From Priscilla Ofunre, Ado-Ekiti
The senator representing Ekiti Central Senatorial District and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, has charged universities and top Nigerian Lawyers to pay high premium focus on production of lawyers that are sound morally and academically .
Bamidele said this remains the best way to help the Nigerian Bar Association(NBA) build a strong, virile and sustainable legal system that can favorably deepen the Rule of Law.
Bamidele said this in a statement made available to journalists in Ado-Ekiti on Sunday, in response to his appointment as a member of the prestigious Body of Benchers in Nigeria.
The Senator averred that good legal and judicial systems are best condiments for steady growth and development of democracy, saying having lawyers that cherish dignity and sincerity, would help in building a democratic culture that can drive development in all facets.
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Bamidele assured that his membership of the prestigious body will be brought to bare in the operation of the judiciary Commmittee of the Senate, which he said will in turn fortify lawmakers’ knowledge of legislation and imbue them with requisite knowledge on how best to run the country, in tandem with the constitution.
“Legal and judicial systems are like siamese twins. They co-exists and help each other in a mutual way. No democracy can grow where the two are bastardised and egregiously compromised .
“That is why it is imperative and instructive to lay a rocky foundation for our legal system by as a matter of necessity ensure that all legal institutions, ranging from universities to law schools and chambers where young lawyers observe pupilage to harp on intellectual broadness and dignity to practise the profession.
“We need strong legal and judicial systems to ensure that rights and freedom of Nigerian citizens are protected, to safeguard the dignity of the populace and to confine leaders to lead according to the dictate of the laws without derailment or despotism”, he said.
With the appointment, Bamidele promised to champion various judicial reforms through the instrumentality of the Senate to help grow the nation’s democracy and align Nigeria with other parts of the world where systems dictate the pace and not few cliques.
Nigerian Body of Benchers, is a professional body concerned with the admission of prospective students into the Nigerian Law School, which also regulates the call of graduates of Law School to the Nigerian Bar as well as the regulation of the legal profession in Nigeria.
The body, in a letter dated October 28, 2019 and signed by its Secretary, Mrs H.A. Haliru, acknowledged the fact that Bamidele has paid his dues as a seasoned legal practitioner and staunch advocate of the Rule of Law in Nigeria.