THE NATION TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013
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LAW COVER CONT’D The University of Lagos (UNILAG) drew dignitaries from within and outside the country last Friday. It was the last day of its golden jubilee anniversary convocation, which was held between February 6 and 8. The high-point of the day’s event was the conferment of the Doctorate degree of Law (Honoris Causa) on eminent lawyer, Chief Afe Babalola. ERIC IKHILAE reports.
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MINENT lawyer Chief Afe Babalola (SAN) stood tall last Friday as he stepped forward in the main auditorium of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) to be honoured. The audience, comprising dignitaries and students, cheered as the honoree raised his hands in acknowledgement. Although two other equally eminent Nigerians were honoured with him, the legal giant received the loudest ovation. It was on the last day of the university’s three-day golden jubilee anniversary convocation held between February 6 and 8. Babalola, along with the country’s first and only Prime Minister, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa and former Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Chief Arthur Mbanefo, were awarded honorary doctorate degrees. Babalola got the degree of Law; the late Balewa, whose post-humous award was received by his son, Yakubu, got the degree of Letters; Mbanefo was honoured with the degree of Science. The institution’s Registrar, Oluwarotimi Shodimu, explained the choice of Babalola (the school’s pro-Chancellor between 2001 and 2008) for the award in a letter dated November 5, last year. Shodimu said the award was in recognition of his “immense contributions to the development of education, advancement of knowledge, learning and research. “Also, note is taken of your unrelenting philanthropic contributions to the advancement of education and your passion for seeking the general welfare of the society. “The university noted in particular that as a former Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Council for the two periods that you were appointed, you contributed immensely to the development of the university and you have remained consistent, putting the university on the world map. “You laid the foundation and provided the roadmap for the present enviable ranking of the university as the best in Nigeria and 16th in Africa. Your unrelenting drive and passion for excellence are unquantifiable. “The university’s memory is filled with the remarkable achievements you made in the course of restoring values on the academia, providing the blueprint for income generating units and creation of new avenues of endowment in the university. The benefits remain obvious till today.” As Babalola stood before the audience, waiting to be decorated with the award, the school’s Orator, Professor Oyelowo Oyewo (of the Faculty of law), read his (Babalola’s) citation, an extract from a unique life history spanning over 80 years. Oyewo told a brief history of Babalola, born around 1931 into a humble background, deprived of the opportunity of accessing basic education, but now a man that combines fabulous wealth with professional accomplishment. He told the story of how Babalola, whose parents could not fund his secondary education, is now not only referred to as one of the most successful lawyers in the country, but a great philanthropist. Oyewo told the audience that in spite of his (Babalola’s) outstanding intellectual capability and offer of admission to Christ’s School, AdoEkiti, the opportunity of having secondary school education eluded him due to lack of funds. “He, therefore, had no option than to start the uphill task of climbing the academic ladder without secondary education. He obtained Cambridge School Certificate, GCE Ordinary and Advanced Level Certificate of London University, B.Sc. (Economics) of London University and LL.B (Hons) of London University, all by private study,” Oyewo said. Today, Babalola did only personify wealth and success, he has helped many to grow. To cap it, he owns a university – Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State. The school was recently described by the NUC as the best thing to have happened to education in this part of the world and a benchmark for other universities. A glimpse of Babalola’s humble background exists in his autobiography entitled: “Impossibility Made Possible,” where he said: “As a boy I did not wear clothes on the farm. My father never wore shoes or slippers throughout his life. It was not unusual. “It was therefore not surprising that throughout my life on the farm and until I
• From right: Education Minister, Prof Ruqayattu Ahmed Rufai; Chief Afe Babalola; Pro-Chancellor, UNILAG, Deacon Gamaliel Onosode and the school’s Registrar, Oluwarotimi Shodimu (behind).
Babalola’s thorny path to the top completed my education in the prestigious Emmanuel School, Ado-Ekiti, after Standard VI Certificate, I had no shoes or slippers. It was when I started to work as a pupil-teacher that my mother bought me my first shoes. It was a pair of white canvass shoes, which I wore only on Sundays to church. I was about I6 years of age then”. After close to 50 years of law practice, Babalola’s law firm, Chief Afe Babalola and Co (Emmanuel Chanbers) has trained over 500 lawyers and produced 14 Senior Advocates of Nigeria. A recipient of many awards, Babalola, also told of how he started his law firm in 1965. “What assisted me in my mission was the desire to succeed. I had no money to start a new office but I believed I would succeed. I bought a second-hand imperial manual machine typewriter for 36 pounds. “I made a down payment of 12 pounds and entered into an agreement to pay the balance of 24 pounds at the rate of 4 pounds per month. I also bought a table and three chairs. This table was bought from roadside carpenter at Ekotedo (Ibadan, Oyo State). “I bought a standing fan because there was no window in my office. In the first year after leaving my senior, I operated as one-man legal practitioner. John was the typist, the clerk and the messenger. My practice was mainly in the Magistrate Courts.” On page 122, he advised lawyers not to joke with their professional fees if they wish to succeed. “Any fees not paid before the conclusion of a case may never be paid again, nor would the client come back. Many clients never returned to me after I had concluded their cases. While their cases were still on, they would give the best of Christmas presents. “May be one or two years after the end of a case they might remember you. My experience is that ninety per cent of all my Christmas presents come from those whose cases are still pending.” The Vice Chancellor, UNILAG, Professor Rahamon Bello, praised Babalola and the Council he led, for their contribution to the institution’s development. He assured that the school’s management will
not depart from the path of growth and development on which Babalola and his Council placed institution. On receiving the letter conveying his nomination for the award, Babalola said: “Of all the letters of award I have received from Nigeria and beyond, the letter of award dated November 5, 2012 addressed to me by the University of Lagos, is the most inspiring, exciting and moving. “Significantly, it was my experience garnered at that time which, in large measure, has assisted me in the planning and execution of ‘the project ABUAD’, which has now metamorphosed into a model, reference point and pace-setter university in reformatory education in Nigeria.” Responding after being docurated with the award, Babalola told the audience how former President Olusegun Obasanjo convinced him to accept to serve as the Pro-Chancellor of the institution and how he successfully turned around the school’s fortune from a crisis ridden institution to that now held out as the nation’s best. He said, on accepting the appointment, he had three objectives; the first of which was to stabilize the then troubled institution. “And I thank the members of Council who worked tirelessly to ensure that we restored tranquility to the school within three years. “The second objective was to take to university to the level where it will be rated as the number one university in Nigeria. That was accompanied in four years. “The NUC rated the school the number one university in the country. That has never happened before. I was awarded the best ProChancellor twice and the then Vice Chancellor, Professor Oyewusi Ibidapo-Obe was decorated as the best Vice Chancellor at that time. “My third objective was to raise the standard of this university to become one of the first hundred universities in the world,” Babalola said. He said in achieving this, he said he devised different measures, one of which was the introduction of a means of screening new students after they had taken the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination, an innovation he said resulted from the need to ensure that only the best and
‘What assisted me in my mission was the desire to succeed. I had no money to start a new office but I believed I would succeed. I bought a second-hand imperial manual machine typewriter for 36 pounds’
capable students were admitted. Another measure, he said was his decision to attract funds to the school, having realized that funding was critical to realizing the objective of making the university one of the best in the world. He appealed to the government to increase funding for the nation’s higher institutions. He also challenged alumni of the various universities to come to their aid by providing funds and materials. Babalola said in his days as the school’s ProChancellor, he led by example, by not only building a hall for the institution, but also encouraged his friends and clients to support the school with money. He advised the in-coming Council to be headed by former Information Minister, Professor Jerry Gana to continue his drive to uplift the institution. On government’s plan to change the school’s name, Babalola advised the new Council work towards ensuring an amicable settlement of the issue. “I will advise that the Council under Gana should invite people, who have influence in this country, to approach the president and ask for settlement out of court. “And that settlement should include that we give appropriate honour to the late M.K.O.Abiola by naming the National Assembly, the Supreme Court or even, Aso Rock after him,” he said. His suggestion on this issue drew applauds from the audience, who shouted “UNILAG forever! No to MAULAG!” On the school endowment fund that he instituted, Babalola noted that the fund was currently inadequate even though his allowances while serving as the Pro-Chancellor paid into the fund. Babalola volunteered to raise the fund from its current balance to N10million and asked the school’s Registrar to inform him about the difference so that he can provide it on time. He said N1m from the fund will be given out annually: N500,000 each to the best staff and student , who exhibit exceptional leadership traits. In the audience were Education Minister, Professor Ruqayattu Ahmed Rufai,who represented President Goodluck Jonathan; Executive Secretary, National University Commission (NUC), Professor Julius Okogie, former Works Minister, Adeseye Ogunlewe, former Petroleum Minister, Odein Ajumogobia (SAN) and Chief Folake Solanke (SAN). There were also traditional rulers, including Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi (the third), former Justice of the Court of Appeal, now Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu Gambari; Alake of Egba, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo and Osile Oke-ona Egba, Oba Adedapo Tejuosho. Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola was represented by his Special Adviser on Education, Fatai Olukoga, while Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State was represented by Mrs K. A. O. Aderye of the state’s Education Ministry. • Continued on page 35