How Kunle Fadipe Challenges His Generation

ALEXANDER Olakunle Fadipe was born in Ile Ife, Osun State in 1963. He had his elementary and secondary school education at Ile Ife, Osun State. He read law at the university of Lagos where he graduated in 1987. He also attended the Nigerian Law School and was called to Nigerian Bar in 1988. Because of his special interest in human rights advocacy, he chose to have his pupilage at the Gani Fawehinmi’s chambers. It was a period of anxiety in the country as the head of the Chambers was regularly arrested and detained by successive military juntas. In addition to his active legal practice, Kunle was involved in law reporting. He rose to become a deputy editor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria Law Report, which was then edited by Chief Fawehinmi.‎

Kunle left the Fawehinmi Chambers to head the law firm of T.O.S. Benson & Co. He assisted Chief T.O.S Benson SAN in reorganizing the chambers from 1994-1997. Thereafter, he moved on to establish his own chambers at Ogba in Lagos state in 1997. As a committed civil rights lawyer, he rendered pro bono legal services to the poor and the underprivileged in the society. He regularly organised enlightenment programmes on civic education for the oppressed. To ensure my attendance and participation in most of the programmes, Kunle consciously fixed dates that suited me. On my own part, I had cause to refer many complaints of police harassment of innocent people and other cases of human rights violations to him. To my delight, he attended to such cases promptly and selflessly.

Upon the establishment of the National Human Rights Commission in 1995, Kunle was one of the first set of federal commissioners appointed by the federal government. He served in that capacity from 1996-2000. On account of his commitment to prison reforms, the Commission appointed him a Special Rapporteur on Prisons and Places of Detention. He drew attention to the dehumanizing conditions of prison inmates and made a strong case for prison reforms. Notwithstanding the hostility of the environment under a military regime, Kunle and other pioneer commissioners laid a solid foundation for the national human rights commission and defended its autonomy. He gave unalloyed support to the first executive secretary of the commission, Mr. Buhari Bello when he was sacked by the then President Olusegun Obasanjo for indicting the Federal Government over the dismal human rights record of the country.

Until he breathed his last, Kunle was a visiting member of the Editorial board of the influential The Guardian Newspapers. He wrote prolifically on lack of access to justice in the country. Kunle was in the forefront of the agitation against official impunity in the country. In order to educate and empower the people to defend their rights, Kunle regularly published several pamphlets and booklets on fundamental rights and rule of law. Many of his papers on the justice sector were published in learned law journals. His last article entitled, “A Justice Delivery System so Un-friendly” was published by in The Guardian of July 4, 2014. The article, which was published posthumously raised poignant issues and advocated for a radical reform of the criminal procedure law and practice. Some of the salient issues have just been addressed in the newly promulgated Administration of Justice Act, 2015.

The circumstances of the tragic death of Kunle have once again confirmed that life has become so cheap in the country. At about midnight on June 30, 2014 there was no light in the Ogba area of Lagos. But as soon as light was restored Kunle asked his son to go out and switch off the generator. At that juncture, the assassin who had hidden himself in the compound forcefully gained entry into the house. The assailant injured Kunle’s mother-in-law and his son while trying to locate his target. In defending himself and members of his household, Kunle bravely confronted the lone assassin.  In the violent encounter that ensued he was stabbed several times, which led to the loss of a large quantity of blood. Kunle was rushed to a nearby ill-equipped hospital in the neighborhood where he gave up the ghost.

Having regard to the facts and circumstances of his untimely death, Kunle was a victim of the negligence of the neo-colonial State, which is incapable of securing life and property in the society. In other words, if electricity supply had been guaranteed by the government, Kunle would not have asked his son to go out of the house to switch off a generator. If the neighborhood had been secured, the police would have responded to distress calls and saved Kunle’s life while he needed help. If the hospital where he was rushed to had been well equipped, he would have been revived. As he was gasping for breadth that night, Kunle would have thought of his life long struggle to ensure that the fundamental right of all citizens to life was protected by the Nigerian State. Kunle’s death is certainly an irreparable loss to his lovely family and to a society that is in dire need of lawyers of conscience and integrity.

Unlike many human rights activists who are contented with defending political and civil rights, Kunle believed that without the guarantee of socio-economic rights, the majority of the poor and disadvantaged people could not meaningfully enjoy fundamental rights. He therefore did not hesitate to join the campaign for the justiciability of socio-economic rights enshrined in chapter two of the Constitution. Having regard to the leading role of Kunle in the defence and promotion of fundamental rights and the rule of law his untimely death has depleted the rank of human rights lawyers in the country. The greatest tribute that can be paid to Kunle Fadipe is for his comrades and colleagues to intensify the struggle for the creation of a society founded on the rule of law, human rights and social justice.

• Falana, a Senior Advocate Of Nigeria (SAN), delivered this tribute at the one-year memorial of the late Kunle Fadipe at Ogba, Lagos.