EDITORIAL: Chastising Obasanjo on abuse of Obas, before the first stone is cast

*Professor rewarded for doing wrong?

“Politicians should find a way of treating the royal fathers like their biological fathers. Can you say because you now have all the “nuclear” powers of the world right at the tip of your finger, you will disrespect your father or mother? If the answer is no, then, respect the traditional rulers and this goes to all politicians in North and South of Nigeria.”

The ordering around of Yoruba Obas of Oyo State extractions Friday September, 2023, by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, has elicited huge criticisms from across the South West Region with many hiding behind the one-finger shade of social media to run unprintable words and unimaginable vituperation on him.

Chief Obasanjo, a retired General and world class personality, might have done badly for not choosing well the context, vehicle, channel and timing for his ‘forceful and commandeering’ message to the apparently kings who were caught unaware, the general consensus, beyond the Yoruba sentimentality of reason, is that the Owu, Abeokuta, Ogun State-born Army General-turned politician could not be so wrong.

The concern he expressed is what the protocol demands. When the kings are seated at an official territory of the Governor and their presence there is at the instance of the Governor, protocol demands that when the governor arrives or enters, all including the kings rise to show respect to him. Same way all that are already seated including the Governor should rise at an official traditional territory of the king when the monarch arrives or enters.

Under a certain governor, like it is the practice in the entire Northern Nigeria, at public function either in Government House or anywhere where the monarch and other traditional rulers (district heads) are already seated, regardless of his size in term of royalty weight and his world class status, he – like all others – rises when the Governor or President enters.

However, when it concerns culture, traditional institution and religion affairs, the governor,  President and others, who are already seated, rise up in show of respect for the monarch when he enters. This is applicable to all government, traditional institution and religious protocols across Northern Nigeria. Both interchange respect and honour with and for each other, to the extent that it has mixed with natural system of the region. And their monarchs are greater for it and are respected anywhere in government offices and quarters

But it is always an issue in Yoruba Land or entire South because one part does not want to come down for the other. Both have the responsibility of exchange of respect and honour towards each other. But government has more reconcilitory roles to play in harmonising the situation. The fact of who administers the appointment, salary and allowances of traditional rulers should not be the yardstick of determination for and from whom respect is due.

If that is the case, then the accountant who administers the salary of managing director will one day draw a line of order to ride on the boss. It is true that most towns and communities are no longer operating monarchy system of government, where kings hitherto wielded political powers – before the invasion of their land by British colonialists, the politicians, who are naturally part of the monarchy based grassroots but have been handed the political powers snatched from the kings by the white, should realise that royalty is divine and so must continue to enjoy its place of regard, respect and honour.

This is the reason most traditional rulers advocate for constitutional rights and duties for them to function more effectively as the first line of authority that is closer to their people. The politicians, most of whom made kings’ demand for it the top priority in their election promises, should not see it as too much thing to do. It used to be that five percent of Federal budget is entitlement of traditional rulers in Nigeria. Allowing the operationality of this portion of the budget should not be too heavy duty for the politicians in power to fulfill.

That is about respect and fair treatment between Obas and the President or governor regarding the demand of protocol on who should rise for other at what event and so on and so forth. Back to the calls for the head of Obasanjo, the same Yoruba adage says “Agba wa bura, bi ewe o se o ri” meaning, elder should swear if what he chides the young for he never did as youth.

Who will cast the first stone? Is it President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who the Yoruba World Council sought to call Obasanjo to order? Before then, a not too distant history beckons on Tinubu himself. During the coronation event of Oniru of Iru Land, Oba Abdul-Wasiu Omogbolahan Lawal , Abisogun II, on Sunday September 6, 2020, Tinubu as then a non-office holder, was among others already seated when the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, entered and he remained seated.

Even the Oniru, who arranged for Tinubu’s seat flanking him to his right, did not make pre-arrangement for the Ooni’s seat that the co-Chairman, National Traditional Rulers Council of. Nigeria (NTRCN) had to find himself a seat at the far right, extreme end on the high table. It was after the Ooni had sat that he saw Tinubu was on the same roll sitting beside the celebrant and then, he had to rise up and walk down to Tinubu, who still had to greet and shake hands with the king while seated.

Nyesom Wike at the tail end of his two terms tenure as Governor of Rivers State also embarrassed traditional rulers when he pointed finger to their faces saying, “You, you, you , stop shaking your head. You are one of those who are causing problems. When you are given chieftaincy, you be young boy, you don’t know what to do with it. You start shaking your head….” It is that bad in Southern Nigeria. The same Wike is the most powerful Adviser to Tinubu, who is now Presiden. He is Tinubu’s most influential adviser in addition to be made the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

This is the problem. It is not right for Yoruba or Southern politicians to destroy their traditional institution of monarchy because of transient or short-time political power that they have. That play, if they do not tred exercisation of power with wisdom in relation to it and they destroy it, is going to be their end result.

Politicians should find a way of treating the royal fathers like their biological fathers. Can you say because you now have all the “nuclear” powers of the world right at the tip of your finger, you will disrespect your father or mother? If the answer is no, then, respect the traditional rulers and this goes to all politicians in North and South of Nigeria.

Professor rewarded for doing wrong?

A professor, who was caught and later suspended for examination malpractices, is reported to have made the shortlist of likely recipients of the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) rank.

Her name is Benedicta Daudu, the dean of the Faculty of Law at the Taraba State University. She was reportedly shortlisted alongside 68 other lawyers for the SAN award by the LPPC which is domiciled at the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

The question is, those who are in charge of the duty of carrying out operation of this national trust, how Honourable are in their minds and pe4sonalities?

The rank of a SAN is reserved for Nigerian lawyers who have distinguished themselves in legal practice, either in the advocacy or academic lines. The integrity and reputation of the candidate are also part of major considerations for the award.

Premium Times had extensively reported on how authorities of the University of Jos (UNIJOS), Plateau State, suspended Ms Daudu for one academic session after she was caught “cheating” in a postgraduate course examination.

Ms Daudu, an associate professor of law and head of the Department of Jurisprudence and International Law of the Faculty of Law at UNIJOS, was caught cheating while taking an examination for a Master’s degree in Research and Public Policy in the Faculty of Social Sciences of the same university.

The development, after it was exposed by Premium Times, earned her the sack from then President Muhammadu Buhari’s Presidential Committee Advisory Committee on Corruption (PACAC) in May 2016.

Confirming her exit from PACAC, the Executive Secretary of the body, Bolaji Owasanoye, a law professor and now chairman of Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, ICPC, had in a text message to this newspaper as then executive secretary of PACAC, said the committee discussed the allegation against Ms Daudu, and she “voluntarily” stepped down from the committee until the matter was resolved.

If you reward a professor, who has record (investigated or under investigation) for committing, aiding or abetting examination malpractices in the university, with such a prestigious peak of a professional status, and that fellow is a lawyer and teacher of law, then, the future of Nigeria bleaks with bleeding corruption. Something fast is required to be done.