Speech given By Shamsey Oloko At the 2003 NLA Award Dinner

“Not only but by ourselves can we free our mind!”
Robert Nesta Marley

It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the 2003 Award Dinner of the Nigerian Lawyers Association. Tonight is truly a very special night; an evening of celebration for our Association, our members, friends and supporters. On behalf of our Association, I want to thank each and every one of you for coming out here to celebrate with us.

Tonight, we celebrate our rich heritage and honorable profession. We are lawyers, proud lawyers, from various parts of Nigeria, Africa and indeed, the World.

We also celebrate our duty of good and useful citizenship and the enduring obligation to steadfastly give back to our respective communities.

Our Association is dedicated to professional excellence and public service.
Given our brief history, we have successfully organized seminars on a variety of topics ranging from Tax and Immigration to Real Estate, at little or no cost to the public. We have offered some of these seminars, free of charge and as CLE-eligible sessions to members of the Bar. A few months ago, we successfully organized a seminar at the New York Harvard Club on the privatization efforts in Nigeria and the attendant investment opportunities. We have also repeatedly heeded the calls for help from our fallen brethren and participated in various relief efforts, including after the attacks on the World Trade Center and the recent explosions at the Ikeja cantonment in Lagos, Nigeria.

The recipient of our Merit Award this year, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, personifies the ideals of our Association. Her professional excellence is amply demonstrated by the numerous academic honors and acclamations that have been bestowed upon her. Likewise, her position as the first female Vice President & Corporate Secretary of the World Bank Group speaks loudly about her professional competence. But, perhaps, equally or even more importantly, is her ability to touch so many other lives and to reach back into her community, well exceeding her call of duty.

In fact, Dr. Okonjo-Iweala took an extended leave of absence from the World Bank to serve as an Economic Adviser to the President of Nigeria. And, if I may add, she has accomplished all these while simultaneously balancing her role as a wife and mother.

Tonight’s keynote speaker, Honorable Gregory W. Meeks, is also a superb embodiment of professional excellence and dedication to public service. He is a first-rate lawyer, from this Great State of New York, who has successfully parlayed his legal skills towards the highest echelons of public service. The breadth of the various top positions Congressman Meeks has held over his very successful career is a vivid testimony to his dedication to public service. Moreover, his leadership roles in the Congressional Black Caucus and the Congressional Subcommittee on Africa are further evidence of his unwavering dedication to giving back to our communities.

As an Association of Officers of the Court, we recognize the time-proven adage that a society is ultimately judged by how it treats its least powerful citizens. To this end, we have remained very outspoken and steadfast in our strident protests against the administration of Sharia Laws in Nigeria, especially its disparate effects on female members of the community. Ladies & Gentlemen, we promise to remain firmly against the laws of any organized government that would stone a woman to death for engaging in consensual sex, especially when the apparent male partner is regularly set free under a pretextual legal technicality.

Finally, a national election was held in Nigeria last month. The controversy that subsequently ensued, not unlike what took place here in the US in 2000, even after more than 200 years of practice, proves that allegations of voting irregularities is not that uncommon. To tackle this issue, the Nigerian government, especially given its status as a fledgling democratic government, must understand and confront the urgent and formidable challenge of establishing an independent judiciary. To this end, we intend to intensify our efforts to assist the government and the Nigerian citizenry in their efforts to properly accord the judiciary
the recognition necessary for it to carry out its pivotal role in the current democratic experiment.

Before I conclude, I must once again thank everyone who has contributed to making this year’s dinner such a fabulous success. Special thanks goes to Ms.Beatrice A. Hamza, our immediate past president and chair of the organizing committee for her committee’s wonderful efforts in ensuring the success of tonight’s event. I must also acknowledge our corporate sponsors, including, Hughes, Hubbard & Reed LLP; Mr. Arthur Jackson and the Thomson Group; John Edozie of Madu, Edozie & Madu; Choice Abstract Corp.; The Thorgood Law Firm; Maduegbuna Cooper, LLP; Mr. Eric Aghadiuno and Devace, Inc.; Placid & Emmanuel; Domenic Mizio; Venable, Baetjer & Howard, LLP; and the Law Office of Austin Idehen.

Thank you and may God be with you!

Sincerely,

Shamsey Oloko
President