Tansian University Umunya in Oyi Local Government Area of Anambra State has held her sith inaugural lecture series titled; “Obfuscation of primogeniture syndrome and dethronement of ergonomic organogram of the ‘diokpala’ in Nigerian law of succession, inheritance and distribution of estate”.
While primogeniture “denotes the state of being the first born child (generally male) among siblings”, jurisprudentially, the term “connotes the common-law right of the first born son to inherit his ancestor’s estate, usually, to the exclusion of his younger siblings.
Speaking on the topic, the resource person and Professor of Property Law, Very Reverend. Father Edwin Obiorah, among other things, noted that the primogeniture syndrome has been seriously degraded, if not totally vanquished and obfuscated, by the continued democratization of the society.
Father Obiorah, who is also the Chancellor and Board of Trustee Chairman of the university, explained that “with the unyielding application of the ‘Repugnancy Test’, statutorily established under Section eighteen sub section three of the Evidence Act, 2011, and the resuscitation of the ‘Right to Acquire and Own Immovable Property’ anywhere in Nigeria, as enshrined in Section 42 and 43 of the 1999 Constitution, the era of primogeniture began to fade into oblivion, if not completely obscured or obliterated”.
In their separate remarks, the Vice Chancellor of the university, Professor Eugene Nwadialor, and the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Academics, Professor Cater-Dike Umeoduagu, noted that inaugural lecture is one of the debts a Professor owes the university and the larger society, which helps in shaping narratives.
