Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Jibrin Okutepa, has declared that only the legal profession and the judiciary can save democracy in Nigeria, warning that the road ahead appears “very bumpy and turbulent” given the conduct of Nigerian politicians.
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In a statement posted on his X handle on Sunday, Okutepa called on the bench and bar to have “a change of heart” to make Nigerian democracy work, lamenting that many people who have destroyed democratic values and the rule of law have no business leading the country.
Okutepa painted a grim picture of Nigeria’s democratic journey since the return to civilian rule in 1999.
“Things are not going well in Nigeria in terms of democratic governance, growth and development,” the Senior Advocate stated.
“Since the introduction of civilian government in Nigeria in 1999 in the name of democracy, Nigerian politicians who are the active players on the field of practical democracy seemed to have destroyed democracy rather than building it.”
He noted that internal democracy is virtually non-existent in almost all political parties in Nigeria.
“Most of these politicians are worse than military despots. Yet they claimed to be democrats,” Okutepa said.
The senior lawyer was scathing in his assessment of lawmakers at all levels of government, accusing them of failing to remedy the growing challenges of what he termed “democratic desecration.”
“Today laws are made and enacted to target those who have no power to do anything. Laws have become instruments of oppression and perversion instead of laws made for peace, order and good government as encapsulated in the constitution,” Okutepa stated.
He added: “While the oppositions are trying to grab power from those in power, those in power have turned the institutions of democracy to personal fiefdoms.”
Okutepa acknowledged the troubling perception that the legal profession itself bears significant responsibility for Nigeria’s democratic challenges.
“Today you hardly can find institutions of democracy that are independent in Nigeria. The judiciary and the legal profession are no doubt veritable and viable institutions of democracy all over the world. It is the only institution with defined code of ethics,” he said.
“The legal profession is a profession of light that should have nothing in common with the dirty politics in terms of mingling with and approving the dirty manipulation of the sovereignty of the people.”
However, he noted: “But the news making rounds and the general perceptions amongst most Nigerians is that the legal profession is the main problem and the bane of the growth and development of democracy in Nigeria.”
Okutepa pointed to judicial decisions that have allegedly aided democratic sabotage.
“Accusing fingers are easily pointed at some very many questionable ways decisions are rendered in aid of democratic sabotage, done by politicians and those who stood democratic purity on the heads,” he stated.
“These decisions have emboldened many people to engage in democratic rascality.”
With the 2027 general elections on the horizon, Okutepa warned that troubling signs are already visible.
“As we are heading towards 2027, signs are here with us that many things are going to be done in the most absurd and abnormal ways in the name of democracy,” he cautioned.
“Members of the legal profession cannot pretend not to know that all is not well with our democracy.”
Despite his criticisms, Okutepa expressed belief that the legal profession remains Nigeria’s best hope for democratic renewal.
“That is why it is my view that only the legal profession and in particular the judiciary that can save democracy in Nigeria,” he declared.
He called on the judiciary to go beyond mere interpretation of laws.
“This they will do by not just by interpretation that imposes unqualified politicians on us in governance but go beyond today’s comfort to tomorrow’s posterity and happiness of the people and do what is right and just,” Okutepa said.
The Senior Advocate urged the judiciary to assert its independence and ensure that politicians who follow wrong routes to power are shown the way out.
“While politicians can do what they like and even use any dirty apparatus to come to power, the judiciary and the legal profession must insist and ensure that those who followed wrong route to power must be shown the way out. That is why judicial power has been vested in the judiciary and members of the legal profession,” he stated.
Okutepa concluded with an appeal for immediate action.
“For us therefore to have democracy nurtured to maturity in Nigeria, the judiciary must be at its best and allow itself to be independent,” he said.
“It must do all it can to see that judicial interpretations in political cases are done in a manner that promotes, protects and defends the interests of the people instead of the parochial interests of those who stood democracy on its head on their ways to power.”
“The time to start doing so is now. This is my appeal. Good governance will benefit all instead of the privileged few that imposed themselves on us. The judiciary has a role to play to have good governance in Nigeria.”
Okutepa’s statement adds to the growing chorus of voices within the legal profession calling for introspection and reform ahead of the 2027 elections.
His remarks come amid ongoing debates about the role of the judiciary in election disputes and the perception that some court decisions have undermined democratic processes rather than strengthened them.
The call for the legal profession to act as a bulwark against “democratic rascality” underscores the weight of expectation on lawyers and judges as Nigeria prepares for another electoral cycle — and the consequences if that expectation is not met.
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