GANI FAWEHINMI, THE LIGHT OF A NATION IN DARKNESS, IS GONE!

As Gani Fawehinmi finally succumbed to cancer of the lungs, without achieving a better Nigeria, which he labored for so many years, Icheoku asks, is it worthwhile to fight for a Nigeria which is impervious to correction and/or change? Was it worth the trouble to remain a rabble-rouser amidst a people who are deaf and dumb to cry for change and a better future for the country? Did Gani die in vain, since the ills of the society which he fought so gallantly against have only metastasized in recent past? These postulations, we throw up in our effort to find a realistic way to mourn the loss of a Nigerian-best, and the most vocal critic of various inept governments which Nigeria have been cursed with over the years! We are commiserating the passage of the sage, Chief Ganiyu Oyesola Fawehinmi, SAN!

Gani as he was admiringly called, died in the early hours of Saturday morning, September 5, 2009. He was 71 years! A good ripe old age in Nigerian context with their known very short life span, one may say; but not when the deceased was Gani Fawehinmi, who was so much loved by many and also despised by few others? His Nigerian doctors had misdiagnosed his cancer of the lungs for something else, which enabled it to progress ravenously and had taken such a toll on him, that when his London doctors finally figured out it was cancer that was ailing him; it was almost too late. However they managed to sustain him alive for two years, before finally sending him home recently to go prepare for the inevitability! In the words of one perturbed sympathiser, "That with all his means, our run down health-care system could not even diagnose Gani correctly until things got out of hands typifies the perilous state in which the masses Gani fought for all his life have found themselves after 40 years of Gani’s struggles and 49 years of Nigeria's independence?

Since his demise, so many obituaries have been said about him, some of which we shall now share with you:- He consistently confronted the menace of institutionalised injustice, wanton official corruption and excruciating poverty unleashed on hapless Nigerians by a tiny rapacious ruling elite. His legacy is of integrity, courage and consistency. The greatest tribute which can be paid to Gani is for all forces of social change and democracy to get organised to liberate the Nigerian people from the shackles of reactionary forces of internal colonialism." He was a social crusader, constitutional lawyer, publisher, political thinker, human rights activist and a force in the socio-political history of Nigeria. He will be remembered among other things, as a champion of the oppressed, a voice for the voiceless and the soul and spirit of democracy activism in Nigeria. He could be described as a unique man of honour, a man of courage, a man of the people, a man who truly obeyed the biblical injunction, even though he was a muslim, and loved his neighbour as himself. He was irrepressible friend of the subjected, rejected, dejected, suppressed, repressed, oppressed and dehumanized underclass everywhere in the world'; which world Icheoku would rather qualify as Nigeria. His struggles were complex and multi-dimensional. A lawyer of great repute, he left his footprints on Nigeria Law field with the publication of his authoritative Nigerian Weekly Law Reports which chronicled stare decisis of Nigeria Supreme Court. He also fought and won many landmark cases thus in many ways, helped to advance the country’s jurisprudence!

Continuing, he was the lion of Nigerian law, an indisputable colossus of humanism. He was a fearless and tireless tormentor of those who imposed themselves as rulers on the hapless people of Nigeria. His achievements in his chosen field are monumental, his impact as the conscience of the nation undeniable, his legacy for posterity unforgettable. Gani stood out in his own column throughout his journey of life; a journey that was characterised with fighting battles using the rule of law as a weapon of combat. He was not a customary soldier, but a civilian soldier, a legal luminary and courageous Nigerian who was driven by his passions, convictions and beliefs. He doggedly and unreservedly fought against oppression, repression, dictatorship, retrogression, imperialism, greed, avarice, bad governance and leadership in the country consistently and persistently for several decades. Gani was an icon, a role model, defender of the voiceless and a terror to all Nigerian despots. What indeed marked Gani out of the many was that he chose the course he would chart and pursued it notwithstanding all the odds on the way. That is why many now salute his courage. You may not agree with his method, you may hate his guts, but you cannot fault the fact that he is genuine, he is honest and he truly loves the people. He stood firm in opposition to those who conspire against the common good of Nigeria's commonwealth. One commentator out of UK emphasised that Gani cannot die as he lives forever in his works, stating that the greatness of a man is measured by what he lived and died for. The commentator also prayed that God will help Nigeria produce many Gani Fawehinmis? A Nigerian brand is gone.

Further, we never believed that people like Chief Gani Fawehinmi could really die. There, it is the mortality of our essence has come home to take away an icon of this country. Gani, the lion of the Nigerian human rights community has gone to join Senator Edward Kennedy, the lion of the US Senate - two great men who doggedly fought for the defenceless common people? Icheoku says, whether both men compare very well is left for students of history to analyse? By his death, Gani lost nothing , but the Nation of Nigeria has lost one of her best gifts? On the legal turf, he stood out, in his democratic struggle, especially against military rule, he had no rival and for quest for justice for the downtrodden citizens, it cost him money, pains and detention in the most bizarre conditions. The progressive forces in Nigeria have lost a formidable and reliable leader. He died an accomplished person. "He is the soul of our democracy and the conscience of our nation. He was an embodiment of principle and a symbol of conviction. Fawehinmi represented our hopes, dreams and future. He was integrity and selfless sacrifice personified. He was a light for the nation in darkness. He was a colossus, a tower and propeller of our dreams. Fawehinmi was not just a mortal. He was a spirit of change and he lives on." The most consistent Nigerians that ever lived. He sacrificed his entire lifetime fighting people who are ruling Nigeria oppressively. A defender of the defenseless and the voice of the voiceless. "We mourn today because God took Gani away without a replacement! We pray that God gives us an immediate replacement before the evil rulers of Africa consume us with hunger, frustration, disease and conflicts. The death of Fawehinmi as the death of an era and a challenge to those still alive!

Indeed, it is a mourning time for the country; but for Gani, it is a triumphant exit from the land of sinners. We will always look for a hero in our people. We have lost a gem. He can live to eternity, but you and I must take a challenge and look for an alternative. His death marked the physical end of a radical phenomenon that was a thorn in the flesh of irresponsible government leaders in Nigeria for over 40 years. The late activist lived a beautiful life dedicated to beliefs and actions in defence of the cause of the cheated, persecuted and oppressed people of Nigeria. Chief Gani Fawehinmi was a ‘one-man army’ who fought relentlessly for the enthronement of democratic rule in Nigeria and for the rule of law. He was a touch bearer who showed forth the light even in the dark days of military rule. He was a legal warrior. Gani Fawehinmi, irrepressible friend of the subjected, rejected, dejected, suppressed, repressed, oppressed and dehumanized underclass everywhere in the world is gone. We do not require a prophet to know that long after Gani must have departed from this world his works and times would continually inspire scholarly and revolutionary writings.

A maverick, philanthropist, benefactor of great repute, Gani had a sacrificial commitment to principles. According to some sources, he once performed the Chinese Tianamen Square feat when he laid down on the road at Yaba Lagos, during a protest against a military
 government, daring their armoured tank to crush him? Icheoku cannot confirm or deny this particular story but like all legends, some embellishments are always possible.

With him now gone, the rank of morally upright Nigerians who would shout on top of their lungs at the sight of evil is now further depleted. Who shall call to order the marauders of Nigeria PLC, now that Gani is gone? Who shall hold Babangida accountable for the murder of Dele Giwa now that Gani is gone? Now Nigeria is left with only Wole Soyinka as the last remaining true social crusader; with Tai Solarin, Beko, Fela and now Gani all travelled to the land beyond time, leaving Nigerians hapless in the face of the wolves masquerading as their ruling elites. Like a brood of chicken without the mother-hen, the hawks will now have a field-day as good Nigerians mourn the loss of one of a kind, Gani Fawehinmi! Gani who never quit nor tire in the course of pursuing justice in Nigeria. When during one of his chats with the media he was asked if he will ever quit activism; Gani replied, "Absolutely not. The question of retirement or quitting the struggle does not exist so far things remain the same. I will not quit until I see a better society.” Icheoku adds, unfortunately Gani died without retiring, quitting nor ever seeing a better Nigerian society which he fought tirelessly for, eliciting the question, was it worth the trouble?

Born in 1938, studied law at Holborn College of Law England in 1961-64, was called to the Nigerian bar on 15 January 1965 and later that year, established his practice at 108 Herbert Macaulay Way, Yaba, Lagos. He litigated over 5,000 law suits during his lifetime and was arrested more than 36 times, beginning with his first detention in 1969 when he defended a less privileged Nigerian whose wife was defiled by a top government personnel; he was detained more than 15 times during this period. Gani died at Lister Medical Center, Ikeja. He will be buried at his home town in Ondo State, Nigeria's Yoruba Southwest region on Tuesday September 15 2009. Icheoku thought Gani Fawehinmi was a devout Muslim who must be buried so soon after death, so why wait for two weeks or was he a special kind of Muslim? Coincidentally also, his burial is slated on the same day MEND promised to resume hostilities with feudalistic Nigerian northern government? Icheoku asks, did the Fawehinmi family check with MEND or are they part of the group which thinks that MEND has been defanged by the amnesty and subsequent defections by some few turn-coats? Who knows what will happen in Ondo state come September 15, 2009 as the state is part of a broader Niger Delta region where the struggle for resource control and freedom is very virulent and heavily entrenched?

A Yoruba demagogue or traditionalist-muslim, Gani Fawehinmi fell to the temptation of polygamy; was married to two wives Ganiat Ibukun Fawehinmi, who has eight (8) children with him, and Abike Fawehinmi, with whom he had six (6) children! Icheoku says whether it was his Islamic upbringing or his African machismo that goaded him into taking an extra wife, the true reason has now died with the man, Gani. He was survived by his two wives and fourteen children; may his soul rest in peace! As ignorant as it may seem and is, one of Gani's wives, Ganiyat Fawehinmi, has accused former Nigerian military dictator, General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida of 'creating the cancer that killed the late activist?' Icheoku says, only in Nigeria that people could believe a person is capable of "creating cancer" that killed a 71 year old man? It is not only ridiculous but is as much laughable! Who knows the level of educational attainment this wife of Gani herself achieved, which could have guarded against such thoughtless, baseless, unfounded and unscientific allegation? According to the said wife's allegation, how can cancer of the lungs kill Gani who have never smoked cigarettes? In answer, Icheoku says, Gani was not the first non-smoker to ever die of lung cancer, as it is not cigarettes alone that causes lung cancer; it is just one of a host of other causative agents. If we remember correctly, the wife of actor Christopher 'Superman' Reeve died of lung cancer and Dana Reeve never smoked her entire life?

According to an informed source, as cancer tore slowly but ferociously into his lungs, Gani Fawehinmi had one wish on his death bed, that he could write his memoirs. This is because of the way the labours of Nigeria’s past heroes were never documented for the benefit of future generations:- such as the late Alao Aka-Bashorun who fought for democracy and human rights and whom nobody seems to remember today, Wahab Goodluck, Fela Anikulapo Kuti, Professor Ayodele Awojobi, Beko Ransome Kuti, Michael Imodu, Raji Abdllah and Tai Solarin just to mention a few of people who died without documenting their experiences in the struggle for justice in Nigeria. Fawehinmi was afraid that posterity might not remember him and his struggles as many 25-year-old Nigerians, today hardly know anything about those past icons who dedicated their whole lives to the cause of social justice in the country. With these lamentations of Gani Fawehinmi, now also a gone former activist, Icheoku asks, is it worthwhile, afterall, to fight for Nigeria when men who have tried it in the past, died without ever achieving their objective to see a better Nigeria? Moreso it would appear that the rot in the system is getting ulcerous and worst with each passing day? Also no one seem to remember these warriors of the yore, once the deluge of eulogy at their death have passed, sweeping away with them their memories so soon after their interment? What is the use, then?

Finally, like one mourner said, whether Gani will be remembered as a gadfly, an irritant, a conscience of the nation or a social crusader is for posterity to determine; however, one thing even his most uncharitable critic would admit is that he was a fighter with a cause, unwavering and committed to the core till his last breath! Adieu Gani!