JUST A YOUNG SILK – Tribute in Honour of Chief Emeka Jude Phillipe Obegolu SAN, Ph.D (Arbitration), FCIArb, Past NBA General Secretary, on the occasion of the Commissioning of NBA Anaocha Branch Bar Center and the EBF Quarterly Meeting holding at Anaocha  in Anambra Stat. 

Chief Emeka Jude Phillipe Obegolu SAN, Ph.D (Arbitration), FCIArb, past NBA General Secretary, 1st Vice President Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Chairman of the Nigeria Chambers of Commerce Dispute Resolution Center and a Senior partner at the Green Field Chambers, President Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Nigeria and president (West Africa) Pan African Lawyers Union was called to Nigeria Bar in 1996. His contribution to the growth of mediation and alternative dispute resolution remains indelible in the annals of legal practice and growth in Nigeria jurisprudence today. A Chartered Arbitrator and Mediator, he has carved a niche for himself and supported many others through mentorship and trainings in the areas of mediation, conciliation and arbitration. His mantra is not many are called but few are chosen but many are called and many are chosen”. His passion can only be likened or ascribed to that of our erudite economist- Prof. Pat Utomi whom Professor Godfrey Ozumbo referred to as “an enigma of sorts for many reasons. He has remained a recurring decimal in the value chain of national question. He has evinced more that enough passion in the quest for a rebirth of a new Nigeria. He has been vigorously involved in the search for dynamic and progressive leadership for Nigeria”.

Chief Emeka Obegolu SAN dynamism in constantly projecting the concept of the gains in elevating ADR trainings and continuously with ICMC (Institute of Chartered Mediators and Conciliators) remains an icing on the cake and the desideratum of modern case management in the legal concupiscence of Nigeria consciousness as a country today.

Chief Emeka Obegolu SAN got No one surprised that he remained a man of service quite early in his legal career when he indentified with the Bar as he despite several odds contested for the position of publicity Secretary of the NBA, an office he won and served, bequeathing a legacy still relished as exemplary till date. His further aspiration to serve the Bar still at the National level as the General Secretary saw a very dedicated but vibrantly & positively enigmatic young man defeating his far elders at the Bar who vied against him for the exalted office. The saying that “we shouldn’t allow the disillusion of others to deter us” was manifested in his victory and later score card as the General Secretary of the NBA as his records were one of vibrancy, pragmatism and healthy novel practices in general management and administration of the National Bar Secretariat. He brought so much panache in the affairs of the NBA at the National Level that choosing a successor became a case of “who will carry on the job with such panache and dexterity after his service”. The President of the Bar then, Okey Wali SAN must have expressed numerous appreciation and reliefs in closed quarters about how lucky he was to have such an ebullient and eggregionss Administrator in the person of the Young Emeka Obegolu Esq ( G.S then) .

Here is a man with a high sense of justice, and integrity with the patience and forbearance of an Oracle. Having worked assiduously for the emergence of a certain President of the Bar, I once asked Chief Emeka Obegolu SAN what he thought that I did wrong for the said President to carry on without including yours truly into any of his standing committees, NEC or recognition of my sort in consideration of my emphatic support and resources towards his winning the Presidency of the most populous Bar in Africa and his response was thus “let it go, you are a busy man Doc. If he doesn’t remember you, God will remember you’.

The attitude and comportment of chief Emeka Obegolu SAN even now must be emphasized as an example for both young and old Lawyers. Today we are celebrating his dedication of a Bar centre to his home Branch. Solidly built and modernly furnished to taste just as a gift. According to Abdulrasheed Ibrahim in his book Legal Luminaries; ‘All the good things said about Justice Taylor were actually the confirmation of what he stood and lived for. The shining examplary life he lived was worth being emulated by all lawyers both at the bar and the bench. It was not for nothing that positive things were said about him. Peoples views and opinions on Justice JJC Taylor were informed by the way he carried himself about discharging his duty and responsibility as practitioner at bar and later as Judge on the bench. Therefore Lord Denning must be right in his book “The Road to Justice” when he said that “Justice has no place in darkness and secrecy, when a judge sits on a case, he himself is on trial”. The attitude and comportment of a Judge on the judicial bench is like a football match that often generates keen interest from the football spectators that would eventually bring about various kinds of reactions and comment either negatively or positively. The above commentary brings into limelight the purpose of this discourse for in life, we celebrate our own. we celebrate a young enigmatic, dynamic eclectic, and erudite Learned silk today, one of our own in whom we are very proud of. We celebrate the Eastern Bar Forum, the very erudite, cerebral and gentleman Par Excellence in the person of Chief Uba Anene on whom history has bestowed a very commemorative outing as the Helmsman of this pristine Administration of EBF.

To the young branch of Anaocha NBA, the warm morning sun has heralded your growth and you have received in your prime what many very old Branches continue to dream about and aspire for as the saying goes for most of the old Branches, “who will bell the cat”.

According to Justice C. A Oputa on Advocates Duty to the Court ;

Respect for the Court: The advocate is under an obligation to render unqualified respect to and for the Court. That is the very foundation of the judicial system; whether the court is right or wrong is immaterial, the advocate has his right of appeal. It may well be that this was what Mr. Justice Vaisey was thinking about when he remarked of the Judicial office as follows;

“Being a Judge is the best career in the world. One is never contradicted; one is never interrupted and one always has the Last word”

The Advocate’s duty to his Colleagues : There is a generous comradeship at the Bar. Lawyers usually refer to one another as “Learned Friend”. It then behooves “the advocates to be fair and friendly to his colleagues even though determined and grime in legal battles”.

Therefore, trite, it is that the Bar and the Bench must work assiduously together to foist harmony and respect for one another or each other and the recognition of their supportive roles. Chief Emeka Obegolu SAN (Akajiugo 1 of Obeledu kingdom has set the ball rolling and a wonderful precedent and example has been laid for others to follow.

Many Branches of the NBA has produced eminent Jurists at various levels, of our Superior Courts who turn their back to the activities and growth of the Branches. They forget that the Branches actually produced many of these Jurist(s) and the Bar remains the official voice of the Bench. This is a wakeup call to many both serving and retired jurists from the Bench to support the Bar at the various Branch levels in their growth as this relationship is not parasitic but symbiotic and complementary. Need I say more?

Thank you Chief Emeka Obegolu SAN ( (Akajiugo n’ Obeledu) The Bar is grateful to you, you have given the best even when we know that you haven’t so much. Learned silk, you have given us a sentence to ponder which goes thus;

Don’t forget that you are an eagle, no matter what your circumstance are. Every instinct that tells you that you can soar higher is a nudge for you to do something different and strengthen your leadership blend.

Gerald U. Abonyi (Esq) Ph.D

(Pioneer Chairman NBA Obollo afor Branch)