By Uzor Odigbo
The Executive Secretary of Lagos State Law Reform Commission, Mrs. Ade Adeyemo, has said that it was an offense to use residential premises as morgues, embalmment centres or burial sites in order to prevent the transmission of communicable diseases in the state.
Speaking on the activities, achievements and impact of the Lagos State Law Reform Commission since its establishments on a Lagos Television interview programme, “Lagos Today”, Adeyemo stressed that the Commission was tasked with the responsibility of updating and reviewing laws that address immediate and peculiar needs of Lagosians at every point in time.
According to her, “The Law Reform Commission is saddled with the responsibility of reviewing and reforming laws with a view to effecting necessary changes to make them more modern, fair, just, efficient, accessible and bring them in consonance with the prevailing social and moral values of society.
“In this regard, the Commission, after review, found it expedient to ensure that the Lagos State Public Health Law was expanded to include present-day disease outbreaks like the Ebola, Lassa fever and other communicable diseases”, she added.
The Executive Secretary reiterated that there were procedures to be taken in order to eliminate all anomalies and repeal, review and reform obsolete, spent and unnecessary laws which at a time were necessary but as the State evolves, they become inapplicable because they do not fit the prevailing situations and circumstances.
She revealed that the very first compendium of laws in the State was the 1973 laws of Lagos State which was a merger of the laws that existed in the former Federal Territory of Lagos and those of the Former Western Nigeria, adding that the present Law Reform Commission evolved out of the short term State Law Review Committees/Commissions saddled with the responsibilities of previous law reforms.