CAC’s AI Upgrade: Lawyers and Businesses Strangled by a Faulty Digital System

A Public Advocacy Statement on the Ongoing Challenges of CAC’s New Portal and the AI Misapplications under CAMA 2020

📌 Introduction

When the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020 was signed into law, it marked a bold step toward digital transformation in Nigeria’s corporate space. The Act introduced provisions for e-registration, digital filings, virtual meetings, and electronic share transfers—all of which promised to improve the ease of doing business.

In line with this, the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) introduced an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-backed digital registration portal. But rather than facilitating faster service delivery and transparent processing, the portal has become a bottleneck of dysfunction, frustrating lawyers, business owners, and the Nigerian public at large.

Ongoing Failures and Widespread Complaints

1. Unexplained Portal Downtime

For weeks, the CAC’s registration portal has suffered from intermittent outages, making it difficult for users to process registrations, file post-incorporation documents, or retrieve certificates. Despite payments being made, users are locked out of their transactions with no visible support structure to seek redress.

2. Payments Not Reflecting

Dozens of legal practitioners have made payments for business name registration, annual returns, or name reservations—yet the system either crashes or continues to reflect these submissions as “not submitted.” This has led to financial loss and time-wasting, with no refund mechanism in place.

3. AI-Driven Name Rejections Without Logic

The CAC’s AI engine, instead of simplifying the name availability process, has turned it into a game of roulette. Lawyers report arbitrary and baseless rejections of proposed names—sometimes due to simple keywords—without a human review option or detailed feedback.

4. No Functional Complaint Resolution Pathway

There is no accessible helpline, functional email response system, or portal dashboard to track downtime incidents or escalate unresolved issues. Lawyers and entrepreneurs are left stranded, with CAC’s only recent response being a vague social media post claiming the system “will resume shortly.”

Lawyers Speak: Real Stories from the Field

> “We just woke up one day and… we can’t even do anything. It is affecting the ease of doing business.”
— Yomi Ogunsanya, Abuja
(as reported by Premium Times, July 2025)

> “Portal has been inaccessible for weeks. Business name registration not working. Payments are not going through.”
— Olalekan Oladapo, Corporate Lawyer, FCT

Across Facebook and Twitter communities like the “CAC Online Lawyers’ Twisters” page, thousands of lawyers continue to express similar frustrations—voicing helplessness and calling for urgent government intervention.

What CAMA 2020 Promised vs. What CAC Delivered

Under Sections 861, 240, and others of CAMA 2020, the CAC was empowered to introduce electronic documentation, digital filings, and virtual meetings. The goal was to simplify incorporation, enable online filings, and encourage transparency.

But in its present form, the CAC’s implementation has become:

Technologically exclusive and poorly tested

Unaccountable to its users

Disruptive to both legal practice and entrepreneurship

These realities betray the spirit of CAMA 2020 and create barriers to doing business in Nigeria—exactly the opposite of what the legislation intended.

CAC’s Response: Too Little, Too Late

Though the CAC claimed in a July 14 post that the portal would be restored “shortly,” by July 20, it remained dysfunctional. No official press release has:

Acknowledged the magnitude of the failures

Explained the nature of the technical issues

Offered alternatives, refunds, or support mechanisms

Deferred impending fee increases (which will further punish users)

This silence is unacceptable from a commission tasked with improving Nigeria’s global business index.

Public Advocacy Demands

We, as stakeholders in Nigeria’s legal and business environment, hereby call for:

1. Immediate Full Restoration of the Portal
A verifiable and public timeline for the return of all portal functions.

2. Transparency in AI Name Screening
A clear explanation of the logic behind AI rejections and a pathway for human review.

3. Independent Audit of the CAC Portal
To determine technical flaws and prevent recurrence.

4. Suspension of Any Fee Increase
Until full system functionality is restored and services rendered effectively.

5. Creation of a CAC LegalTech Support Desk
With real-time ticketing, human support officers, and a clear escalation structure.

6. Legislative Oversight Inquiry
The National Assembly committees on ICT and Corporate Affairs should summon the CAC leadership to answer to the public.

Conclusion: We Demand Function, Not Frustration

The CAC’s AI transformation should never compromise legal integrity, business timeliness, or public trust. If the AI portal remains broken, and the CAC continues to deny the reality on the ground, it threatens not only lawyers’ professional responsibility—but also thousands of businesses trying to comply with the law.

This is a matter of digital rights, economic growth, and public service accountability. The Commission must act now—or risk losing the confidence of the very public it is meant to serve.

Signed:
Olalekan I Oladapo Esq for
Concerned Legal Practitioners, Corporate Clients, and Digital Rights Advocates
📆 Date: July 2025

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