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Two prominent Senior Advocates of Nigeria - Chiefs Gani Fawehinmi and Afe Babalola - have described the escape from London by the Bayelsa State Governor, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, as a national disgrace.
Two prominent Senior Advocates of Nigeria - Chiefs Gani Fawehinmi and Afe Babalola - have described the escape from London by the Bayelsa State Governor, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, as a national disgrace.
In separate interviews with our correspondents on Monday, they advised that the only thing that Nigeria could do to salvage its image was for the government not to take the matter lightly.
While Fawehinmi urged the State House of Assembly to urgently impeach Alamieyeseigha so that he could be 'bundled" back to London, Babalola said the government should rely on the law of reciprocity to bring him to justice.
Fawehinmi who expressed surprise at the escape of the governor, said, 'It is now clear that our leaders, our politicians are criminals. Alamieyeseigha escaped from London? Has he been granted bail? And he is in Nigeria now? Nobody will respect this country again.
'It's more than a shame for the country. It's a disaster for Nigeria's prestige. The escape will surely provoke a diplomatic row between Nigeria and Britain.
'The best we can do now to save our face is for the State House of Assembly to impeach him fast and bundle him back to London in the next available flight.
'It's a sign that the Peoples Democratic Party has produced criminals as office holders. The president has many questions to answer."
Babalola said, 'A man, whether he is a governor or not, who is granted bail by a court of law, and he jumps bail, I believe sends a wrong signal to the world community about us. The ordinary citizen of Britain believes in the rule of law. And the other thing is that nobody is above the law.
'I don't want the Federal Government of Nigeria to take it lightly because it will affect the integrity of every Nigerian in the eye of the law. I am not speaking about why he was charged to court, I am speaking about the offence of jumping bail now. Jumping bail is a serious offence. And it is not good for the image of this country."
On the options available to the Federal Government, Babalola, who is also President Olusegun Obasanjo's lawyer, said the government's legal team could rely on the law of reciprocity to ensure justice.
'If a man commits an offence in England and he runs to Nigeria, there is the law of reciprocity. I believe Nigeria cannot fold its arms. This has nothing to do with his immunity. You cannot commit murder in England and run to Nigeria because that is the place where you believe you are safe. Nigeria cannot be a haven for criminals. The Federal Government should react immediately," he said.
But an Emeritus Professor of Law at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, David Ijalaye, said there was nothing Britain or the international community could do against Nigeria over the Alamieyeseigha's escape.
According to Ijalaye, since the governor was already in Nigeria, the immunity clause in the constitution covered him.
Asked whether or not the Federal Government would send back the governor to London, he said, 'Nigeria will never do that."
Querying the security system of Britain, Ijalaye said it was not the place of Nigeria to panic over international sanctions as a result of escape.
He said, 'They didn't take permission (from Nigeria) before arresting him, so they can't do anything against Nigeria to effect his arrest."
However, a renowned constitutional lawyer, Prof. Itse Sagay, blamed the Federal Government for the manner in which Alamieyeseigha escaped.
Sagay argued that those who instigated the British Police not to release the governor forced him to take the unsual measure.
When contacted, the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Mr. John Odey, said the party was not aware of Alamieyeseigha's arrival in Nigeria.
He said, 'We do not know where the governor is. We are yet to receive information that he is back. We cannot react until we are sure of his whereabouts."
The Punch, Tuesday November 22, 2005