Why Lagos Former Chief Justice Is Worried

The former Chief Justice of Lagos State, Justice Ayotunde Philips, reportedly shocked the guests at a political symposium at the MUSON Centre, in the metropolis.

The former CJ while speaking as the chairman of the symposium titled:‘People, Credible Polls and Good Governance’ organised by the Fatima Charity Foundation,’ revealed that she was very nervous about what is happening in Nigeria due to the violence ahead of the nation’s general elections in 2015. She revealed that many of her friends were planning to travel out of the country over fears that Nigeria could be torn apart by politicians when the 2015 general elections commence. Philips said there are already signs that the poll may not be free and fair as Nigerians have continued to lament the interfering activities of the country’s security operatives in politics, and lamented the fact that politicians had taken the people for granted for too long. The former chief judge further stated that the tension being created by politicians ahead of the 2015 general elections has brought fear to the mind of the citizens of this country, adding that she would not jet out of the country like her friends but would stay behind to exercise her franchise and vote for the best candidate in the polls. “I’m very worried now about what is going on in this country. Many of my friends have told me they are going to leave the country first week of January and won’t be here for the election because they fear there is going to be mayhem; there would be violence, shooting and bloodshed. We want to vote for people that would rule the country. Enough is enough. I am not going anywhere. I will be here and I’m going to screen people I’m going to vote for. If a person cannot tell me what he is going to do for my state, my local government and this country, I am not going to vote for that person. The only power I have is my vote. Nobody is going to be imposed on me,” she said. Philips also promised to vote for any party that has the proper candidates because Nigeria is no longer a child, adding that many illiterates travel abroad and they see what happens there. She said even many of our leaders also travel abroad, and wondered why they can’t do what they see there, expressing optimism that by now, this country should be better than South Africa because of the amount of money therein if we have the leaders we deserve. While lamenting the crisis rocking Ekiti State, she urged said Nigerians can no longer sit back and be sentimental about it assuring that she is not going to be sentimental and asked about others. She therefore urged all the guests to make sure they get their Permanent Voters Cards so they could vote come 2015 general elections. “My generation has failed, the one before us has failed, and we are teaching the generation after us the wrong things; we have to take care of ourselves, no country would take care of us,” she said. Speaking at the event also, the Chairman of the Editorial Board of The Nation newspaper, Sam Omatseye remarked that Nigerians should educate one and other ahead the 2015 polls, and hinted that there were several challenges facing the country’s attempt at a free and fair elections. READ ALSO: Senate Claims IGP Must Appear In Person Over NASS Crisis Meanwhile, Hajia Bintu-Fatima Tinubu, President of the Foundation asserted that it became imperative to organise the event in order to educate Nigerians about the coming elections. “Do we need to kill ourselves just to gain power? Why do we give and take bribe to vote for a particular candidate without evidence of performance or credibility of the candidate? Are we really ready to make a difference come next year? We must be aware of the serious harm rigged elections can do to the concept of democracy. But above all, the greatest damage remains that bad elections produce bad leadership, bad leadership produces bad governance and bad governance produces bad nation,” she said. It would be recalled that on August 11, 2014, Lagos State House of Assembly confirmed the appointment of Hon. Justice Oluwafunmilayo Olajumoke Atilade as the new Chief Judge of the state.