Akinjide: Exit of a consummate politician

Deputy Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU writes on the life and times of the legal luminary and astute politician, Chief Richard Osuolale Akinjide (SAN), who passed on yesterday at 88.

 

He made name in legal profession and politics. Law practice was his career. Politics was his vocation. He rose to the top in both. Surviving lawyers and politicians have a lot to learn from Chief Richard Osuolale Akinjide (SAN), who passed on yesterday at 88.

The elder statesman was not a politician without a second address. He practiced his trade to the end, establishing thriving practices in Lagos, Abuja, London and other countries.

The eminent politician and father of former Minister of State for Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Oloye Jumoke, was hospitalised at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan for old age-related ailment. He left worthy legacies at the bar.

He was the counsel to former President Shehu Shagari in the historic presidential litigation, which he won against the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, based on the controversial 12 two-third permutation.

The Supreme Court ruled that the verdict that allotted victory to the defunct National Party of Nigeria (NPN) against the Unity Party of Nigeria(UPN) should not be cited as a judicial precedent.

During the governorship election, in 1979, he was defeated by Chief Bola Ige. At the governorship debate, a hot argument ensued between him and Ige. Akinjide insinuated that the free education policy of the defunct Action Group (AG), which the UPN hoped to implement in Oyo State, only bred miscreants. Ige, a man with a caustic tongue, retorted: “How many of these thugs and miscreants came from your family?” The live television debate ended on that note.

Between 1979 and 1983, Akinjide served in the Shagari administration as Attorney-General and Minister of Justice. He was a lover of judicial reforms. He was succeeded by his colleague in the defunct  National Council of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC), the late Chief Kehinde Sofola (SAN).

The frontline politician worked closely with national party chairman, Chief Adisa Akinloye, Chief Busari Adelakun, Alhaji Lamidi Adedibu, Chief Sunday Afolabi and other NPN top notchers to instal Dr. Victor Olunloyo as governor in 1983. Ige claimed that he was rigged out.

Akinjide joined the NCNC in the fifties. He was a prominent member of the Western Regional Caucus along with his former teacher at Oduduwa College, Ile Ife, where he passed out in Grade One(Distinction), Chief Babatunji Olowofoyeku (SAN), Chief Theophilus Benson (SAN), Chief Adeniran Ogunsanya (SAN), Chief Odeleye Fadahunsi, Chief Olu Akinfosile, Chief Adeleke Adedoyin and Alhaji Adegoke Adelabu.

Under the parliamentary system, he became a member of the House of Representatives. Akinjide succeeded Jaja Wachukwu in 1964 as Federal Minister of Education.

He had defected from the NCNC to Premier Ladoke Akintola’s United Peoples Party (UPP), which later merged with a section of the regional NCNC to form the Nigeria National Democratic Party (NNDP), which he served as secretary. In those days of hot regional politics, Akintola and his deputy, Remi Fani-Kayode, a brilliant politician, were on the prowl, with a singular determination to liquidate the progressive bloc in the region. The struggle for power climaxed into the rigging of the 1965 regional elections, which led to operation wet e in the Western Region.

As Federal Education Minister, his decision to appoint Prof. Saburi Biobaku as Vice Chancellor of University of Lagos to succeed Prof. Eni Njoku sparked an ethnic row. His predecessor, Wachukwu, an Igbo, appointed Njoku, an Igbo scholar. Akinjide, a Yoruba, appointed historian Biobaku, an Egba. Lecturers and students protested.

During the protracted crisis, Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, who was visitor to the university, kept mute.

In 1967, Akinjide declined the offer of Commissioner in the Western State under the military rule because the announcement was made on the radio before he was informed by the military governor.

In 1970, Akinjide defeated Chief TOS Benson during the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) national chairmanship contest.

Between 1977 and 1978, he was a member of the Constitutional Drafting Committee (CDC) set up by the Murtala/O Obasanjo regime to fashion out the 1979 presidential constitution.

He was involved in judicial reforms. Until his demise, he was one of the elders of the  Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Oyo State. He was a member of the Body of Benchers.

 

Akinjide on state of the nation:

In a interview in 2014,  Akinjide spoke on his life, career, politics and state of the nation.

 

Military in politics:

“One of the things that destroyed this country was military intervention. I am not aware of any country in the world, which had the intervention of the military and has done well. Nigeria is not an exception and I hope the military will not intervene in our politics again.

 

Agitation for Ibadan State:

“I support it. When we presented positions at the National Assembly. I was there. The Ibadan State is overdue and should be created as soon as possible. It is not only Ibadan, Ogun State too should be broken into two, Ijebu Ode has always been a provincial capital. Abeokuta has always been a provincial capital. these are the two that are denied their own states. I believe Ijebu Ode should be given a state and Abeokuta should be given a state too.

 

The immunity clause:

“I don’t see why anybody should be immuned from prosecution, no matter what political office you hold. In America, President Richard Nixon was to be tried, Bill Clinton was to be tried as Presidents. And if you look at the political history of other countries, political office holders, are either tried criminally or you resign from office. So, why should Nigeria be an exception? That immunity was absurd and should be removed.

 

State police:

“That is rubbish. When we had state police, it was causing trouble. It was being used for politics. We don’t, need state police. There should be one police in the country. But, the commissioner of police; should be working hand in hand with the governor of the state, no matter the political situation. We should not politicise police, they are the first port of call in crisis moment. Therefore, they are very important for our stability and for our peace.

 

True federalism:

“True federalism depends on the people. What is critical is not the structure of your constitution. What is important is the attitude of your constitution; doing the right thing is the most important thing and the sky will not be the limit for us. Local government autonomy is important but the biggest problem is the governance.

When money is voted for local government, the governor will collect it and spend it on their behalf. I think that should be abolished. So, local government should have their own autonomy as far as possible. Again, at the same time, the governors should not interfere in the affairs of the local government.

 

World Court verdict on Bakassi:

“That judgment of the World Court was unfortunate because that particular land belonged to Nigeria. The people who caused the problem for us were the British. The British signed a treaty with France, the Anglo -French Treaty, in which they transferred the land to France. But the truth is that the land does not belong to Britain.

In international law, the protectorate land belongs to the people of that place. And that place was a protectorate. So, Britain had no legal basis to sign a treaty with France and transfer it to them.

The people of that land are the owners of the land and there are aspects of international laws, which support Nigeria. Having said that, that is the judgment of the International Court of Justice, but what I think we can do is to negotiate with the Cameroun.

 

100 years of amalgamation:

“That is not independence; many commentators don’t clearly understand what that event means. That event was done by the British for its political and economic interests. That is very important. Lugard was involved. Also, the Royal Niger Company and the Colonial Secretary. Those were the three critical characters who did the amalgamation for the British economic and political interests and not Nigeria’s interest.

They discovered that there is a lot of minerals in Jos, a lot cocoa emerging in the South, palm kernel coming up and also in other part of the country, we have other minerals. Colonialism is synonymous with economic exploitation; Britain did it for its economic interest and not for Nigeria’s economic interest. It is being held that a return to parliamentary system will make Nigeria better. What is your view?

I don’t accept that. Parliamentary system means that a member of parliament, being Prime Minister, would preside over the country. I prefer where we have the President, who is voted for by the whole country, not by one constituency.

I prefer the French and American system whereby a person emerges by the vote of the people of the country. Those who are talking about parliamentary system want to pull the hands of the clock backward. we should not accept that.

 

Failed governorship ambition:

“Well, I don’t. I would have been happy, if I did. but why should I regret? I was in parliament before independence. I was in parliament at the time of independence, and I was in parliament after independence. And after independence, I was a Federal Minister of Education under Balewa. I enjoyed it and like it very much.

I later became Attorney General. So, the sky is not the limit and I am quite happy with what I got. I think Nigeria has been very kind to me and I have been kind to Nigeria as well.

 

Rejection of commissionership:

“Well, three times, the governor of the state in the military era invited me to come and join and three times I declined. I said I do not want to be misrepresented, it was a very good gesture but it was not acceptable to me.

And at that time I was the President of the Nigeria Bar Association and also I was handling a very big brief for a Swiss Bank, which involved a lot of money. You know that the military government is easily overthrown by the military and, considering what I was doing then, I didn’t want my name to be linked to anything that had to do with lack of accountability.

That was one of the several reasons why I declined. But having travelled to Geneva to collect my fees from the Swiss Bank, the governor announced my name. And further more, I had just bought a property in London and when I start declaring all these in my asset, people will be saying it is government money; that I have taken.

Whereas it is not government money, it was money from my professional earning, it was better for me at that time to remain in the profession.

 

The 12 2/3 judgment:

“I will do exactly what I did, but what you must know is that I argued the case. I propounded the principle but I did not write the judgment. There were seven justices; six accepted to the doctrine that I propounded, one did not accept. It was the judgment of the court. So, why should anybody blame me for anything when I did not write the judgment. It is part of the law of the country now. And it will remain part of the law of the country for ever.

 

Daughter as minister:

“You get what you deserve and you deserve what you get. The question is, does my daughter deserve it? In London, she read Law and had first class. After finishing in London, she went to Harvard to do post graduate in Law and was one of the best. So, do you blame her for that? That my daughter, Jumoke’s daughter, Olayinka, went to theUniversity of Oxford to study and she had double first class. Three of my children read Law in Cambridge and three of my children also read in Harvard and one read in Oxford. So, why should you blame me for that?

 

Sovereign National Conference (SNC):

“I believe in the National Conference not the SNC. The Sovereign National Conference will be the government of the country, but if we have a conference, which is not a government of the country, I accept that. Many people don’t understand a national conference and SNC. The word sovereign should be taken away ffrom it.”