then, both the ROC and the PRC have been claiming to represent all of "China", and both officially claim each other's territory. The paper concludes that China cannot forfeit the strait of Taiwan despite American support to the island. The deteriorating relationship between the U.S and China relationship has seen trade wars to accusations on the origins of the coronavirus to political buffering, to the sovereign of Taiwan and Hongkong, it just seems to be a manifestation of the Sino-American Cold War. The way things appear, the relationship between the U.S and China will further deteriorate largely because democracy and liberal order are being challenged by the political posture of China. The paper recommends that there is the need to maintain the non-interference principle by the two parties, the United States should know that Taiwan is China and therefore not meddle in the affairs of China and vice-versa.

The South China Sea Impasse and Implications for World Politics

The paper examines the South China Sea impasse between China and its neighbours in the region as well as the United States, which tries to see the sea as an open maritime area for international navigation. Using the secondary documented literature, findings show that the South China Sea is naturally endowed with variegated natural resources ranging from oil, gas and habitable islands that can be developed and this is the reason behind the impasse. The paper concludes that the South China Sea is increasingly a hotspot of conflict between China and the US; it is the subject of several overlapping territorial disputes. Like in most geopolitical tensions, trade would be a prime casualty in case of an escalation. The paper recommends that China, which is the claimant of the South China Sea, and other countries involved should dialogue and come up with policies that are favourable to all parties involved.

Holy or Unholy Alliance? Political Coalition, Interest Articulation and Governance in New Democracies

Employing qualitative content analysis and building on the submissions of coalition data theories, the study ascertains the governability and extent to which Nigeria’s ruling coalition, the All Progressives Congress (APC) is able to effectively aggregate various political interests and deliver on its campaign promises. Within mainstream studies, there is a consensus on the uphill task of labelling political parties as office, or policy seeking, exclusively. Nonetheless, the study argues, despite running on key programs of fighting corruption, countering Boko Haram and diversifying the economy, the APC fits the description of an office-seeking coalition. Although the party attracted key regional power brokers from two main opposition parties, the Congress for Progressive Change and Action Congress, and aggrieved members of the former ruling party, now main opposition the then ruling People’s Democratic Party. Shortly after it took power in 2015, the APC could not reach a consensus on the appointment of principal officers for the 8th National Assembly, as this was the practice. The maneuverings that led to the selection process, the uneasy relationship between legislature and executive, as well as attempts by leaders from coalescing parties to superimpose on the party which had adverse effects on the supremacy of Nigeria’s ruling coalition and institutionalization of partisan party politics. While conflicts of interests are not unusual in politics, its prevalence within Nigeria’s ruling coalition adversely affects the probability of the party to actualize its campaign programs, given the seeming battle for the soul of the party. However, the dissolution of the party’s National Working Committee in 2020 and the constitution of the APC Caretaker committee by President Muhammad Buhari suggests, the party is making conscious attempts to reconcile aggrieved members, register new members and retrace its steps in preparation for the 2023 general election.

Examining Judicial Decisions on the Terms Case Stated and Reference on Constitutional Questions in A Common Law Jurisdiction

The library is to a lawyer what a laboratory is to a scientist. While conducting research in the library, a lawyer sometimes may come across legal terms, the meaning and use of which he must be certain about so as not to convey another meaning other than the one, he has in mind to his audience or reader. Legal terms and expressions sometimes could be synonymous and to the unwary legal researcher to be the same. An example of this are the terms ‘Case stated’ and ‘Reference on constitutional questions. The objective of this paper is to highlight the similarities and differences if any between the two legal terms and its data is derived from specific decided cases from the common law jurisdiction of Nigeria which would be used in pursuit of its stated objective.

Oil Theft: Deregulation or Contracting Security to Militants?

Oil theft in the Niger Delta, where the Nigerian economy derives its mainstay, has now acquired the front burner in oil and gas scholarly discourse because of the alarming regularity of the scourge. Several perspectives have emerged in the narratives particularly in the ideological spectrum, but there appears to be conflicting policies directed toward combating the challenge of theft. This paper, which adopts the doctrinal research methodology, examines the twin issues of deregulation and security for the critical assets—the oil installations and pipeline facilities. While government investigation panels, that have critically studied the problems, have advised for deregulation, the State appears to be treading the opposite line of retaining the commanding heights and engaging militants and natives in securing the assets. This approach has not encouraged private initiatives and indigenous technology transfer but has put the State on the defensive and therefore requires shift.

Resource Curse Thesis: Nigerian Experience of Oil Theft

The emergence of the crime of oil theft and illegal refineries is not sudden but the realization of its negative economic impact on the national economy and the business of multinational oil companies have taken the State and the companies by storm shortly after the Presidential proclamation of amnesty in 2009 was configured to fob-off militancy in the Niger Delta of Nigeria. This paper attempts to address the resource curse of oil theft and illegal refineries in the region from a legal theoretical framework running through the various socio-legal theories through which the crime can be viewed and explained. It panders to the critical theoretical school which attributes the causes mainly to State and multinational oil company failures in infrastructural development and social responsibility commitments to the indigenous minority ethnic communities of the Niger Delta region of Nigeria rather than the orthodox school which blames the militants for ‘greed not grievance’ instincts. It employs the analytical, historical and doctrinal methods in presenting and analyzing its research data and in drawing its conclusions. The paper finds that two major and mutually repugnant tendencies in the explanation of the crime crop up from the research records. The one pursued by State actors which is anti-recognition and vehemently opposed to oil theft and local refineries and which calls for their bombardments and annihilation through the instrumentality of military strike force, JTF, and the other which is purveyed by non-State actors which is pro-oil theft that believes that the best approach ought to be condonation, legal regulation and mainstreaming of the phenomenon as part of an indigenous building block of development. This latter perspective discountenances the employment of brute force in the confrontation of the phenomenon and is thus recommended in this paper.

The Judge and The Right of Preemption Land in Cameroon

The action of the Cameroonian judge in the context of the preservation of land ownership faced with the right of pre-emption remains very marginal. On the other hand, thanks to the increase in its field of competence, the administrative judge has been erected as a full-fledged protector of the property of private persons subject to pre-emption. Through his action, the administrative judge should ensure that land pre-emption operations comply with the law. In the event of non-compliance with legality, the respondent could be held liable. Moreover, the Cameroonian legal system reserves a traditional place for the judicial judge in the protection of pre-empted land ownership, as he contributes through his office to counter any infringement of land ownership. The judicial judge's field of competence could have been broadened with the possibility of carrying out legality control of land pre-emption operations, but this attribution of competence remains very clearly defined.

Impact of Boko Haram Insurgency on the Socioeconomic Development of Borno State, Northern Nigeria

This study examined the impact of Boko Haram Insurgency on the socio-economic development of Borno State, Nigeria. Three research objectives, three research questions and three research hypotheses were formulated to guide this study. The study was based on the Karl Marx Theory of Violence Conflict. The study was a descriptive survey and was carried out in Borno State. A sample size of 400 respondents was determined using the Taro Yamani formula. The respondents were made up of Military personnel and civilians which were selected based on a multi-stage sampling technique. Questionnaire and Interview were the instruments used for data collection. The instrument gave high reliability of 0.84 when subjected to a reliability test using the Cronbach Alpha method. Collated data from the study were analyzed using frequency, mean, standard deviation and regression analysis. Results from this study showed that there existed a weak relationship between Boko Haram insurgency and economic activities, food, security, and educational development in Borno State. The study concluded that the Boko Haram situation demands the articulation of a comprehensive strategy and the political will to address its root causes and dangerous dynamics, focusing on inhibiting opportunities for recruitment and radicalization, and choke its financial windpipe, amongst others. The study noted that the Nigerian military has too often taken civilian casualties too easy into account. By killing citizens in the North, the population's frustration against the military increases, thereby increasing Boko Haram's appeal as an alternative. Thus, it recommended that the government should rather put its focus on the protection of civilians, witnesses and key peacemakers such as moderate Imams who preach against the insurgency.