From Tom Garba, Yola
Barr. Nari Wuniya Welye is a young talented Nigerian lawyer who recently became part of the 2016 Mandela Washington fellowship for young African leaders ,first among hundreds of competitors to be selected by a foreign panel of judges to represent Nigeria in the United States of America (USA).
The promising Lawyer has a bias for Alternative Dispute Resolution in a crisis areas,v erging up to a Peace initiator and given out Pro Bono legal services and mentoring to other young Nigerians.
One of the things that distinguishes her out is her undying response to the vast need for fundamental human rights awareness, as she reached out to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Borno, Zamfara and Adamawa states communities by providing free legal services to prisoners and victims of gender-based violence.
She also mentors and trains students in community development and periodically enlightens the public on the benefits of Alternative Dispute Resolution in rural areas.
In a recent interview with the VOA, Welye reveled that she delved into “alternative Dispute Resolution” in order to save the lives of people who are not knowledgeable about their legal rights and to help them reduce the cost of litigation.
The human right activist said:
“I want to make sure that there is peace in our homes and neighborhood. I want peace in our communities and the entire nation. To fosters peace and maintain the relationship between the parties, a full blown court case can only waste time and resources and continually injure the longstanding relationship between the people. ADR gives us many other strong, accessible and speedy means of getting justice through amicable settlement.
“My job is steadfastly granting legal aid to prison inmates, especially those that cannot afford the services of lawyers. It is a fact that the majority of inmates in our prisons are on the awaiting trial list. This means that they don’t have access to justice in good time and it further contributes to the issue of overpopulation in the prison and makes worse the health conditions of all the inmates.
“Giving free legal advice now comes in handy to help inmates have an idea of what they can do, the steps to take and how we can help them. To further this cause, I partner with the Legal Aid Council in the state, make recommendations to them and also get advice and directives on specific inmates like women and the under-age.”
The visionary lawyer holds a 2011 law degree from the University of Maiduguri and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 2012. She has been trained and qualified as a Dispute Resolution lawyer.
The Humanitarian lawyer hopes to use her experiences in planting a foundation and law firm that creates a platform for legal practitioners providing free legal services to the indigent members of the society.
According to Nari, she owns it to her entire family and environment which gave her the opportunity to be the best she can be.
Her words: “I’ve seen how passionate my parents are about improving the lives of people around them. Seeing the way I was raised in this environment, I am challenged to invest in people as much as I can.
“The past is gone, we can only learn from it, the future is ours to make for the best, let posterity remember our good works. I am confident in the strength and passion of the youth in our generation. We must make Nigeria a better place for all humanity to be proud because we have what it takes to make a place for all”.
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