Rivers: Wike and the Body of Benchers’ silence

The Body of Benchers is a statutory body under the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962, and is the highest body in the legal profession in Nigeria. It comprises distinguished members from the Bench (judges), including the Chief Justice of Nigeria, all justices of the Supreme Court, President of the Court of Appeal, Attorney General of the Federation, some judges, senior members of the Bar (senior lawyers), and other eminent legal figures with extensive experience and remarkable contributions to the profession. It has two categories of membership: Bencher and life-bencher. The latter is usually the next step after proven diligence and a good record as a bencher. The body sets standards, regulates the legal profession, determines new entrants into the profession, and disciplines erring lawyers.

The former governor of Rivers state, Nyesom Wike, was inducted directly with the highest status as a life-bencher even though he had not been in active practice as a lawyer, according to reports. Possibly, the gesture was honorary in appreciation of the infrastructural development support to the Nigerian Law School during his tenure as Minister of State for Education and later as governor of Rivers State, when a Nigerian Law School, Port Harcourt Campus, was built by the state government.

After his tenure, the Rivers State political space turned into a hostile war zone after his successor, Siminalayi Fubara, who served as his Accountant General, declined to be his puppet after the election. According to reports, Wike handpicked him as the candidate of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), funded his campaign, and eventually, Fubara was declared a winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). After the poll, Rivers State people claimed that the results announced by the umpire did not represent the actual outcome but were massively manipulated in favour of the PDP. Like all other elections, the result was challenged at the election tribunal up to the Supreme Court, but it ended in favour of Fubara, who was the PDP candidate.

Their squabble kicked off during the composition of the cabinet when Wike, the former governor, allegedly nominated and imposed almost all appointees on the governor, particularly sensitive positions, and reduced Fubara to a puppet. This led to commotion. Due to the crisis, a state of emergency was declared on the state by Bola Ahmed Tinubu in Chief Olusegun Obasanjo-style, and the governor, legally elected by the ballots of the people by virtue of the ruling of the apex court, was overpowered, unlawfully suspended and forced out of office in a coup d’état manner, and strangely replaced with a sole administrator to pilot the affairs of the state. Obasanjo declared a state of emergency in several states and suspended their elected governors in a coup d’état manner.

Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, who succeeded Obasanjo, vehemently refused to toe the line of such an uncivilized and illegal show of state power. After his demise, Goodluck Jonathan was sworn in. Though he conceded to declare a state of emergency in about three states, it was limited to its lawful and civilized meaning, by directing it on security alone, thereby only reinforced the security with more personnel to protect lives and property without interfering with administration, which is lawfully created by the Constitution as the duty of the elected governors. After him, Muhammadu Buhari mounted the podium, but no state of emergency on state government was declared throughout his eight years in office. Unfortunately, it has resurfaced in Tinubu’s government, who also had aggressively disagreed with Obasanjo when he suspended elected governors from office during his tenure.

Anyway, that’s by the way. Our focus today is on Wike, a life-bencher, and his aggressive interferences to a constituted government to the extent of openly, repeatedly announcing that he made Fubara a governor of Rivers State, which suggests manipulations in the poll. Still, the Body of Benchers is mum. When will the professional body speak up is the question demanding an answer. It is noteworthy that the Body of Benchers is an institution, and this demands that its members should live up to expectations.

A situation where someone in a noble fold puts himself up for insults without restraints due to commissions or omissions is indirectly an institutional embarrassment to the group, and not just to the individual. Most of the statements by the FCT Minister, with due respect, leave much to be desired, and some are even incriminating if thoroughly looked into, particularly the boast of unilaterally making someone a governor, which contradicts a genuine democracy.

From the record, the last time such impunity of open bragging on godfatherism was during the time of Oyo state late politician, Chief Lamidi Adedibu (the strongman of Ibadan politics), during Obasanjo’s tenure, who dominated their political space and attempted to pocket Rashidi Ladoja, the governor as his puppet, and brazenly boasted that he singlehandedly made him the state governor. The same blunder happened in Anambra State during Chris Ngige’s tenure as governor, by Chris Uba, self-acclaimed kingmaker then, also in Obasanjo’s tenure. That coming from uninformed politicians was understandable. But how do we explain the same disaster in Rivers state from a life-bencher, who should be distinguished, show exemplary lifestyle to the society, including non-bencher lawyers?

Nigeria has a crop of lawyers who play politics with civility and decorum, not hostility. A bencher is held in high esteem, and therefore under a duty to comport himself to a certain standard, more so as the regulator of the legal profession. Be it politics or otherwise, a bencher should maintain decorum and the highest level of civility as a role model. Ideally, speeches of such a fellow bearing the image of a noble body that sets a standard on ethics should be seasoned with good flavour. Allowing the opposite, significantly, will subject the noble body to mediocrity. A sane driver conveying eggs in a vehicle need not be monitored to exercise caution, as he should know the eggs are fragile. In the same way, the rank of a bencher is delicate.

To sum up, the benchers should ensure that their member, Nyesom Wike, gives peace a chance and allows an elected government in Rivers to function and discharge its constitutional duties to the people. As the Minister of the FCT, there are many challenges in his territory, to wit, growing insecurity, indigent children that ought to be in school roaming the streets and roads as beggars, and hygiene challenges, including wastewater from septic systems littering the streets and roads even in the central areas, to focus on. I rest my case.

Umegboro, ACIArb, is a lawyer, wrote this via [email protected]

Nigerians can now invest ₦2.5 million on premium domains and profit about ₦17-₦25 million. All earnings paid in US Dollars. Rather than wonder, click here to find out how it works.

Join Daily Trust WhatsApp Community For Quick Access To News and Happenings Around You.