Lawyers disagree with former CJ over conferment of national honour on Abiola

Lawyers disagree with former CJ over conferment of national honour on Abiola

Senior lawyers on Thursday disagreed with a former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Alfa Belgore, that President Muhammadu Buhari broke the law by awarding Nigeria’s highest national honour to the late Chief Moshood Abiola and late Chief Gani Fawehinmi (SAN).

The Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC), Prof. Itse Sagay (SAN), Professor of International Law at the University of Lagos, Prof. Akin Oyebode, and a former National Secretary of Labour Party, Kayode Ajulo said that the awards were in order.

President Buhari on Wednesday evening conferred on Abiola, the acclaimed winner of June 12, 1993 presidential election, the Grand Commander of the Federal Republic (GCFR).

Fawehinmi, a human rights advocate and icon of the June 12 struggle, who died in 2009, was also posthumously conferred with the Grand Commander of Niger (GCON).

The President also declared June 12 as Democracy Day.

But Justice Belgore, who was the CJN from 2006 to 2007, had said the national honours could not be awarded posthumously.

According to him, under the 1964 National Honours Act, only soldiers or other servicemen could be awarded posthumous medals for their bravery.

But Sagay said although he had not read the particular provision cited by the ex CJN, he urged Nigerians to “look at the big picture.”

He said: “Was there injustice done on June 12? Yes, to both Nigerians and Abiola, a very great injustice which almost destroyed this country. Is it therefore good that this injustice should be removed and justice done? The answer is yes. Has what Buhari done, not restored justice to the situation and poured balm into the hearts of those who were hurt? The answer is yes.

“So, why should we be looking for legal arguments to overturn justice that has been done? These are some of the things that I cannot understand about Nigerians.”

He implored critics to stop pouring “cold water on the happiness of the people.

They want to pour cold water on it with very technical, narrow-minded and, I may even say evil arguments.

“Some people are even saying the awards were conferred with a political motive. Again, I ask, what is achieved by the conferment of the awards, is it a positive or negative thing? Is the act something to be happy about? Is it something that resolves a major problem and brings relief to the country? The answer is yes.

“So, what does it matter, even if there’s a political motive?

According to Sagay, the awards were “the right thing to do, it’s a big solution to a long-standing problem that has been festering. It brings relief and joy to the country. I think Buhari needs to be congratulated heartily and I so congratulate him.”

Oyebode observed that the conferment of the awards on Abiola and Gani were special cases.

He cautioned Nigerians against trying to thwart that honour through legalism.

Oyebode said: “We should be clear that the awards are honorific in nature and should not be hamstrung by legal gymnastics. Agreed, awards are usually for the living but that Abiola case is a special one which should not be vitiated by crass legalism, more so as the enabling Act grants the President as the awarding authority a wide discretion on the matter.”