Colleagues of the late Lara Omowunmi Gbadeyan of the Lagos State University (LASU) yesterday painted a picture of how she died at a party last Friday.
A 200 level History and International Studies student, Olugbenga Pelumi, said Lara, who was a part II student of Industrial Relations and Personnel Management (IRPM), had too much to drink at the party.
He said: “Lara, who never took alcohol before, out of probable peer influence, decided to drink. During the course of the party, she drank many cups of alcoholic spirits (Elliot and Magic Moments). When she got drunk, Lara began to misbehave and her friends took it for the normal drama inherent in drunkenness. It, however, proved to be much more than that, as she began to shout and speak languages alien to the ears. Students who were present poured water on her, she asked to urinate, which she did. After a while, blood was seen dropping from her nose and later her mouth. She was rushed to a hospital. The students who were there initially felt it was as a result of her actions under the alcohol’s influence, because during the course of her drunkenness, she threw herself on the floor and her friends tried frantically to hold her. She was later rushed to a hospital.”
Pelumi said Lara was confirmed dead at the hospital.
News of Lara’s death, he said, spread on the campus and hostels within an hour and it hit most students with a shock.
The Vice Chancellor, Prof Lanre Fagbohun, ordered that her body be taken to Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) at Ikeja for autopsy.
Some of her friends were also arrested and released by the police.
Students’ Union leaders, who visited LASUTH, were initially harassed by Lara’s parents, who demanded the prosecution of the students that went to the party with her.
Lara’s parents, it was learnt, calmed down when a doctor identified alcohol as the cause of Lara’s death.
The doctor was quoted as saying: “She took excessive alcohol, which she apparently has not taken before; this affected the flow of blood in her brain”.
Advising his peers, Pelumi said: “This is a lesson for undergraduates. Don’t do things because your friends do them. What they have survived might kill you. There is nothing particularly bad in attending parties; it’s something to be enjoyed. However, always think of your family when you take actions.”
Omope Olawunmi, a 200 level student of the same department said: “What you cannot do at home, don’t do it in school. It’s not a must you take alcohol at parties, you can take malt or yoghurt. Girls should also imbibe the culture of self discipline.”
Another 200 level student, Maryam Rasaq, said: “University students should not misuse their freedom. The fact that you are in a university does not mean you have the right to behave anyhow. We should try as much as possible to be disciplined no matter the temptations and peer influence.”
Six students of St. Marks Anglican High School and Adenle Middle School in Osogbo, Osun State capital, have appeared before an Osogbo Magistrate’s Court, for allegedly attacking their teachers and colleagues with cutlasses and clubs.
The police and men of the Department of State Service (DSS) were said to have gone to the schools on a tip off to arrest the students.
The suspects were charged with breach of peace for disturbing school activities on December 7, 2015 at St. Marks Anglican High School, Osogbo.
The accused persons whose age were said to be 18 years are: Adewunmi Olusegun, Ajibola Toheeb; Ganiyu Sodiq; Adegbite Femi; Atoyebi Nurudeen and Adepoju Yusuf.
The charge sheet reads: “That you (accused persons) and others now at large on 7th day of December, 2015 at St. Marks Anglican High School, Osogbo in the Osogbo Magisterial District did conspire together to commit misdemeanour to wit conduct likely to cause breach of the peace by disturbing the school activities.
“That you (accused persons) and others now at large at the same date, time and place aforementioned did conduct yourselves in a manner likely to cause a breach of peace by disturbing the school activities with sticks and cutlasses.”
The police prosecutor, Taiwo Adegoke, said the pupils had committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 517(d) and 249(d) of the Criminal Code Cap 34, Vol. II, Law of Osun State of Nigeria, 2003.
However, the six accused persons pleaded not guilty to the two counts pressed against them.
The defence counsel prayed that the court grant the pupils bail in a liberal term.
The presiding magistrate,Mrs Adejumoke Olowolagba, granted the six accused persons bail in the sum of N200,000 with two sureties each in the sum.
The judge, who ordered that one of the sureties must provide tax clearance certificate, adjourned the case till February 15, 2016 for mention.
Meanwhile, the Osun State government has shut down six public schools in Osogbo, the Osun State capital over rise in the violent cult clashes by the students.
In the last one week, series of violent clashes in some schools have been recorded with many teachers and students seriously affected.
It was further gathered that a member of Peace Corps posted to one of the schools was axed on the head during the attack which occurred on Tuesday in one of the schools.
It was also reported that a student identified as Toheeb ordered a female Home Economics teacher out of class.
The student, whom a reliable source said had been coming to school with a dane gun, rebuffed the members of Peace Corps asking him to behave.
The source, who preferred anonymity, disclosed that some boys suspected to be members of his cult group, stormed the school and attacked both the police and other students.
The source said: “When the police arrived, some people who were not in school uniform mobilised and launched attack on them. Two teachers, one female and male, were injured during the crisis.
“Again on Monday when we arrived school, some policemen were sighted in the school and students and people in mufti mobilised against them. But some of them were arrested by the police. This forced the closure of the schools indefinitely.”
THE management of Xtreme Concept, led by renowned radio Disc Jockey, Mayaki Peter Seyi, aka DJ PCT, is set to hold a first-of-its-kind award to celebrate the unsung DJs and music producers all over the country.
Titled the Nigerian Deejays and Music Producers Award (NDAMP), PCT, who started his career as a club DJ, said that NDAMP was initiated over a decade ago to appreciate the importance of Nigerian DJs and music producers and showcase their immense talent to the world.
“We at Xtreme Concept are trying to be front liners in the entertainment business by contributing our quota through this means. We want to celebrate all music producers and DJs on radio and television and because there is no way a hit song can be successful without them working on it and playing it. They need not only to be supported but also celebrated,” said PCT who is a guest DJ on Rock-City FM
Speaking further, he noted that the maiden edition of the award will come up at the first quarter of 2016.
At the moment, he said, individuals, government agencies and parastatals as well as corporate bodies are already keying into the project which, he adds, will shake the entertainment industry to its foundation.
The Vice Chancellor of the Federal University, Otuoke, (FUO), Professor Mobolaji Aluko, has advised vice chancellors, rectors and provosts of the nation’s institutions not to struggle with their staff over the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) training funds.
Aluko said the human capacity training funds are meant for lecturers and not for vice chancellors, rectors and provosts.
Aluko gave the advice, while speaking with newsmen who where on an assessment tour of TETFund projects in the FUO, University of Benin, Auchi Polytechnic, Ambrose Ali University, College of Education, Agbo, Delta State University, Abraka and Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun, Delta State.
His words: “We are the ones who made the decision for the CEOs of universities, polytechnics and colleges of education not to be part of funds meant to train lecturers in various institutions. I support the exclusion. I go to conference if I want. Why should I again be fighting with other staff over the TETFund money for training when I can make a decision to go to other countries for training? I do not see that as an issue.”
He said government higher institutions would have failed, if not for the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).
He said over 90 per cent projects in institutions are through the TETFund intervention funds.
His words: “When TETFund allocates money to you, it is sure that you will get it. Without TETFund, many universities and other institutions would have failed. It means they may not function again.
”Universities have been pleading to the TETFund to allow us de-batch periodically so that one project will not delay another. Give us 85% at the very beginning. The fact that they give us 50% does not mean that we give the contractors the entire 50%. We still give them based on valuation.
”Another problem is that they wouldn’t give you money, if you have not retired the initial money. This causes trouble because once the TETFund has allocated money to you, it will always be yours, but that means that there will be a lot of money in the TETFund for various institutions without access.
“TETFund has three special accounts. They are special projects account, normal intervention account and academic support account. The TETFund should give us more flexibility so that projects will move on. We are major beneficiaries of the TETFund projects that are going on. We used TETFund money to upgrade many of the buildings in the universities.”
A commercial bus driver in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, David Legbara, 37, who recently got married, woke up very early on the morning of Friday, August 7, 2015, prayed with his eight-month pregnant wife and left for work.
The driver, until his death in the afternoon of the same August 7, was plying Mile Three-Rumuokoro route on the ever-busy Ikwerre Road in the city.
Shortly after loading passengers from the popular Mile Three Park in Diobu, heading for Rumuokoro, he was stopped by policemen on stop-and-search duty at Wimpey Junction, Mile Four, Ikwerre Road around 12.20 p.m., but he was shot and killed by James Imhalu, a mobile policeman, popularly called MOPOL, whom he refused to give the demanded N100 bribe at the check point, without any provocation or altercation.
Imhalu, a police Sergeant, is attached to the Kala Divisional Police Headquarters at Rumueprikom, Port Harcourt, the hometown of the Rivers Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike.
The late Legbara, an Ogoni man from Uegwere-Boue in Khana Local Government Area of Rivers state, was the only child of his parents and the bread winner of his family, with an aged mother and if he did not bring money home daily, there would be no food for the family to eat.
After shooting and killing Legbara, some of the passengers in the bus were also hit by the killer policeman’s bullets, sustaining varying degrees of injury, but still managed to jump out of the ill-fated bus and scampered to safety, to avoid being killed by the notorious policemen to cover the evidence.
When the sad news of the bus driver’s murder got to Mile Three Park in the afternoon of August 7, his colleagues moved to Wimpey Junction and briefly protested.
The aggrieved commercial drivers, their conductors and sympathisers strategised overnight, mobilised their members from the various parks in Port Harcourt and its environs and decided to protest again on August 8. They protested naked on major roads and streets in the state capital, especially Ikwerre and Aba roads.
•The protesting drivers and Wike
Very early on the morning of August 8, the rampaging protesters started burning disused tyres at different spots on the roads and streets, particularly Ikwerre road, one of the longest roads in the Rivers state capital that leads to the Port Harcourt International Airport, thereby creating tension in the state.
Loading of intra-city and inter-state passengers was halted by the protest, as motorists, pedestrians, commuters groaning, trekking long distances and scampering to safety to avoid being hit by stray bullets, while economic and commercial activities were halted for some hours, by the ugly development, with people hurriedly shutting their business premises, in view of the horrific and warlike scene.
The fearless drivers also confronted hoodlums at Wike’s Rumueprikom, Port Harcourt in Obio/Akpor LGA, leading to a free-for-all and complete breakdown of law and order.
The spontaneous protest, sparked off by the murder, was not mostly condemned by Port Harcourt residents, who rightly saw the action of the errant policeman as unjustifiable, with the protest spilling to major highways, causing traffic dislocation and pains to members of the public.
The notorious Rumueprikom on Ikwerre Road, just before Rumuokwuta Roundabout, then became a war zone, with the protesting commercial drivers having the intention of razing the Kala Divisional Police Headquarters.
The Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Kala police headquarters promptly mobilised the policemen from the station, who confronted the protesters, leading to violence and confusion, with bullets flying and the roads and streets quickly deserted.
In spite of the policemen’s sporadic and deafening gunshots and the teargas canisters fired to disperse the angry protesters, the determined commercial drivers were undeterred and continued to march to the Kala police station, with police reinforcement immediately drafted to contain the situation, which was later brought under control.
Most of the aggrieved drivers and conductors then decided to completely strip, walking on the major roads stark naked, which was a horrible sight to behold, with women and ladies taking to their heels, to avoid any unfortunate incident.
Sergeant Imhalu has been detained, while the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Solomon Arase, immediately ordered full-scale investigation into the case.
A brother to the deceased, Gbenewii Papabari, said the late Legbara was heading for Rumuokoro in Obio/kpor Local Government after loading passengers from the popular Mile Three Park when he was stopped at the always-busy Wimpey Junction, shot and killed by the policeman, whom he refused to give N100 bribe.
Papabari said: “Police have just murdered an Ogoni man and they have murdered sleep. My brother is the breadwinner of the family. We will not accept any plea on this matter. This is a man that his mother is very old in his home, if he did not bring money, there would be no food.
“As I am speaking with you now, he got married recently and the wife is eight months pregnant. You can imagine how their condition will be. So, the entire Ogoni people will continue to protest and the drivers promised to ensure justice.”
The Public Relations Officer of the Rivers State Commercial Drivers Association, Chukwuemeka Henry Ogu, while also reacting, pointed out that their anger was that the police did not understand the gravity of the matter, by asking them to wait till August 10, 2015, before the drivers could be addressed on the matter.
Ogu noted that though police authorities had already revealed that the killer sergeant had been arrested, but insisted that the arrest of the suspect would not deter them from fighting for the death of their colleague.
•The drivers Union PRO, Comrade Ogu
The drivers’ PRO said: “The protest you are seeing here today showed that we are not happy over the death of our member. This morning, we called the drivers, ordering them that there should not be any loading. That is the reason for the suffering of passengers.
“You can see them (passengers/commuters/travellers) trekking. We do not want any driver to work, until justice is done on the matter. Nowadays in Port Harcourt, the drivers do not know where the actual bus stops are or where to pick and drop passengers. Police always chase us around. We want them (police) to tell us the hope of the unborn baby of our colleague.”
A lawyer, Gobari Deebom, stated that as an Ogoni man, he decided to take over the matter to bring justice to the victim’s family.
Deebom stressed that the killer driver would not go unpunished, having already petitioned the IGP and the Rivers Commissioner of Police, Chris Okey Ezike on the matter, while disclosing that his meeting with Ezike showed that the police would cooperate to bring justice on the matter.
The Rivers police boss, in his reaction, noted that two wrongs would not make a right, while stating that the killing of Legbara was clearly unacceptable and avoidable circumstance.
Ezike also confirmed that the sergeant, who was among the policemen on stop-and-search duty at Wimpey Junction, had been arrested, according to him, having shot and killed the bus driver.
Rivers police commissioner said: “On 7th of August, 2015 at about 12.20hrs at Wimpey Junction, Ikwerre Road, Port Harcourt, a policeman on stop-and-search duty shot and killed one David Legbara, who was a bus driver.
•The angry drivers
“This action sparked off spontaneous protest from drivers, sympathisers and indeed members of the public, who rightly saw the action of the policeman as unjustifiable. The protest spilled to major highways and caused traffic disruption and pains to members of the public.
“The policeman was promptly disarmed, arrested and detained, while I ordered full scale investigation into the circumstances and ramifications of this painful incident.
“I sympathise and condole with the family of the deceased on the loss of their loved one. I condemn in unmistakable terms, the action of the policeman, as preliminary facts revealed his action was clearly avoidable. However, I shall await the outcome of full investigation as already ordered, before any conclusive action is taken.
“The Inspector-General of Police is fully briefed, but he is saddened by the action of the policeman and has ordered that he (sergeant) be charged to court on conclusion of investigation. The protests on Friday and Saturday (August 7 and 8) appear to have been hijacked by hoodlums and cultists, as entreaties for peace fell on deaf ears.
“Two wrongs cannot make a right. I therefore appeal to the deceased family, the National Union of Road Transport Workers, Drivers’ Union, and indeed parents and guardians to calm frayed nerves and allow peace to reign. We shall ensure that justice is done to this matter.”
The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) also condemned “in strong terms” the unjustified and gruesome murder of the Ogoni (Legbara) by Imhalu and demanded his immediate prosecution and payment of adequate compensation from the police to the family of the deceased.
MOSOP, through its President, Legborsi Saro Pyagbara, also warned that should nothing be done within fourteen days, the Ogoni people would have no choice, but to peacefully and non-violently protest the heinous killing, which was described as condemnable.The umbrella organisation of the Ogoni people said: “It is our position that the dastardly act has gone far beyond mere condemnation by the police hierarchy and it must thus match its public reaction with visibly genuine action.
“The Ogoni people, we must say, are keenly watching and will accept nothing less than justice, not only being done, but also seen to be done on time.
“The condition under which Mr. Legbara was killed is reminiscent of past situations, wherein a huge number of Ogoni natives had been gruesomely murdered over the years by the police over the latter’s attempts at extorting money from our people. Reports available to MOSOP have shown that the issue occasioning this latest death was extortion-related, but seemingly masked otherwise.
“MOSOP is deeply concerned at the excessive use of force by the policeman on the victim, in a matter eyewitnesses said was not corresponding to such degree of violent response. It is MOSOP’s position that even if the deceased had committed any offence; Sergeant Imhalu had no right to have taken his life.
“As a policeman of his rank (sergeant), he could not have feigned ignorance of the fact that he was prohibited by law and good conscience from denying the deceased his inalienable right to life, hence we believe the policeman’s killing of the Ogoni was deliberate. After all, there were acceptable options available to him.”
MOSOP also stated that the violent approaches with which most policemen pursue the issue of extortion to the detriment of civilised policing had become a major source of concern and an appalling embarrassment to the people.
The umbrella organisation of the Ogoni people stressed that the tendency of extortion by policemen had occasioned erosion of confidence and cooperation with the police by the general public, while calling for the comprehensive reform of the Nigeria police.
Governor Nyesom Wike, according to his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Opunabo Inko-Tariah, visited Wimpey Junction and calmed the protesting crowd of commercial bus drivers, on the killing of their colleague by a trigger-happy police man and promised to bring the culprit to book.
Wike said: “It is because I saw you (protesting bus drivers) gathered here, that is why I stopped. I will not support a bad thing. I must find out the policeman that committed this murder and he must be brought to book.
“I advise you all not to take the law into your own hands. I have called the Commissioner of Police and he must explain to me why one of his men would kill an innocent person. Please calm down.”
Wike also stated that burning of disused tyres at different spots on Ikwerre road would not bring back the dead driver, while admonishing the crowd to disperse, claiming that their presence might aggravate the situation.
The question remains: who killed Citizen Legbara? Until it is answered, the life of a Nigerian appears to mean nothing.
• From left: Aleyeh, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, Abdullahi Ibrahim, Idornigie and Prof. Mohammed Mustapha Akanbi.
For the head, Department of Commercial Law, Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS), Prof. Paul Idornigie, it was indeed a day of joy and double celebration. His friends, relations and professional colleagues poured encomiums on him as he presented his book: Commercial Arbitration Law and Practice in Nigeria.
For them, Prof. Idornigie is a symbol hard work, of which his academic works are an eloquent testimony.
No wonder he was recently nominated for the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).
The event was chaired by the former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abdullahi Ibrahim, with Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President Mr. Augustine Alegeh (SAN) as presenter.
Prof. Nelson Ochekpe who represented the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Jos, Prof. Hayward Babale Mafuyai said: “It gives us joy at the University of Jos whenever our alumnus extends the frontiers of learning in his/her field of specialisation.
“As fellow labourers in the vineyard of academics, I urge you not to relent in your efforts as we strive together in building the academic community of our dreams where learning and quality academic researches are not only entrenched but nurtured.
“I must applaud the author for publishing a book on this somewhat new area of jurisprudence. The world is fast changing from the adversarial mode of dispute settlement and leaning more towards arbitration.
“It, therefore, offers insight into an alternative dispute resolution mechanism whereby parties explore settlement of their grievances in a non-adversarial environment.”
Also at the event were Kwara State House of Assembly Speaker Dr. Ali Ahmad; NIALS Director-General Prof. Deji Adekunle; Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) Dr Sam Amadi; Dean, Faculty of Law, University of Jos, Prof Dakas C.J Dakas (SAN); Chief Joe-Kyari Gadzama (SAN); chair, NBA Abuja Branch Mr Agada Elachi, among others.
The Faculty of Law, University of Lagos (UNILAG) has held a valedictory in honour of the late Prof. Michael Iyiola Jegede(SAN), who was its Dean from 1976 to 1980, reports ADEBISI ONANUGA.
Members of the legal profession, including Professors of Law, Senior Advocates of Nigeria(SANs), fromer students and the university community, gathered in Lagos last week at a valedictory, at the main hall of the Faculty of Law, University of Lagos (UNILAG), Akoka, to honour a late legal icon and the fourth Dean of the Faculty of the university, Prof. Michael Iyiola Jegede.
Those at the event included the Deputy Governor, Osun State, Prof. Laoye Tomori; former Deputy Governor, Delta State, Prof. Amos Utuama; former Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Odein Ajumogobia; UNILAG Vice Chancellor (VC), Prof. Rahman Bello; Deputy Vice Chancellor (DVC) Academics, Prof. Jide Alo; his Management Service counterpart, Prof. Duro Oni; the Dean of the Law Faculty, Prof. Akin Ibidapo-Obe; Sub-Dean, Dr. Kemi Adekile; the Registrar, Dr. Folashade Ipaye; Bursar, Lateef Odekunle; Prof. Akin Oyebode; Prof. Taiwo Osipitan; Prof. C.O. Olawoye; Prof. C. K. Agomo; Prof. Ayo Ogunye; Prof. Oyelowo Oyewo; former Dean, Faculty of Law, University of Ibadan, Dr. Oluyemisi Bamgbose; Dr. Iyabo Ogunniran and Wahab Shittu.
• Wife of Prof. Jegede Oluremi flanked by her children Damilola (left), Ibilola; and Modeleola.
Also, at the session were members of the late law icon immediate family, including his wife, Oluremi and children, Damilola, Modeleola, Ibilola and Oluseye.
Bello, in a tribute, described the late Jegede as a great pioneering intellectual and towering legal icon who has left his giant footprints in the sands of time. Quoting from the words of the Chief Judge of Enugu State, Justice Innocent Umezulike, the VC said: “He was a university teacher par excellence. He taught Equity anf Trusts with uncommon and ingenious clarity. He was a role model in academic leadership and great motivator of young lecturers and subordinates. He led by power of examples.”
Ibidapo-Obe, who gave a “hearsay evidence” of his knowledge of the erudite professor of law, said the faculty benefited immensely from his wealth of knowledge. He described the late Jegede as a titan in the legal profession during his life time who had an illustrious and unique career in the department.
“Counting his deanship in acting capacities, he occupied the post for seven years at various times – acting dean after Justice Elias for two years (1972 – 1974), acting dean (October 1975 – May 1976) after Prof. Kasumu was appointed Attorney-General of Lagos State and as substantive Dean from 1976 to 1980”, emphasising that no one had occupied the position of Dean for a longer period.
He also noted that as Dean of the faculty, Jegede instituted the departmentalisation of the faculty, expanded the staff profile and of the faculty and started the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS) during his tenure as dean and became its first de facto Director-General from 1975 to 1978.
Prof. Taiwo Osipitan said his was a “first-hand evidence” of his relationship with Jegede. He said his admission into the faculty paved the way for his almost 40 years of uninterrupted association, with Jegede. He said his set, Class of 1977-80, matriculated and graduated during his tenure as Dean, noting that they were his last graduating set as Dean of Law.
‘’In Prof, we found a teacher, counsellor, friend and mentor. He encouraged some of his students to seriously consider lecturing in the Faculty of Law, UNILAG. He was never tired of recommending his deserving students for postgraduate admission in the four colleges of University of London. Prof followed up on his students in the various colleges of University of London, whenever he was in London. The meeting point, was the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, Russel Square in London. Between 1979 and 1982, Prof. embarked on aggressive recruitment of young and vibrant Lecturers to the Faculty.”
He recalled that the first trial he conducted, was a case in which Jegede was a party. “ It was my privilege to lead Prof in evidence. He was a confident and delightful witness. The trips by road with Prof. to Ilorin, Kwara State, to attend Court Proceedings in the case were exciting and devoid of stress,” he said.
He also recalled that aside from pioneering departmentalisation of the faculty into four departments in 1978 during Jegede’s tenure, namely, departments of Commercial and Industrial Law, Jurisprudence and International Law, Private and Property Law and Public Law, he said many faculties of Law in universities have copied and are still copying, the departmental arrangement introduced by Prof. Jegede. ”Seven Professors of Law were appointed in the Faculty in 1980 during his tenure as Dean of Law.
University of Lagos is yet to witness such harvest of Professors of Law in one year. The first two students to be awarded 1st Class degrees in Law by University of Lagos (established in 1962), emerged in 1978 and 1980 respectively, when Prof was Dean of Law”, he recalled.
Former Dean, Faculty of Law, University of Ibadan (UI), Dr. Oluyemisi Bamgbose, said hers was neither “hearsay evidence” nor “first-hand evidence” but ”historical evidence”.
Bamgbose recalled that when in 1981 the UI authorities wanted to set up the Law Faculty, after its searches, the lot fell on Jegede. Bamgbose, who was a 200 level student in the Faculty of Law, UNILAG in 1981, when Jegede was setting up the Law Faculty in UI, said she later became Dean of the faculty 27 years later. Bamgbose testified that the late Professor “built the Faculty of Law, UI, on a solid rock and solid foundation. Our Law Faculty would not have been what it is today but for a law structural engineer in the person of Prof. Jegede”.
Olawoye said the late Jegede was close to him and had a very good relationship. He said his notes to students were words of encouragement, stressing that he benefited from it immensely.
“He was a big brother, colleague, friend and many of his students became his personal friends and a great man in many respect,” he said.
Oyebode said the late Jegede was a consummate teacher of equity and trust. He recalled: “He was a good mentor who exuded such camaraderie to younger ones like us.”
Oyebode also recalled that the late Jegede was one of the founding fathers of Academic Staff Union Universities (ASUU) when it was known as Association of University Teachers of Nigeria.
“He was in a class of his own and we don’t have his type again,” he added. Former Minister, External Affairs, Odein Ajumogobia, who spoke on behalf of his former students, said: “Obviously, all of us – Professor Jegede’s former students – generations of now accomplished professors and scholars; private practitioners; judges in the highest court of the land and pre eminent public servants, will have warm personal recollections of our former dean in this foremost law faculty, that will be as varied, as they are inspiring.
“Suffice it to recall how easy it was to love and admire Professor Jegede in his trademark French suits, with his athletic gait and generous smile. He was conscientious and cared deeply for us his students and about improving our law faculty. He was always available, extremely patient and courteous to all, even to the least of us academic, non academic staff and students alike.
emic experience of his tutorship, and helicit our untapped potential, was his divine calling for which he sought neither acknowledgement nor reward.
“As a law teacher, and an elegant and persuasive writer, Professor Jegede was perhaps best known as an unrivalled expert in property law and a first rate scholar in the related subject of equity & trusts. His famous book “Principles of Equity” which was published a year after he left the deanship in 1980, and Trusts, Bankruptcy and Administration of Estates, quickly became standard works on the subjects”, Ajumogobia added.
Chief of Army Staff Lt.-Gen. Kenneth Minimah has called on soldiers fighting Boko Haram insurgents to win the war as a mark of honour for their fallen colleagues.
Lt.-Gen. Minimah spoke to soldiers at the cemetery of the fallen heroes in the war against insurgents during a wreath-laying to mark this year’s Army Day celebration in Maiduguri.
He said: “The only way to honour our fallen officers and men is to ensure that this war is won and I promise that we will win.”
To the families of the dead soldiers, he said: “I will also want to assure the families of departed colleagues that they will not be forgotten. All statutory requirements and privileges for children and families they left behind would be honoured and be executed.
“The Army is the strength of any nation and it is used to rate a nation in the international arena.
“I want to thank the Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima for his continued support to the Nigeria Army in pursuance of ‘Operation Zaman Lafiya’ and for also hosting the Nigeria Army Day celebration. This has come with a cost and logistics, which the governor has undertaken.”
Acknowledging the solemnity of the ceremony, the Army chief said: ”It is a sad ceremony, but it is also a ceremony that we must undertake for we have to honour the dead. Nigeria Army Day Celebration as it is for the living, it is also for the dead; and today we are honouring the dead.”
Shettima, who was among the dignitaries at the ceremony, hailed the Army for keeping Maiduguri safe.
“Believe me, at the risk of exaggerating issues, Maiduguri is as secured as Lagos or Kaduna or any other city in this country. They all face the same challenges that Maiduguri is facing and we want to pay tribute to the gallant officers and men of the Nigeria Army, who have laid down their lives for this country to remain one indivisible entity.
“Hundreds of our soldiers have died in this counter-insurgency war. We have to respect our fallen soldiers and pray for the repose of their souls. But most importantly, we have to make their families realise that they did not die in vain.
“This singular act of coming down to Maiduguri to celebrate the Army Day and coming to identify with us shall be written in gold.
“There is psychology in warfare and the fact that the top hierarchy of the Army are here in Maiduguri convey a lot of message to the soldiers and to the rest of the world that Maiduguri is safe, accessible and secured,” the governor said.
He hailed the military for respecting the fundamental human rights of the suspects arrested during the battle against the insurgents.
Medals were awarded to injured soldiers and those that were killed in the battle against the insurgents were also posthumously recognised with medals for their gallantry.
But Maiduguri was locked down for the celebration.
The Army authorities, it was learnt, decided to mark the day in Maiduguri to boost the morale of troops fighting the insurgency.
Many residents of the metropolis were turned away by security agents as they try to access some roads to their offices.
Most of the major roads in the city were either barricaded by the military or reduced to one lane, which caused a gridlock.
Lt.-Gen. Minimah and other top Army chiefs arrived in Maiduguri on Sunday to participate in the grand finale of the celebration.
The Chairman of the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management, the worldwide body of public relations institutes and associations, Prof Anne Gregory, has praised the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) President, Dr Rotimi Oladele, for his support for the global body.
Quoting a letter from Gregory, a statement by the Coordinator of International Collaboration of the NIPR, Mr Kunle Ogedengbe, said she thanked Oladele for the support of the NIPR.
Gregory said: “I’m writing to thank you personally for your continual membership and support for the Global Alliance. Our continued alliance presents a unique opportunity for public relations and communication professionals to think, speak and act together to raise the status of our global profession.”
“Last year has been exciting. We have continued to build a vibrant, global professional community more able to realise its potential and in a stronger position to achieve the recognition it deserves.”
While emphasising that more of these could not have been done without the support of the NIPR, she underlined the success of last year’s World Public Relations Forum in Madrid, Spain where Oladele chaired one of the sessions.
Gregory said: “It was wonderful to see your association represented among those delegates” of 750 from 65 countries in Madrid.
She thanked Oladele for being in Madrid and underlined the need for public relations practitioners to be leaders not just in building communicative organisations but also in contributing to society as the hallmark of the Madrid Forum with the theme: Communication with Conscience.
The Global Alliance, Gregory said, the organisation initiated several projects last year, adding that these projects would be moved forward this year.
The Global Credential is an international team of committed volunteers comparing professional qualifications and educational standards from around the world including Nigeria; Global GAP Survey, a comprehensive study on how public relations and communication management are evolving in different parts of the world including Nigeria; and The Association Leaders’ Workshop where different public relations institutes in the world including Nigeria meet and share knowledge for the growth and development of the profession with the next meeting being Milan, Italy this June.
Gregory said NIPR made these global activities possible, adding that Nigerians membership of the Global Alliance by is vital to the advancement of public relations globally.
Members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) of Adekunle Ajasin University Akungba Akoko (AAUA) chapter, said they would continue to mourn the death of its former President, Prof Festus Iyayi.
According to its Chairman, Dr Busuyi Mekusi, the institution marked the one year anniversary of the renowned academic because of his pragmatism and leadership qualities during his life time that elevated ASUU.
It would be recalled that the late ASUU leader died in November last year, in a motor accident on his way to Kano to participate in the National Congress of the Union as part of the efforts to resolve the then crisis between the union and the Federal Government.
Mekusi said the union would continue to treasure the beliefs the deceased nurtured when he was alive.
It noted that even though a year is gone since the ASUU leader lost his life in the cause of the struggle; members of the union are still missing him.
His words: “We remember today our dogged comrade who died due to the recklessness in our country a year ago. While we still await the attainment of justice in this regard, we will continue to treasure the seed of ideology he nurtured.
“As we mark the first anniversary of his death, we hope our leaders will be more committed to quality of education in the country, as all lovers of democratic initiatives sustain the quest to make education accessible to all.”
He urged government at all levels to be more committed towards promotion of education in the country, adding that it is a cause the late Iyayi died for.
The ASUU Chairman said public lectures and other programmes were organised by the union to mark the first anniversary of Iyayi’s death.
