‘Nigerians should not write Judiciary off yet’
BY AIDOGHIE PAULINUS
Remember Ameh Ebute, the Third Republic Senate President, then what comes to mind is an accomplished politician. But beneath his political sagacity is a legal mind guided by professionalism and high integrity. In this encounter in Abuja, the Benue State-born legal luminary opened up on why he is yet to be conferred with the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) title in spite of his meritorious years of practice. According to Ebute, “ given the way the Senior Advocate honour is being awarded, I didn’t want to be part of that. For me, the honour can be delayed because I want to earn mine on merit. I want to be qualified really before I apply. Many people had gone through the back door and succeeded. ”
Ebute also spoke on the recent developments in the judiciary, submitting that in spite of the goings-on in the temple of justice, the court remainsl the last hope of the common man.
What have you been doing since you left as Senate president?
I have been into legal practice. I’ve been trying to get to the peak of legal practice in Nigeria. The only thing is that unlike what is happening nowadays, the way the Senior Advocate status is being conferred has changed. I didn’t want to be part of that. That is why the conferment of SAN on me is delayed. I want to really qualify for it before I apply. But many people went through the back door and succeeded.
Why did you take to law?
Oh my God! As you can see from my Curriculum Vitae (CV), I was initially a policeman. After leaving primary school, I was a policeman which somehow is connected with law. I did my studies at home with the private correspondence college. That was where I developed interest in law and of course, since I didn’t have the opportunity of seeing the four walls of the secondary school, I studied at home to pass my West Africa School Certificate (WASC) in 1967. I read English Language, Religious Knowledge, Economics, Government and so on. I couldn’t have done sciences even though I was good at what was then called Arithmetic. The subjects that I studied at the secondary school level were mainly arts subjects and the work I started with, had to do with the enforcement of the law. That was where I developed interest and when I was admitted into Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), I studied law and I graduated in 1974.
Who are your role models in the legal profession?
Kehinde Sofola, G.O.K Ajayi and F.R.A Williams.
What has being a lawyer brought to you?
It has brought so many things to me. It has brought me independence which is very, very important. As a lawyer, members of the public fear you if you are a good lawyer. people will not tamper with your rights, they will never tamper with anything that belongs to you and they will not trouble you.
Have you ever had any regret being a lawyer?
I have never and I will never. Even in my grave, I’ll never regret being a lawyer. I have always thanked God for making me a lawyer which I have been in Law practice for the past 40 or 41 years, except that my practice was punctuated by my involvement in politics.
Have you ever been jittery in court, may be, for handling difficult cases?
No! Why? I always respect the judges before whom I appear. If you keep to the ethics of the profession by not being nasty to the judges, he will not threaten you with arrest or contempt of court. So, I have never had any cause to tremble in court.
What has been your most embarrassing moment or worst day in court?
The worst day in court is anyday a case that you are supposed to win and you knew you were going to win and the facts were in your favour, but surprisingly, you lose the case. That could spring surprises to a lawyer.
What has been your finest moment in court?
Finest moments in courts are the days that I win my cases. Not only one moment. Several occasions! When a lawyer wins his case, he is elated and he is happy. Your finest moment in court is when you win your case.
Which are the most challenging cases you have handled?
Before I delved into politics, I used to appear in the Court of Appeal in Kaduna. At that time, we had only one Court of Appeal in the whole of Northern region in the seventies. I handled several landmark cases like that of my friend, Senator U.J. Yohanna.
What was the case all about?
It was defamation of character case. I also handled libel case between Professor Madubuike and Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu and the case was later settled out of court. There are many criminal cases I cannot remember now.
What is your view about legal practice in Nigeria?
I look at legal practice from two points of view. That is, from my personal and the point of view of the majority. From my personal point of view, I see legal profession as a very interesting one such that when I was appointed a magistrate in 1976, and after a few months on the lower bench as it was called, I decided to quit for private legal practice. There is a lot to enjoy as a legal practitioner: your freedom, any effort you make to succeed, you succeed and have the benefit to yourself. But you have to work hard. Private practice keeps you on your toes. You can’t afford to sleep all day if you want to be a good lawyer. So, from that point of view, I enjoy the legal practice and I consider it a honourable profession.
From the general point of view, it depends on how you look at it. In spite of all that is happening today, I don’t think there are many professions that should be preferred to the legal practice, not only in Nigeria, but the world as a whole.
What do you think are the opinions of Nigerians about lawyers?
It depends on individual lawyers. That was why I said in spite of what is happening, the opinion of the Nigerian public on lawyers should be a mixed one depending on which lawyer they come in contact with. If they come in contact with a lawyer with integrity, they will enjoy it and they won’t have anything bad to say about legal practice. But if they come in touch with a fraudulent lawyer like the ones that are being accused of behaving ignobly, their opinions of the legal practice will be negative.
The courts are usually said to be the last hope of the common man. How true is this statement in the prevailing circumstance?
The judiciary is like any other society in the country. There must be bad eggs. The fact that there are few bad eggs in the judiciary does not mean that the entire judiciary is corrupt. Majority of judges are above board. The fact that few have been accused of corruption does not mean that Nigerians should no longer have confidence in the judiciary. I appeal to Nigerians that in spite of what is happening, the judiciary is still the only hope of the common man.
What is your take on lawyers being accused of corrupting judges?
The stage at which the cases are, one cannot express an opinion yet. We lawyers term something as allegation. Allegations are being made and until such allegations are proved and people are convicted, I wouldn’t express any opinion because I belong to the profession. I don’t want to jump into conclusions. But if the allegations are true, then it is unfortunate that people are behaving that way.
Any hope for the Nigerian judiciary?
My advice, not only to the judiciary, but to Nigerians is that at the end of the trial of those who soiled their hands, Nigerians should repose full confidence in the judiciary. There is no way out and you cannot use few examples to generalize that the judiciary is entirely corrupt.
That is my advice. I advise those judges that have maintained their integrity to continue to maintain their integrity in the belief that their reward is in heaven. Whether they are adequately rewarded here or not, they should do their work according to the law and not by giving the impression that justice is for sale and they should rely entirely on the facts of the case before them and give judgment.