Benedicta Daudu was taking an exam as part of her master’s degree programme at the University of Jos when she was caught cheating by school administrators in 2016, officials said.
Benedicta Daudu
PEOPLES GAZETTE
The Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC) has confirmed a new senior advocate who only a few years ago earned a pink slip and general infamy for smuggling unauthorised material into an examination facility.
Benedicta Lopez Daudu was taking an exam as part of her master’s degree programme at the University of Jos when she was caught cheating by school administrators in 2016, officials said. She was promptly suspended for two semesters and shelved indefinitely as a staff member of the school’s department of international law and jurisprudence, according to the school’s account of what transpired.
Now she’s among about 70 new lawyers confirmed as senior advocates of Nigeria on Thursday by the LPPC, a body under the Supreme Court. She made it under the academic category of the distinction, which lawyers widely seek as it is understood to confer extra privileges of some sort in the profession.
Others also listed as new senior lawyers include Abuja-based attorney Kayode Ajulo, Funmi Falana, wife of the prominent rights advocate Femi, and Folashade Alli, said to be the daughter of Afe Babalola, a captain in Nigerian legal establishment.
While most of the personalities on the list have no public controversy, Ms Daudu’s elevation could further raise questions about the rigidity of the process that often leads to shortlisting legal practitioners for a position that has become increasingly controversial for the dichotomy and envy it fosters among lawyers.
Ms Daudu could not be reached for comments on Thursday night. A spokesman for the Supreme Court did not answer a call seeking comments about Ms Daudu’s promotion…
