When the conscience of a nation is dead, what happens to that nation? How will it tell right from wrong or in our case, wrong from excruciating error? Gani Fawehinmi was that raging, immense voice that would not let the government get away with anything. He was a household name and not a few lawyers went into the profession desiring to model themselves after the Great man. His death is a loss to the good people of this great nation.
We at The Nigerian Lawyer watched in awe at the seemingly endless parade of tributes and accolades. We were in awe that such a paragon had lived amongst us, but we were even more in awe that there, in the midst of the praise singers, were some who had found him a national treasure of such significance that they had to imprison, sorry, hide him away for safety.
When the whole world and their cousins gathered at his residence, those of us who could only get close enough through the screen had to wonder, is this what Gani would have wanted? Is this how we would have wanted to go out? We do not think so. Gani was a lot of things but he was no hypocrite. He stood for what he believed in and would not keep quiet even when it was in his best interests to do so. He was radical and unapologetically so.
So now he is gone and his death is indeed a loss to Nigeria. Nevertheless, at 71(his age when he died), he would have been retiring from activism eventually. And there would have been no one to take over from him. After decades of new entrees to the numerous Law faculties across the country, it is more than a little baffling that there are not more like him considering that over the years, there have been several self-styled ‘Ganis’ posturing and postulating every chance they got. How come then, that we have not got more conscience driven lawyers who are ready to go any lengths to preserve law and order, fight injustice and uphold the cause of the down trodden? When the SSS arrested several journalists, clearly infringing on their freedom of speech and other constitutional rights, the wigs folded their arms waiting for Gani to ‘say something’. Well, Gani is gone, and to the best of our knowledge, he will not be saying much for now. Unfortunately, it does not look as though any of those who are yet to go would be saying anything as well.
If the leader of a country is the image of that country, then without a doubt, Nigeria is ill. Sadly, we do not have the option of medical treatment in another jurisdiction; the treatment of Nigeria must start with Nigerians and we daresay, with the legal profession. Until there are more people like Gani, willing to sacrifice their personal freedom so that this nation will achieve positive change, growth and development, we will continue stumbling around, a lame giant. As the custodians of the Rule of Law and servants in the Temple of Justice, it stands to reason that that clamour for change must begin with our noble profession.
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