From messenger to a Lawyer

‘I rose from messenger to become a Lawyer’
He retired after 35years of meritorious service in 1995, sat and passed GCE exams and went to Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife[OAU] where he obtained three degrees within 12years at a stretch. He was called to the Bar four years ago at the age of 65. Now, he is 69 He says if he dies now God will accept his soul , having fulfilled his life ambition. Taiwo Abiodun was with the Barrister in Ede , Osun state

‘’No one calls me by my name again, they now call me Baba Lawyer, Baba Lawyer ‘’, the fair complexioned septuagenarian with grey hair declared as he parted his lips with smile.
He walked up to where he hung his framed photograph on the wall in his living room , he looked at the photo again and shook his head as if he was seeing it for the first time and declared ’’ That is me wearing Lawyer’s wig and black suit, I am now fulfilled. If I die today God will accept my soul’’, as he said knelt down and prayed ..
‘’I was very poor , wretched and started working as a messenger and rose to the position of a Court Registrar and after retirement went back to the classroom. Mine is not a sorrowful story , but a story of fervent prayer , hard work , exhilarating and joyful ‘’, the septuagenarian revealed to The Nation at his residence in Ede, in Osun state
Pa Tunde Fawole native of Ode Omu in Osun state, at the age of two lost his father in 1944 while his father’s younger brother inherited his mother took her as his wife and changed the young Faawole’s faith from Christianity to Muslim, he said ‘’ after the death of my father my name , Rufus Olatunde Ademola Fawole was changed to Lamidi Olatunde Ademola Fawole by my step father , Chief Raji Adegboyega Onifade , a muslim and my step father because of the obnoxious custom in 1945 who altered my Christian background to Muslim. ‘’,he said in bitterness
Narrating his odyssey he said ’’When my mates were attending Grammar school I was not privileged to due to the poor financial position of my step father who had sent me to Arabic school and later to a Muslim school,[Ansar Udeen Primary school] to enable learn Arabic and become an Imam., I opted for Modern school and finished my three years where I obtained my Modern school certificate and got a job as a messenger in the defunct Egbedore District Council, Gbongan [now Ayedaade Local Government ] District Council] on March 1965’’, he said as he betrayed emotion and tears rolled down on his cheeks.
For Fawole, he vowed not to stop at the Modern school level and started obtaining the GCE ordinary level and advanced level conducted by the University of London in 1969.’’When I had my English at credit level, I was offered a job as the court Registrar in the then Western state of Nigeria Judiciary and was transferred to Osun Divisional Grade A court Oshogbo presided by one M.A.Adekunle Esq .Again . when the Military Government proscribed all the Grade A Courts in the state in 1979 and replaced them with Chief Magistrate’s court , I opted for my original official constituency
And that was my local government where I worked and rose to the position of a Court Registrar for ten years from 1969to 1979’’ and later voluntarily retired on level 12 as a Principal Executive officer Grade 1 in 1995 after spending 35years in service.
Fawole said he was always shy and felt embarrassed for not going to school,’’ I had retired but that should not be the end , I thought .And that is where I know inferiority complex. I was down with complex, I was not recognised at all .No matter how rich you are if did not go to any higher institution and add to your knowledge you are not better than the idiot on the street, people would ridicule you and will not take to your advise and I needed not to be told. Many things happened to me : insults , embarrassment. I was a social outcast . I became not only a clown but unrecognised . All sorts of things happen to any man that does not improve on himself. Those who are lazy would blame their parents for not sending them to school but what of when one too is capable to correct himself and would not accept defeat? I refused to accept defeat and I stopped complaining, while many feel shy and keep complaining, others have gone to correct their anomalies and would come back to meet those complaining and leave them where they are again, this set of people are on one spot and will be there forever.‘’
‘’whenever I saw my mates we went to same primary and modern schools together and have had their lives transformed positively I would think how I would forge ahead and surprisingly they used to discuss about me that I was brilliant but wasted. One day , I dusted my papers , repeated some GCE exams and sat for subjects like English literature , and that is where I know that one is not dead if he challenge this life but if you don’t challenge life then you are as dead as dodo. I used to say that one day will be one day when King Henry will be the King of Edinburgh. I took my advanced level of 1969 certificate, went to Obafemi Awolowo , University , Ife to do my degree, and I made a second Class upper Division in English Language. I did not stop there for I went back to OAU again to do Religious studies and made a second class upper again. and this is where my turning point was,’’ he stated .
According to Fawole , when he decided to do his Masters degree in Religious studies and while writing his thesis in Comparative studies to be submitted for his masters, one of his lecturers , Professor Onibere advised him to go for a professional course as the institution would not accept him as a lecturer if that was his thought ‘’Professor Onibere looked at me and laughed , I remember that he said that if I was aiming to become a lecturer in OAU I should forget the idea for I was too old and age was not on my side for that position, he then advised me to go for a professional course and that was where the idea to read law came in.’’
‘’When I got home , I thought over it, I said to myself that I still have that complex. I told my wives and children that I am going back to school again and they all screamed.
The urge was in me and I went back to read Law at this same OAU and passed out with second class lower and from there went to Law school. I remember while in school I know how many people perceived me. Some would look at me scornfully , laughing with one side of their mouths but Professor Demola Popoola the Dean , Faculty of Law embraced me and encouraged me .He admitted me without any stress .He encouraged me .I graduated four years ago at the age of 65 called to Bar and became the Attorney and Solicitor General of the Republic of Federal Government.
Fawole faced frustrations, mockery and financial problems while schooling ,he went to school for 12years , from 1995 to 2007 without any break ,’’ some saw me as a mad man, while others looked at me with pity . People on my street used to mock me saying’ I would die before I finished my degree’. Some who were bold said it to my face that I was just working in vain and that nobody would employ me while many said I was too old to remember anything and I should not bother myself. But I kept praying that God should not disgrace me. I thank God that today some of those who spoke ill of me eventually came here to lick my boots and begged for forgiveness. I told them that I had ambition, I own my life and I am the captain of my destiny and God is in control. My senior wife died while I was doing my Law degree , those who made jest of me too came to congratulate me, and when I flashed back on all these I broke down and wept when I was called to the Bar on November 13th ,2007. I wept while those who came to rejoice with me kept on wondering what could have happened to me.
‘’While in school , it was fun, students and some of the lecturers were calling me Baba, Baba as if I am their biological father. I mixed freely with the students ,In fact I must confess that the school life I missed when I was young I regained it when I went to school. ‘’I remember when Professor Akinriande the present Vice Chancellor of Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ogun state said he would not allow me to register in one of his courses ,ECOWAS that I would not be able to cope due to my age but I asked him to try me .I eventually scored ‘’A’’ in the course .Nobody had ever scored that , the record is there till today.’’
Speaking about his first time in court, the old man burst into laugher and said ‘’it is not a joking matter , my first time to argue was very interesting , it was a political case and it was ANPP versus the PDP , I was defended the ANPP man and we won the case against the PDP. Yes,we won the case. I had my working experience under the tutelage of Olaniran and Co combined with my working experience in court so I was not fidgety , I kept my cool , argued very well and walked shoulder high when I won the case’’, he said as he showed some of his case files .
Ready to fight for the oppressed , he showed this reporter his library where he keeps his law books said that the obnoxious custom where the younger ones inherit their brother’s wives should be stopped .According to him, it contributed negatively to his life,’’ I have a lot of Christian and Islamic books I read all the time to make me strong .It is a pity that I was once a staunch Christian but my religion was dramatically altered by my step father who sent us to Arabic school and had wanted me to become a Mallam. All my children are Christians today but only one is a Moslem and I am not opposed to it because my father was a Christian before my journey in life was altered. All my children are also graduates and three of them graduated at the age of 17,18 and 19 because I don’t want them to have late education as I have .’’
Next month August , he would be 69 years of age ,he says he would devote his life to serve humanity .In his words’’ I have seen how one’s life can be destroyed if care is not taken , imagine my name was changed at a younger age and my religion was changed too just because someone married my mother . I went to do a messenger for years and read three degrees to become a lawyer at the age of 65. From messenger to the Bar and to have my religion altered because someone married my mother in an obnoxious manner because of tradition . I have vowed to fight the cause of the less privileged and thank God for our governor Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola who makes it compulsory for a child to go to school. I will live for the rest of my life fighting like the late Chief Gani Fawehinmi for the welfare of the poor. I experienced it and knew how it was. I know I have few years to spent on this planet but I am devoting the rest years to serve humanity. ’’