…as he donates over N30m to youths, vulnerable people in society
Gloria Ogbu
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Wole Olanipekun, has revealed why the constitution amendment bill has been delayed.
According to him, the delay in the passage of the amendment bill in some states in the country is due to their governors’ insistence on the approval of state police inorder for them to curb the increasing rate of insurgency, killings and kidnapping of Nigerians.
He also stated that the constitutional amendment is an avenue to get Nigeria secured, fully federalised and democratised.
Olanipekin who said this over the weekend at his country home in Ikere-Ekiti while marking the 2022 edition of Wole Olanipekin Scholarship and Empowerment Scheme presented over N30 million cash gifts to students, youths, aged and widows.
In his words: “We are having this stalemate in the Constitution Amendment because some governors expressed reservations that they will only accept the passage if State Police is approved. That is, something like state autonomy.
“I support the governors on this. Nigeria is the only country that practices democracy, where we have only one Police Formation being controlled from Abuja, and this is failing us, this is wronging the system.
“Let us look at our land mass from Calabar to Kaura Namoda, from Bayelsa to Borno, how can it be secured by only the federal police? Look at the size of the Southwest, can it be policed by only federal police? Even in Lagos alone, it is wrong to have only one Police Formation.
“Let us look at London, it has London Metropolitan Police. Havard University alone has Havard University Police Department. Looking at all these, why are we different? Why are our people like this? Why are they failing to allow Nigeria to be fully federalised and democratized?
“Even in the legal profession, we are facing a lot of challenges that started under Gen Sanni Abacha’s era. Abacha took all the juridisdictional powers of the State High Courts and taken to the Federal High Courts through Decree 7 of 1994. That was the beginning of the problem we are facing today in Nigeria’s legal profession.
“The jurisdiction of the State High Courts is subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal high Courts, even when the Federal High Courts were mere revenue courts. This is a jurisdictional fallacy, it can’t work, it has been failing us.
“The governors views were clear. They are not asking for what is utopian, but what ought to be under an ideal democratic situation. So, I align myself totally with the reservations of these governors.”
Olanipekun who said that a total of 1,475 persons had benefited from the scholarship and empowerment schemes as at 2021 revealed that the schemes were birthed 26 years ago to eradicate poverty, free the people and give solid education to the poor and vulnerable children in the society.
He also urged the Governor of Ekiti State, Biodun Oyebanji to give maximum attention to the development of the state’s Infrastructure, Education and Internal Security sectors by strengthening Amotekun corps to provide adequate security and rejuvenate the economy.
He also charged the youths and students to shun Internet fraud, kidnapping, ritual killing and other vices to safeguard their future.