The Legal Practitioners Disciplinary
Committee on May 21, 2015 revoked
the practising licence of a Senior
Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Kunle
Kalejaiye, thereby barring him from
practising as a lawyer anywhere in the
country.
Kalejaiye, who was the counsel for
Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola when the
Okuku-born prince was dragged to the
Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal
sitting in Osogbo, Osun State, by the
then governorship candidate of the now
defunct Action Congress of Nigeria, Mr.
Rauf Aregbesola, was found guilty of
unethical practice by the committee and
without hesitation, the LPDC descended
heavily on the lawyer.
True to the axiom that there are neither
permanent friends nor permanent foes
in politics but permanent interests,
Aregbesola and Oyinlola have since
come together on the same political
platform, the All Progressives Congress,
but the issues raised during the struggle
for power between them are still raising
dust long after the litigants had ceased
fire.
The ACN had petitioned the Nigeria Bar
Association while the tribunal was still
on, alleging that Kalejaiye engaged in a
“private and confidential telephone
conversation” with the Chairman of the
Osun State Governorship Election
Petitions Tribunal, Justice Thomas
Naron, without the knowledge of the
other parties in the case.
Naron, whose panel heard the petition
filed against Oyinlola following the April
14, 2007 governorship poll in Osun
State, had been retired compulsorily as
a judge since February 20, 2013 by the
National Judicial Council. So, some
people are of the opinion that the LPDC
direction, which also sacked Kalejaiye
about 26 months after Naron was
punished, is deserving.
Naron was accused of being in
communication with Kalejaiye, who was
the lead counsel for Oyinlola. The
Naron-led panel subsequently dismissed
Aregbesola’s petition and held that
Oyinlola was the lawfully elected
governor of the state. However,
Oyinlola was eventually sacked by the
Court of Appeal in Ibadan on November
26, 2010 and the ACN candidate was
declared the validly elected governor of
Osun State.
Jolted by the directive of the LPDC,
Kalejaiye did not wait for the 28- day
grace he had to appeal before rushing to
the Supreme Court to appeal the verdict
which is threatening to end his legal
career abruptly and stop his means of
livelihood.
The lawyer has filed his notice of appeal
against the verdict in order to enable
him continue to practise and he is free
to carry on as a lawyer except the apex
court rules otherwise. But lawyers and
politicians hold divergent views
concerning the punishment meted out
to the Senior Advocate of Nigeria.
A lawyer told our correspondent in
confidence that the judgement of the
LPDC was too much for the offence
Kalejaiye allegedly committed. He said
nobody told the committee what
Kalejaiye and Naron allegedly discussed
in their telephone conversations.
Apart from this, he said Kalejaiye denied
the allegations against him and called an
expert witness, a ‘hacker’ who
successfully demonstrated before the
committee that it was possible to clone
a telephone line and use the same to
call other lines.
He said, “When the expert was called,
he demanded to used NBA counsel’s
phone to prove this but the counsel
refused. In fact, he was hostile. The
panel asked two of the court registrars
to give out their telephones for the
purpose and the witness proved to the
amazement of the members of the
LPDC that it was possible for somebody
else’s phone numbers to be cloned and
used to call others.
“He demonstrated it by using a Glo line
and an Etisalat line he was given. He did
not use his lines so they would not say
he had programmed something in it but
he used the telephone lines provided
for him there and he demonstrated it.”
But the respondent did not show that it
is possible to clone an MTN line and use
it to call another line on the same
network.
However, the Secretary of the NBA,
Ilesa branch, Mr. Yinka Sokoya, said the
verdict against Kulejaiye was a welcome
one. According to him, the punishment
would make lawyers and judges who are
involved in a similar conduct or those
who may want to engage in such think
twice.
He said, “Ours is a noble profession. It is
a profession that adheres strictly to
ethics and rules; we are seen as a
symbol of law and justice and we must
always be above board. If you look at
the facts presented and argued by the
NBA, you will see that the allegation of
gross misconduct levelled against him
was proven.
“Although that committee is not the
final court, I don’t see the Supreme
Court ruling otherwise. I doubt if the
Supreme Court would give a contrary
verdict but they may reduce the
punishment by saying he should not
practice for a certain period of time if he
is found to be remorseful.
“Everybody expects lawyers to show
example of good behaviour and we must
not be found wanting in adherence to
the law. Like Governor Adams
Oshiomhole said some time ago,
‘Physician, heal thyself,’ we must heal
ourselves first.
“Justice Naron that was involved has
been compulsorily retired. There is no
way you can ask Chief Kunle Kalejaiye to
carry on. There are two parties involved
and there is no way you will punish one
and ask the other party to go
unpunished. I think that will send a
signal to every lawyer in town that you
cannot just do anyhow. We must all
adhere strictly to the tenets of the
profession. It will send a clear signal
that there is still order in the NBA and
legal profession; you can’t do the way
you like.
“You don’t have any duty to call the
judge who you have a case before. If
you must see that judge, you must see
the judge together with the other
parties in the case. You must not go and
see him behind, it is a sharp practice.
“I want to commend the NBA for this.
We are bringing in lawyers every year
and those coming in must know that
this is not a profession where you can
misbehave. There are rules to be
followed and we must all follow the
rules.”
One of the counsel to the appellant, Mr.
Niyi Owolade, who is a former Attorney
General in Osun State, said that he was
confident that the apex court would set
aside the verdict of the LPDC.
Owolade, who is a former member of
the LPDC, said the punishment meted
out to Kalejaiye was more severe than
the alleged offence.
He said, “There is an intrigue unknown
to many people and this is difficult to
say now because of the pending appeal.
I can’t go to the nitty-gritty of it, suffice
to say that it is very unfortunate.
“I was a member of the LPDC and we
had worse cases but this kind of
punishment was not meted out to any
of them. I am confident that the
Supreme Court will vindicate him at the
end.”
The Secretary of the PDP in Osun State,
Mr. Bola Ajao, described the revocation
of Kalejaiye’s licence as a sad
development. He said, “It is unfortunate
but since he has said he would appeal
the revocation, let us wait for the
outcome of his appeal pending at the
Supreme Court.”
A chieftain of the APC, who is also the
immediate past Attorney General and
Commissioner for Justice in Osun State,
Mr. Wale Afolabi, declined to make any
comment on the issue when contacted.
He said, “The matter is in court and as a
lawyer and a former Attorney General, I
will not pass comment on it. The
Supreme Court will rule on it and after
that I will be able to pass my comment
on it.”
The Chairman of the APC in Osun State,
Mr. Gboyega Famodun, also declined to
comment on the matter. Explaining that
the issue did not involve politics,
Famodun explained that the issue
bordered on professionalism. He,
however, added that his comment
would not be complimentary, stressing
that he would not want to add to
Kalejaiye’s problem.
He said, “I read it in the newspapers
that the man has appealed to the
Supreme Court. My comment will not
be complimentary and the man is my
friend so, I don’t want to add to his
problem.”