Human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) and a judge of Lagos State High Court, Justice Adewale Abiru, have called for reform of the social order in the country as well as return of the moral values which abhors corruption and sharp practices.
The two eminent Nigerians spoke in Lagos at the 4th edition of the Gani Fawehinmi Impact and Integrity Awards organised by Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA) with the support of Mac Arthur Foundation, blaming the relegation of moral values and failure of the society to play it’s role as being responsible for corruption and increasing rate of murder cases, among others in Nigeria.
Twelve distinguished personalities across Nigeria and the Diaspora were honoured, including son of late Gani Fawehinmi, Mohammed Fawehinmi; Olanrewaju Fasasi (Sound Sultan) and Dr. Ayotunde Alao; Channels TV Judiciary correspondence, Mrs Shola Soyele, and Mr Emmanuel Eluu, a staff of Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited and driver at Muritala Muhammed Airport, who found and returned $40,000 belonging to a passenger, following a five-month public process of nominations, shortlisting and voting.
Speaking as the keynote speaker, Justice Abiru, who spoke on the topic: “Towards ensuring a developed just society: The role of transparency, accountability and integrity in public office,” noted that Nigeria failed to progress because the moral values which were guiding principles to living a virtuous life had been jettisoned.
The jurist stressed that it was hypocritical to see public office holders hammering on integrity, transparency, declaring that moral values had been corrupted and, therefore, nothing would change no matter the number of reforms done in the public sector.
“The truth is that we presently have dysfunctional public service that is bastardized by partisanship, greed, corruption, tribalism, nepotism and other primordial considerations. Our public service is inefficient with massive capacity collapse which is being populated by unqualified and incompetent people,” Abiru said.
According to him, the personnel has negative or poor attitude to work, saying they were generally ineffective, while public service hardly operated under integrity and meritocracy.
Corroborating the view of the judge, Mr. Falana said unless there is a revolution on how to bring back the society where the people and the society are responsible and responsive, the nation cannot progress.
The Lagos lawyer noted that it was unthinkable for a university graduate in the 70s and 80s to think of crime because the society took care of them, saying that the reverse was the case now as the society had turned against the people now, a situation he said encouraged crime and corruption.
“It is unthinkable for a graduate that left school in the 70s and 80s to think of crime, the society took care of us. The society has turned against our people and that promotes criminality,” Mr. Falana said.
Speaking further, Falana equally recalled the high profile cases involving the likes of Oredein and Ejigbadero, among others in which justice was promptly delivered, saying such was now absent in the country, with notable Nigerians now getting away with crimes and criminality.
“Here (Nigeria) you deal with the law if you are higher. That does not happen in the Western World, but in Nigeria,” he said.
Chairman of HEDA Resource Centre, Mr. Olanrewaju Suraju, said the overall objective of the Awards was to take the fight against corruption beyond the usual naming and shaming, and to step outside the box by ensuring that those who notwithstanding the attractiveness of corruption, bribery and other forms of sharp practices had taken to a life of transparency, honesty and integrity were identified, duly recognized and honoured.
He said this would serve as a form of inspiration for greater number of people to follow, adding: “This is why HEDA, with the Support of MacArthur Foundation, launched the GFIIA in 2018 to recognise these forthright individuals.”
The Outstanding Integrity Award was won by Mr. Olasupo Abideen Openyemi, an Alumnus of Harvard Business School, United States of America. The runners up are: Dr Tonye Clinton-Jaja, former Chairman of the Governing Board of the Nigerian Copyright Commission and Acting Head, Bills and Legislative Drafting Division of the National Institute for Legislative Studies; as well as Mr Molik Sherifdeen, a member of the Junior Chamber International (JCI).
The Valuable Whistle-Blower Award was won by Mr Paul Alaba Lawani, a winner of the Global Town Crier Media Award; while the runners up are: Mr Akinyemi Ojo Adebayo, Chair of the Board of Trustee, International Organisation for Human Rights Development and Environment, Nigeria; and Mr Tukur Muazu.
“The Outstanding Impact Award was won by Mr Baba Muhammad Dzukogi, former National Secretary of the Association of Nigerian Authors; while the runners up are Ambassador Chineke Cajethan Goodluck, founder of the United Organisation for Education and Sports Development; and Professor Nwaocha Ogechukwu, a Professor of Religious Studies and 2022 Nominee for Nobel Peace Prize.
The Nigerians in Diaspora Award was won by Ms Onuike Ifeoma Chinenye, a passionate girls’ rights activist who has also displayed the attributes of distinction when she graduated as the best student and valedictorian in the Girne American University securing a first class degree in law and repeated the same feat in her Master’s degree.
Other prominent personalities at the Awards ceremony include members of the Board of the Award Comrade Achike Chude, Barrister Nurudeen Ogbara and Mr. Kunle Adegoke, SAN.
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