This Day
By Olanrewaju A. Fagbohun
I. Introduction
When I received the summons couched in the tone of an invitation to deliver the Keynote Address at the Wole Olanipekun & Co (WOC) Justice Summit 2021 on the topic: “Implementing Justice Sector Reforms in Nigeria: Connecting the Disconnect”, I saw it as a call to duty. When the Managing Partner, Bode Olanipekun, SAN, further mentioned to me that one of the grounds for the summons is to commemorate the 70th birthday of a great Statesman in the person of the Founder of WOC, Chief Wole Olanipekun, OFR, SAN, LLD, it became all the more exciting for me. I am deeply honoured to appear here in answer to the summons.
Chief Wole Olanipekun without doubt is a truly outstanding Nigerian. The characteristics that have defined your fame and spread your reputation over the years are carved in personal courage, hard work, determination, confidence, straight and forthright approach to issues, quick wit, matchless grit, lucidity of thought and expression, practical wisdom and a love for humanity. As an intellectual powerhouse, you have put your life and soul into almost all that you have done and continue to do. You have made many marks both within and outside the legal profession and have become an inspiration to so many. You are not just a thoroughbred pre-eminent practitioner; you are indeed a man of outstanding eminence. You are the embodiment of the latin maxim “mens sana incopore sano”, a sound mind in a sound body. Our prayer is that your legacy will continue to endure.
In dealing with the topic of this year’s summit, I asked myself what exactly is the intent of the organizers? The first edition of the WOC Summit at which Professor Fidelis Oditah, QC SAN delivered the keynote on “Developing An Institutional Concept of Justice in Nigeria” focused on how to build institutional models that would endure and deliver value. Other great minds led by the Vice – President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency, Prof Yemi Osinbajo GCON, SAN have equally given serious analytical considerations to critical issues such as: the need for structural and philosophical changes in the administration of justice; responsiveness of our justice system to the ends of social justice; judicial models that assure meritorious appointment of judicial officers; improper considerations and influences that subvert justice and the role of the Bar in enabling these considerations; right structures that would ensure appropriate judicial outcomes; and insights on institutional building applicable to the justice delivery sector.
