Chief Wole Olanipekun, former President of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), recently shared an incident where he advised former President Olusegun Obasanjo to amend Nigeria’s constitution, which almost resulted in a physical altercation. Olanipekun, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria hailing from Ekiti, served as Bola Tinubu’s lawyer at the presidential election tribunal.
At the 32nd and 33rd convocation lecture of Olabisi Onabanjo University, Olanipekun expressed his belief that the 1999 constitution was “fake” and should be completely overhauled. As a former NBA president, he had advised Obasanjo to initiate the process of amending the constitution in 2022, but the former President had rejected the advice and almost resorted to violence.
Olanipekun emphasized the importance of a constitution with a humane face and called for the restructuring of the country. He argued that the constitution lawyers and judges apply is not the law as it ought to be, but rather the law as it currently stands. Therefore, he urged the need for a constitutional amendment and overhaul.
He also appealed to the current powers that be, including President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to restructure the country before it is too late. Olanipekun warned that failure to do so may result in a future where the children of Nigeria, who currently reside abroad, may not return home.