Call for interim government invitation to anarchy – Olanipekun drops warning

The immediate past Chairman of the Body of Benchers (BOB) Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN has warned that the country risks extinction if those behind the call for an interim national government do not desist from doing so on time.

Olanipekun described as an aberration and an invitation to anarchy, the sudden call for an interim government in a democracy where elections had just been held and certificates of return issued to winners.

The senior lawyer spoke in Abuja on Friday at a public function organized in his honour by the Body of Benchers (BoB) to mark the end of his tenure as the Chairman of the prestigious organization.

He said: “It is unconstitutional. To me, it comes from the pit of hell. Calling for interim national government? Where did you get it from? How do you compartmentalise it? How do you accommodate it within a constitutional democracy? As a lawyer, I don’t know the jurisprudence that will accommodate it.

“Let’s face it. Whenever there is an election anywhere in the world, there is bound to be disagreement. But, if for every disagreement, you say let us disband the system, that does not make sense. You can’t throw away the baby with the bath water. It is never done,” he said.

Olanipekun, who cited cases from developed countries where election outcomes had been disputed, urged those aggrieved to explore the opportunities provided by the Constitution and the statute having gone to court

He recalled the unpleasant experience the nation had under the last interim government experiment of the late Chief Ernest Shonekan in the country, describing it as an ill wind that will blow no one any good.

“I am not saying all is well. In every institution created by God for man, there would be minuses. You don’t have 100 percent anywhere. I am not saying there is no room for improvement. But, don’t let us call for anarchy. No one is going to benefit from it, not even those calling for it.

“I want to plead with those calling for an interim national government to cease fire. Let them introspect. Let them think of the present and the future. Let them think of what will be the outcome.

“The outcome is going to be calamitous. It is going to be an ill wind and it is not going to do anybody any good. It will blow all of us into the Atlantic,” he said.

On a retrospective assessment of his tenure, Olanipekun said he felt fulfilled for what God had done through him for the Law profession during his as the Chairman of the BOB.

Olanipekun, who noted that the BOB is peopled by the best in the legal profession in the country, thanked members of the body for their unflinching support during his tenure.

He added: “What is life about? We all pray that we end well. I started well a year ago as the Chairman, the Body of Benchers, and I have ended well…I am at peace with myself and I pray that God will be at peace with me.”