Just In : Rights activist commits to representing poor Nigerians in court
“I will use the knowledge and instrument of the law to advocate for the downtrodden, the oppressed and all those who are unable to speak out or defend themselves,” Mr Adeyanju said
Rights activist and Convener, Concerned Nigerians, Deji Adeyanju, has made a commitment to the fight against corruption, advocating for the downtrodden and taking up human rights cases on a pro bono basis for the less privileged.
He made the commitment through a statement on Thursday, following his call to the Nigerian Bar as a barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria on Wednesday.
In the statement, titled, ‘My commitment to Nigerians as I join the largest Bar in Africa,’ Mr Adeyanju said, henceforth, he would dedicate his life and resources to ensuring that no oppressed Nigerian goes to bed unable to defend his constitutional rights because he could not afford a lawyer.
“My commitment to Nigerians is that I will use the knowledge and instrument of the law to advocate for the downtrodden, the oppressed and all those who are unable to speak out or defend themselves,” he said
Mr Adeyanju also pledged to commit his time and knowledge of the law to the fight against corruption.
He noted that in almost all areas of national life, corruption had become pervasive, stressing that there was no better time than now to confront the monster.
“I will, as often as possible urge the relevant security agencies to investigate allegations of corruption, and where they fail to do so, I will seek orders of mandamus compelling them to do their jobs, as well as fiats from the Attorney General of the Federation to prosecute corruption cases,” the activist-turned-lawyer said.
Mr Adeyanju stressed the importance of the judiciary in the life of the nation and pledged to advocate an increment in the salaries of all judicial officers across the board.
He noted that it was shameful that while governors, lawmakers and even their aides earn humongous amounts under a four-year term, members of the judiciary, who have dedicated their entire lives to doing justice to all manner of persons, earned peanuts.
“A judiciary where a Supreme Court justice earns barely N3,000,000 per month is a judiciary vulnerable to corruption. I will use the instrumentality of the law to advocate that no Supreme Court justice should earn less than N15,000,000 per month,” he said.
Mr Adeyanju also promised to continuously seek the interpretation of knotty constitutional issues that affect the nation and the well-being of citizens. “My fidelity to the Constitution and the Nigerian people will remain my guiding light. I commit to use my license and knowledge of the law for the benefit of all Nigerians,” he said.
