…delivers ABUAD’s Convocation lecture
A Renowned legal luminary and former Chairman, Body of Benchers, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), has commended President Bola Tinubu for his courage and principled stand in refusing to defect to the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) during the height of its dominance, describing the decision as a historic act that preserved Nigeria’s multiparty democracy.
The Chairman, Governing Council of University of Lagos (UNILAG) said Tinubu’s steadfastness in the face of intimidation, political persecution and inducement was instrumental in preventing Nigeria from sliding into a one-party state.
Olanipekun recalled that Tinubu demonstrated uncommon courage by staying in the opposition despite relentless harassment from the PDP-led Federal Government during his tenure as Governor of Lagos State.
The Senior Advocate of Nigeria noted that his resilience not only helped him survive the “PDP Tsunami” of the early 2000s but also inspired other opposition leaders to unite, culminating in the historic merger that birthed the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2013.
The Legal Icon stated this in Ado-Ekiti while delivering the 13th Convocation Lecture of Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD) titled: “Nigeria-Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow: Imperative Of A Sober And Infinitive Recalibration”
He recalled that even when Tinubu was arraigned before the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) on criminal charges, he did not panic or seek political refuge with the ruling party but faced the trial with dignity and respect for the rule of law.
Olanipekun maintained that Tinubu’s political courage and democratic conviction remain pivotal in ensuring Nigeria’s political diversity and the survival of opposition politics, describing him as “one of the architects of modern Nigerian democracy”.
His words, “While Section 40 of the Constitution guarantees freedom of association, I have my serious doubts if the intendment of that section is to unleash a one-party state on Nigeria. Had Nelson Mandela and others abandoned the African National Congress (ANC) to join their traducers in the apartheid regime, South Africa would have remained under apartheid till today.
“Had President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, whether as Governor Tinubu or thereafter as ‘Citizen Tinubu’ succumbed to the harassment and intimidation of the then PDP ruling party, Nigeria would have become a one-party state as far back as 2023 or immediately thereafter.
“When he was arraigned before the Code of Conduct Tribunal, he did not blink or panic. He instructed his legal team, led by my humble self, to apply for service of the charge on his behalf even before he was formally served. Until he was discharged and acquitted, he was physically present at all the proceedings.
“Tinubu not only withstood and survived the PDP Tsunami, he also encouraged opposition figures to come together, ultimately birthing the APC in 2013″.
Speaking on the 1999 constitutional amendment, he said “The National Assembly should, for the time being, stay action on the ongoing amendment or any further amendment to the 1999 Constitution, as already stated earlier and elsewhere, the Constitution needs a new rebranding, a complete overhaul, a substitution altogether.
“Call it autochthonous Constitution or any other name, it has to be a negotiated document that will pave way for a new social order. We cannot continue to live by the 1999 Constitution which haunts us as a military albatross”.
In his remarks, the founder of ABUAD, Aare Afe Babalola acknowledged the extreme brilliance and worthiness of Olanipekun, describing him as a leading light, saying his choice for the lecture was a well merited and deserving one.
