When Aare Afe Babalola marked his 60th anniversary at the Bar yesterday in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, Mr Femi Falana, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Matthew Kukah, the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto were present. The duo seized the opportunity of the occasion to harp on the vice of corruption, ensuring equity and justice in Nigeria and what President Bola Tinubu could do about them.
Falana said the nation was yet to be free from the vice grips of sleaze because many tainted politicians “are still parading the corridors of power.” According to him: “Let’s the President lead an anti-corruption crusade, as right now we are in trouble as a country.
“Let’s go back to the era where people who have being involved in corruption and looting cannot take part in the decision-making process of the country”.
On the issue of religious intollerence, Falana submitted:“In places where there are mosques but not church, let the Christians go to court as it is an act of discrimination,” he said.
On the other hand, Kukah, lamented that Nigeria “witnessed the ugliest phase of corruption” President Muhammadu Buhari.
The popular cleric spoke in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, during a lecture he delivered at the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the call to bar of the founder of Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, Aare Afe Babalola (SAN).
The lecture wa titled, ‘The future of constitutional democracy in Nigeria: Imperative of a new constitutional order’.
Kukah said, “We have seen the worst phase of corruption in Nigeria. Femi Falana, my friend here, will speak about that because he has published a series of articles talking about what happened under the Buhari administration.
“They were not the ones who caused corruption but I think in the last administration, we saw the ugliest phase of corruption whether in moral terms, financial terms, and other terms,” he said.
In his lecture, as Leadership reported, Kukah made a case for men of integrity in the judiciary particularly at the Supreme Court.
TheNCatholic Bishop, who called on the Federal Government to avoid sentiments in the process of the country’s democratic journey, said upholding the provisions of democracy required selfless service which should not be sentimentally driven to foster development.
He frowned at leaders, who limited development to their hometowns, saying, “This does not project democracy. This does not speak well of our democracy.
“Nigeria needs to grow democratically and developed politically. Every federal institution must reflect what Nigeria should reflect all over the country. The country should stop reinforcing inequality. There must be sanctions and consequences for those who go against our democracy and the constitution of the land for us to have a better society.”