ENCORE
Sometime ago, I touched on the above subject matter. More
pressing national issues forced me to suspend the discourse. I will
now continue our discourse. The hired thugs who had attempted to
blockade me at Gani’s memorial lecture on the 14th January, 2018,
have never, perhaps, read the provisions of section 36 of the 1999
Constitution, which presume the innocence of an accused person and
his right to be defended by a lawyer of his choice.
They are not aware, or perhaps, pretended not to be aware of,
the constitutional and legal provision, that it is the accuser who
must prove a “crime” against an accused person beyond reasonable
doubt, and that the accused has no duty to prove his innocence.
They have never perhaps read, nor understood the immortal words
that “it is better that ten guilty persons escape justice than that
one innocent person suffers”, as propounded by the English Jurist,
William Blackstone, in his seminal formulation known as
“Blackstone’s Ratio”, or “Blackstone Formulation”.
They refused to accept that it is lawyers (many of them are
SANs), who have been hired by the government, that are prosecuting
the politically exposed accused persons, whom these urchins term
“corrupt” without judicial proof.
They hid the fact that it was lawyers who prosecuted and
defended infamous and convicted armed robbers like Ishola Oyenusi,
Babatunde Folorunsho, Lawrence Anini, Monday Osunbor, Shina Ramble,
George Iyamu, Abiodun Egunjobi, etc. They sweep under the mat the
fact that it is lawyers who prosecute and defend suspected and
apprehended kidnappers, coupists, arsonists, murderers, rapists,
abductors and other heinous crimes suspects.
Because they have a constitutional right to be defended. Gani
must have wept in his Alijanah Firdausi abode, seeing this paid
miscreantic mob attempting to destroy the cherished legacies he
lived and died fordefence of the common people (whether rich or
poor), pithed against an armada of powerful government forces;
insistence on observance of the rule of law, due process and
respect for cherished fundamental human rights of every Nigerian,
irrespective of gender, class, tribe, religion, or station in
life.
I will discuss later why and how Gani led me and other lawyers
in his chambers to defend Colonel Peter Obasa, the then NYSC
Director and Chief Kila, his Deputy, in 1984; Dr Olu Onagoruwa;
Ibrahim Dikko; Isaac Idio Udoka (an Ikot-Ekpene based businessman),
all of whom were accused of acts of corruption, embezzlement and
stealing of public and private funds. Not to forget Dr Chuba
Okadigbo, the then Senate President, whom he defended on
allegations of corruption after he was impeached and replaced with
Anyim Pius Anyim.
These misguided “youths” (some of them looked older than me),
who were handsomely paid to showcase beastly behavior that failed
to intimidate me ( and who obviously hail from one ethnic group,
going by their language), would never have been welcomed or
accommodated by fiery Gani, a detrabalised and patriotic Nigerian.
Some of the same warped brains behind these despicable acts of
lawlessness had also hired a similar mob to attack and stone their
new found hero, the same Chief Gani, at the Federal High Court
premises, Lagos, when one of their god fathers accused of false
declaration and certificate forgery was being prosecuted at the
court by Gani; but was being defended by these historical
revisionists. They tried vainly to rewrite history. But, they
failed.
This incident (mine was not even as serious), by these same
people took place on 20th October, 1999. You can findthe details as
captured at page 110, in the book, “A Glance at Gani at 63”, by
Adindu Ugwuzor. HisPajero jeep was attacked and smashed, while
Gani, his senior driver, Ajibade Adefowoju and another staff were
still inside the SUV. Gani barely escaped being killed by the
whiskers, by the hired mob.
NOW THIS
THE FUTILE ATTEMPT TO PREVENT ME FROM SPEAKING TRUTH TO
AUTHORITY
When I read of the earlier threat online, by these adult
reprobates, that I should not attend Gani’s memorial lecture to
which I was duly invited to speak, I made up my mind to attend and
dared the lion in its den. If I did not, they would gibly get their
mouthpiece in the orchestrated show of shame, SAHARA REPORTERS, to
report that I ran away from the lecture out of fear. I am not and
have never been a coward. So, I attended the lecture, spoke
fiercely and even received an award.
The hired motley crowd had barricaded the entrance to the events
hall at Ikeja Airport Hotel, when I arrived, singing, under the
remote control of some of their faceless handlers who were equally
present at the venue and whom I know very well.
They pretended to be “placatine” and “quietening” this
hysterical mob, who behaved more like ungovernable Roman plebians.
How do you placate or quieten a rascally mob you did not hire, or
whose origin you knew nothing about. I laughed heartily.
Their first shock was that being a tested veteran myself, of
years of street protests and anti-bad government demonstrations,
which led to my serial detentions during successive military
juntas, I joined in the protest. I sang and danced with them,
mouthing in equal (even stronger measure), their uncouth and
infantile expletives. I noticed later that in their doctored and
fake video, they carefully edited out this scene where I even
humiliated them with their vulgarity.
They were perplexed. Mr Ogunlana, and Richard Akinola (one of
the six trail-blazing activists who, together with me, founded
Civil Liberties Organization (CLO), the first human rights body in
Nigeria, on 15th October, 1987), scolded them for their unruly
behavior.
The Head of the Gani Fawehinmi Dynasty, Mohammed, kicked against
their gross misconduct, telling the audience that his late father
was a democrat who accommodated opposing views, was never violent
and would never have accepted their unruly behaviour. Mohammed told
the audience he was only 9 years old when I was already a counsel
in his father, Gani’s chambers. For the records, I had risen to
become Gani’s Deputy by 1985, before setting up my legal practice
in 1986.
AND THIS
I had become more resolute and fortified in my decision to
attend the lecture because a day earlier, this same hired mob that
tagged themselves “students” and “youths” (and the likes of whom
Professor Wole Soyinka had, in his 2016 Wolexit brouhaha (when he
threatened to burn his Green card over Trump’s election as
president), derisively tagged “internet millipedes, imbeciles and
barbarians”).
They had cheaply taken to online social media, threatening to
stop me from attending the lecture. They could not. According to
this hired faceless group of less than 20 mobsters (whom I later
learnt were rented with mouth-watering sums by my detractors), my
“crime” was that I am “defending people accused of corruption”.
They surprisingly used the word, “accused”, not convicted.
They listed such people as much traduced and vilified former
First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, against whom no corruption act
has been shown by the government till date, in over 10 cases across
different courts in Nigeria.
They listed the No 3 citizen of Nigeria, the calm Senate
President, Dr Bukola Saraki; and the stormy petrel and courageous
face of democracy, Governor Ayodele Fayose, who has consistently
and irrepressibly put this government on its fumbling toes. They
also listed my client, Senator Dino Melaye, the reasonating voice
in the Senate, who has moved the highest number of motions and
proposed more bills than any other Senator in the 8th Senate of the
National Assembly.(To be continued).
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK
“Most criminal defendants do not get adequate representation
because there are not enough public defenders to represent them.
There is a lot that is wrong”. (John Grisham).
LAST LINE
Hope Nigerians are reading, digesting and awaiting the next
exploring discourse of Sunday Sermon on the Mount of the Nigerian
Project by Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, OFR, FCIArb., LL.D?
Follow me on twitter @ MikeozekhomeSAN
ENCORE
Sometime ago, I touched on the above subject matter. More
pressing national issues forced me to suspend the discourse. I will
now continue our discourse. The hired thugs who had attempted to
blockade me at Gani’s memorial lecture on the 14th January, 2018,
have never, perhaps, read the provisions of section 36 of the 1999
Constitution, which presume the innocence of an accused person and
his right to be defended by a lawyer of his choice.
They are not aware, or perhaps, pretended not to be aware of,
the constitutional and legal provision, that it is the accuser who
must prove a “crime” against an accused person beyond reasonable
doubt, and that the accused has no duty to prove his innocence.
They have never perhaps read, nor understood the immortal words
that “it is better that ten guilty persons escape justice than that
one innocent person suffers”, as propounded by the English Jurist,
William Blackstone, in his seminal formulation known as
“Blackstone’s Ratio”, or “Blackstone Formulation”.
They refused to accept that it is lawyers (many of them are
SANs), who have been hired by the government, that are prosecuting
the politically exposed accused persons, whom these urchins term
“corrupt” without judicial proof.
They hid the fact that it was lawyers who prosecuted and
defended infamous and convicted armed robbers like Ishola Oyenusi,
Babatunde Folorunsho, Lawrence Anini, Monday Osunbor, Shina Ramble,
George Iyamu, Abiodun Egunjobi, etc. They sweep under the mat the
fact that it is lawyers who prosecute and defend suspected and
apprehended kidnappers, coupists, arsonists, murderers, rapists,
abductors and other heinous crimes suspects.
Because they have a constitutional right to be defended. Gani
must have wept in his Alijanah Firdausi abode, seeing this paid
miscreantic mob attempting to destroy the cherished legacies he
lived and died fordefence of the common people (whether rich or
poor), pithed against an armada of powerful government forces;
insistence on observance of the rule of law, due process and
respect for cherished fundamental human rights of every Nigerian,
irrespective of gender, class, tribe, religion, or station in
life.
I will discuss later why and how Gani led me and other lawyers
in his chambers to defend Colonel Peter Obasa, the then NYSC
Director and Chief Kila, his Deputy, in 1984; Dr Olu Onagoruwa;
Ibrahim Dikko; Isaac Idio Udoka (an Ikot-Ekpene based businessman),
all of whom were accused of acts of corruption, embezzlement and
stealing of public and private funds. Not to forget Dr Chuba
Okadigbo, the then Senate President, whom he defended on
allegations of corruption after he was impeached and replaced with
Anyim Pius Anyim.
These misguided “youths” (some of them looked older than me),
who were handsomely paid to showcase beastly behavior that failed
to intimidate me ( and who obviously hail from one ethnic group,
going by their language), would never have been welcomed or
accommodated by fiery Gani, a detrabalised and patriotic Nigerian.
Some of the same warped brains behind these despicable acts of
lawlessness had also hired a similar mob to attack and stone their
new found hero, the same Chief Gani, at the Federal High Court
premises, Lagos, when one of their god fathers accused of false
declaration and certificate forgery was being prosecuted at the
court by Gani; but was being defended by these historical
revisionists. They tried vainly to rewrite history. But, they
failed.
This incident (mine was not even as serious), by these same
people took place on 20th October, 1999. You can findthe details as
captured at page 110, in the book, “A Glance at Gani at 63”, by
Adindu Ugwuzor. HisPajero jeep was attacked and smashed, while
Gani, his senior driver, Ajibade Adefowoju and another staff were
still inside the SUV. Gani barely escaped being killed by the
whiskers, by the hired mob.
NOW THIS
THE FUTILE ATTEMPT TO PREVENT ME FROM SPEAKING TRUTH TO
AUTHORITY
When I read of the earlier threat online, by these adult
reprobates, that I should not attend Gani’s memorial lecture to
which I was duly invited to speak, I made up my mind to attend and
dared the lion in its den. If I did not, they would gibly get their
mouthpiece in the orchestrated show of shame, SAHARA REPORTERS, to
report that I ran away from the lecture out of fear. I am not and
have never been a coward. So, I attended the lecture, spoke
fiercely and even received an award.
The hired motley crowd had barricaded the entrance to the events
hall at Ikeja Airport Hotel, when I arrived, singing, under the
remote control of some of their faceless handlers who were equally
present at the venue and whom I know very well.
They pretended to be “placatine” and “quietening” this
hysterical mob, who behaved more like ungovernable Roman plebians.
How do you placate or quieten a rascally mob you did not hire, or
whose origin you knew nothing about. I laughed heartily.
Their first shock was that being a tested veteran myself, of
years of street protests and anti-bad government demonstrations,
which led to my serial detentions during successive military
juntas, I joined in the protest. I sang and danced with them,
mouthing in equal (even stronger measure), their uncouth and
infantile expletives. I noticed later that in their doctored and
fake video, they carefully edited out this scene where I even
humiliated them with their vulgarity.
They were perplexed. Mr Ogunlana, and Richard Akinola (one of
the six trail-blazing activists who, together with me, founded
Civil Liberties Organization (CLO), the first human rights body in
Nigeria, on 15th October, 1987), scolded them for their unruly
behavior.
The Head of the Gani Fawehinmi Dynasty, Mohammed, kicked against
their gross misconduct, telling the audience that his late father
was a democrat who accommodated opposing views, was never violent
and would never have accepted their unruly behaviour. Mohammed told
the audience he was only 9 years old when I was already a counsel
in his father, Gani’s chambers. For the records, I had risen to
become Gani’s Deputy by 1985, before setting up my legal practice
in 1986.
AND THIS
I had become more resolute and fortified in my decision to
attend the lecture because a day earlier, this same hired mob that
tagged themselves “students” and “youths” (and the likes of whom
Professor Wole Soyinka had, in his 2016 Wolexit brouhaha (when he
threatened to burn his Green card over Trump’s election as
president), derisively tagged “internet millipedes, imbeciles and
barbarians”).
They had cheaply taken to online social media, threatening to
stop me from attending the lecture. They could not. According to
this hired faceless group of less than 20 mobsters (whom I later
learnt were rented with mouth-watering sums by my detractors), my
“crime” was that I am “defending people accused of corruption”.
They surprisingly used the word, “accused”, not convicted.
They listed such people as much traduced and vilified former
First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, against whom no corruption act
has been shown by the government till date, in over 10 cases across
different courts in Nigeria.
They listed the No 3 citizen of Nigeria, the calm Senate
President, Dr Bukola Saraki; and the stormy petrel and courageous
face of democracy, Governor Ayodele Fayose, who has consistently
and irrepressibly put this government on its fumbling toes. They
also listed my client, Senator Dino Melaye, the reasonating voice
in the Senate, who has moved the highest number of motions and
proposed more bills than any other Senator in the 8th Senate of the
National Assembly.(To be continued).
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK
“Most criminal defendants do not get adequate representation
because there are not enough public defenders to represent them.
There is a lot that is wrong”. (John Grisham).
LAST LINE
Hope Nigerians are reading, digesting and awaiting the next
exploring discourse of Sunday Sermon on the Mount of the Nigerian
Project by Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, OFR, FCIArb., LL.D?
Follow me on twitter @ MikeozekhomeSAN