Reminiscing LASU… HOW LASU GOT ON THE UNIVERSITIES MAP IN NIGERIA Part 2 THE DEBATING CHAMPIONSHIPS “…Nemo debet esse…” and a voice exclaimed “ehn” over the background of silence and the speaker followed through with “…judex in propria causa…!” The hall erupted into rapturous ovation that did not die down until the speaker took his seat, drowning all else he had to say. LASULAWS, was not only about academic excellence and achievements, there were two more areas where the young university quickly achieved fame and one of them was social-academics, by winning the National Law Student Debate. MONEY ANSWERETH ALL THINGS? For Ayoola it was really all about the money because he was not interested in any debate. Since he gained admission into LASU to study his second first degree in Law, he was not too excited at being at a university again having finished his first degree in Sociology at the University of Ife. But when he saw the poster inviting speakers to participate in the Law Students’ Debate the prizes were what caught his eye. First =N=100:00, second =N=75:00 and third =N=50:00. He figured he could try for any of the prizes after even the third prize was mouth-watering enough. Those sums look distinctly paltry today as evidence of the decline of the Naira currency but first of all at that time Naira was 4 to 1 dollar meaning that the first prize was about $25:00. Still not impressive because at a dollar to =N=165:00 today it would only be =N=3,125:00, which will only fill the empty tank of your standard car just above half way. (full tank is more like =N=5,000:00) But using a car tank parameter, it took only =N=7:00 to fill Ayoola’s Toyota Corrolla in those days. If we extrapolate that would be about 14 full tanks, which today amounts to a whopping =N=70,000:00! Wow how times have changed and no wonder we call these times past “the good old days”. Yes indeed, it was about the money and thus quite a few law students turned up, numbering close to ten and as usual Dr Daramola was presiding over the panel of judges as he had over other debate panels and moot and mock trials in the past. Usually those debates and trials were opportunity to have fun and a good laugh, as well as get impressed and learn new words. In one of the debates in those days one almost “obahiagbonised” guy threw out two words that many thought were his inventions, only to meet those words “brouhaha” and “embembem” in some dictionaries. Well the money attracted many law students; some who thought speaking to a mirror was the same thing as talking to capacity filled university hall of often riotous LASU students. That same hall had hosted several altercations between the students and the institution’s authorities in the past; featuring the first Vice Chancellor of the University Dr Olufolabi Olumide, a Professor of Medicine as target of students ire. But no matter how fierce the student protests were, the Prof would always find a way to, not only calm them down, but on one occasion attract a standing ovation from them. On one such occasion past, in the midst of all the loud screaming protestations and hurling of expletives, he simply loosened his tie deliberately, rolled up his sleeves and then brought out his white handkerchief and wiped his sweaty bald head and that was enough to get students clapping and thereafter calm enough to hear him out. The man was a demagogue of sorts. THE LASU CHAMPIONSHIP In the ranks of the speakers on the day of the debate were many who were nothing like the Professor of Medicine and when it was their turn to face the crowd, they suddenly lost their tongues or developed instant stammering. Well thought out and laid out arguments suddenly disappeared into thin air as opened mouths uttered nothing as eyes searched for the words on the ceiling. In no time the men were separated from the boys and three speakers sailed into the finals that became a tense battle between, Ayoola and Domingoes, the first bellowing baritone and the other a sonorous and soothing nightingale. In the last speeches by the two, Ayoola decided that to win was to pull a rabbit out of the bag and though not completely relevant he navigated his speech to the issue of the rules of natural justice and gave an elongated quote of one of the two latin maxims and said: “…Nemo debet esse…” and a voice exclaimed “ehn” over the background of silence and then he followed through with “…judex in propria causa…!” The hall erupted into rapturous ovation that did not die down until the speaker took his seat, drowning all else he had to say. Even Dr Daramola, was smiling and nodding in approval and in his final closing speech commended Ayoola as his fellow “Latinist”! A few months after the debate the President of LASULAWS received an invitation for the department to participate in the National Law Students Debate to be held in University of Ife. LASULAWS had participated in the past to no success but this time there was a secret weapon, in the person of the newly crowned debating champion. Once again it was all about the money… Quasim Odumbaku representing the executives of LASULAWS approached a reluctant Ayoola dangling the carrot of =N=400:00 prize for best speaker and =N=800:00 for the winning team and that was convincing enough. He also offered to load the team of himself as chief speaker, Dayo Ogunlewe as deputy speaker (for some reasons the sugar coated tongued Domingoes was not available) and Quasim as team coordinator into his Toyota Corolla in return for the transport fare to Ife, which was about =N=200:00. Domingoes might have been absent, but as will soon become apparent, he was there with the team “in spiritu!” After the LASULAWS debate where he came in second, winning =N=75:00, as a good sport he congratulated Ayoola and they both were to reminiscence about good old literary and debating society days in secondary school and shared some of the great quotes that had won some of the debates in those days. One was Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe’s quote during the political crises in 1966 about “sagacity” in politics. Somehow this stuck at the back of Ayoola’s mind. The team breezed into Ife without much fanfare on the day of the debate with only two other Universities (Ibadan and Ife) in attendance and the venue was the delectable and architectural master piece called Oduduwa Hall. THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP Notwithstanding this few numbers it was to be a debate of very high quality going two rounds. At the end of the first round results, LASU was bringing up the rear and it looked like another unsuccessful outing. In the second and final round, LASU was to propose the motion in support of “Adoption of Rotational Presidency”. This was an uphill proposition for a “legal” debate, which is supposed to be about lofty ideals of “Rule of Law”, equality before the law with respect to rights of individuals to vote and contest, rather than primitive ideas of ethnic politics. But then that is at times the paradox with debates, that when you have an easy motion you have no necessity to innovate, as with when you have a tough motion. LASU got a tough motion and innovation was the key! In seeking innovation a light went up in Ayoola’s head and he remembered one of Domingoes quotes. Yes, it is about sagacity and not just ideals, the law as is and not as it ought to be, “de facto” principles and not necessarily sticking to “de jure”. The team thus build a strong case for Rotational Presidency around the need for sagacity and not just law for the sake of legal purity. However, in his final speech, Ayoola first of all appealed to the vanity of the audience. This he did by reaching out for sympathy from what was a very partial and partisan audience by quickly reminded them that he was a graduate product of Ife (hinting that a win for him was a also a win for Ife). He only received a mooted and reluctant applause. But there was one more ace, which I will call the Domingoes ace! This came midway through his final speech where he stressed the importance of sagacity in politics and illustrated how Nigeria had nearly broken up in 1966. He further stressed that the primary purpose of the law is to protect the corporate existence of the country given the realities on ground thus if rotational presidency was the key so be it. He gave the example of how the Supreme Court had digressed from pure legal interpretation in the case of Awolowo v Shagari case in 1979, to save the country from what could have been a great upheaval and possible breakdown of law and order leading to disintegration of the country. He followed on that the greatest problem of Nigeria and her politics, he argued was inter regional conflict over the presidency and if the presidency is rotated it would eliminate or at least reduce this on singular area of inter-ethnic conflicts threatening the corporate existence of the country and then he unleashed the quote from Dr Nnamdi Azikwe in 1966, that “Political sagacity is not a garrulous asperity but rather a hyperbolism of reality” he paused for two seconds for the stunned hall to digest this grammatically highfaluting and grandiose choice of words before continuing that “when necessity necessitates, impossibility becomes possible and when warranted the will of the people must ride…” even before the completion of this sentence Oduduwa hall erupted into a standing ovation that drowned whatever else he had to say. Another rabbit had come out of the bag! The audience did not sit down until the speaker had taken his sit! Needless to say LASU had snatched the National Laws Student debating Crown!!! Final of this series: BEAUTY MAKES THE WORLD GO ROUND...
Posted on: Fri, 24 Oct 2014 07:41:29 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015