Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo state has faulted the call by
the President of the Nigeria Bar Association, Mr. Okey Wali (SAN), for the
proscription of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum saying the call negates the
provision of the constitution on Freedom of Association.
While declaring open the 2013 Law Week of the NBA, Benin Branch
yesterday, the Governor said: “recently I watched the President of the NBA,
saying in Yenogoa, Beyelsa State, that the Governors’ Forum should be
discarded. I think the factor of location influenced his conclusion. He
betrayed his oath to defend Nigerians on the right to associate.
“One of the fundamental rights of every person, including
Governors, Presidents, is the right of association. If Presidents have the
right to African Union, to United Nation, to all the other formal and informal
gathering, how can the President of a learned community suggest that the NGF be
proscribed on account of difficulties whether sixteen is more than nineteen,
although he is unable to provide the answer. If we unlearned people don’t know,
the learned people should know. Then if learned people don’t know that
nineteen is more than sixteen, then I suggest that all of you should be
proscribed.”
Oshiomhole explained that when a nation is led by characters who
won’t stand by the truth, then that nation is doomed.
“I want to submit that the environment and the overall
circumstances known and unknown that led the NBA President to call for the
freezing of the right of Governors to associate borders on corrupt practice”,
he added.
He maintained “I thought that given the role of the Bar in our
history, if privileged people like the Governors went for an election and they
have voted and the loser is being declared as the winner and the winner is
being declared as the loser and NBA says scrap it, then there is a problem.
“Anybody who keeps quite in the face of compelling facts is not
doing the nation any good. In any case, I do not need the Governors
Forum to do what I have to do. All I need is the Edo Forum”, he said.
Oshiomhole disclosed “in Edo State, all men and women are equal
before the law and we must demonstrate it by action. The law must be
operated as if there are no rich men, big men or poor men. Everybody,
whether corporate or individual must be seen to be equal before the law and the
State must be seen to have the capacity and the will to deal with anybody who
operates in an environment”
Oshiomhole argued that we can only have an egalitarian society
“when those who are privileged to be entrusted with the powers of the State use
those powers judiciously.
“I think in Edo we have tried to do that and before my turn is
up, I intend to do more, such that by 2016 when I would be out of here,
it would be said that when I was here, no one was too big to be dealt with when
he infringed the law”, he added.
The Governor reiterated his opposition to the revenue allocation
formula saying “we must give Abuja less money”.
He said Nigerians should stop lamenting that fourteen years
after, Nigeria’s democracy is not delivering to the people, saying the beauty
of democracy is that the people have the power to hire and fire and since
Nigerians know the party that has been at the helm since 1999, it is in their
hands to decide if they still want the party in power.
In a keynote address
delivered by Mr. Joe-Kyari Gadzama (SAN) on the theme “Democracy and Socio
Economic Imbalance in Nigeria; Role of the Law”, he said Democracy has been
rated as the best system of Government adding that it is a system that allows
citizens to participate directly in governance.
According to him “the courts have a duty to ensure that there is
no anarchy in the land. There is a major link between law and
democracy. In the first place law establishes democracy and
democracy guarantees the availability of law”.
The Senior Advocate of Nigeria noted “the impact of the economy
on Nigeria is negative. For democracy to thrive we need to have a
socio-economic balance. The average Nigerian does not see himself as a
Nigeria, but rather as an Hausa, Yoruba or Ibo man”.
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