INTERVIEW: ‘Nigeria’s Problem Not Absence of Law, But Willingness to Enforce It’ — Okutepa SAN

In this exclusive interview with Pinnacle Daily, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Jibrin Samuel Okutepa, speaks on his difficult journey from roadside mechanic and fire service worker to the rank of SAN, his pro bono legal work, the importance of justice and integrity, Nigeria’s democracy, political accountability, freedom of movement and the failure of public institutions to enforce the law.

From Roadside Mechanic To Senior Advocate

Pinnacle Daily: Sir, we have heard a lot about your legal history, including the fact that you once worked as a firefighter and roadside mechanic. Can you take us through your journey to becoming a Senior Advocate of Nigeria?

Jibrin Samuel Okutepa, SAN: Well, maybe what you heard is correct.

Yes, I was a roadside mechanic. I was in the fire service. And it is true I did not have the privilege of going to a formal primary school, and I didn’t have the benefit of attending any secondary school at all.

I was in the fire service. I wrote my first school-leaving certificate virtually from home, I would say, after entering Primary Two in 1977. I moved from Primary Two to Primary Three and then stopped there to learn motorcycle mechanics.

I became a taxi driver and did all the menial jobs that any child from a less privileged home would do. I went through excruciating pains to be where God wanted me to be and where I am now, and where He would further take me to.

My background is as humble, excruciating, difficult, and challenging as my growing up. And today, I am where I am by the grace of God.

So, the story you heard, I confirm, is correct.

I wrote my first school-leaving certificate virtually from home, and I have my certificate. So I may not have secondary schoolmates, but I have my certificate.

Pinnacle Daily: Tell us about your legal profession. How did it start, and what inspired you to choose law?

Okutepa: The truth of the matter is that, at the material time, I felt I should read law.

Sometime in 1987, I didn’t have an idea of who a lawyer was. I was not motivated by my understanding of the outstanding work of any jurist. But something in me, which I prefer in the ecclesiastical world to call the hand of God, asked me to feel for and say, “Law, law, law.”

First choice, law. Second choice, law. Third choice, law.

And then, which university? University of Jos.

First choice, University of Jos. Second choice, University of Jos. Third choice, University of Jos.

And so, law I chose. Law I was given. Law I read. And law I grew in my graduate days to become a lawyer.

Today, again, where I am is by the grace of God.

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‘The First Duty Of A Lawyer Is Justice’

Pinnacle Daily: You have taken up several pro bono cases, including the case involving 37 students of Benue State University. Beyond that particular case, can you tell us about some of the major cases you have handled?

Okutepa: They are all in the law reports. A good lawyer must go to court.

Although many will disagree that you have to make money from the profession, I think the reason the legal profession itself came about is to serve humanity and attain justice. Justice is done majorly through the courts. Virtually, whether you are a corporate practitioner or you practise arbitration or conciliation, at the end of the day, the end product may still end up in court.

So, I have been an advocate. There are many cases I have handled.

You will see Gregory Jack versus Vice-Chancellor of the University of Agriculture. You will see Patrick Majid versus Vice-Chancellor of the University of Agriculture. There are many other cases.

There is Honourable Musa Omar against the Attorney-General of Benue State and a series of other cases. If you go into the law reports, you will see Alidou Daboh versus NYSC.

All of those matters had to do with people who had no means to engage the services of lawyers. And we took on these matters pro bono to assist humanity, because the first duty of a lawyer is justice; the second duty is justice; the third duty is justice.

The underlying philosophy of the profession is not money-making. It is something that requires you to ensure that justice is done. It can be economic justice or political justice.

And when you come to the political field, you will see other political cases like Tiv Kaki versus PDP, so many of those cases, pre-election and post-election litigations. They are all there in the law reports.

So, it is not in my character to blow my trumpet. Anyone who wants to know what I have done, my contribution to legal knowledge, scholarship and the jurisprudence of this country can Google me and find them in the law reports.

‘Your Tomorrow Is In Your Hands’

Pinnacle Daily: Your story is inspiring. What is your advice to young Nigerians, especially those from less privileged homes who want to study law but do not have the financial means?

Okutepa: My advice to anyone in the shoes that I was in is to, first of all, take your destiny in your hands.

Your tomorrow is in your hands. It is not in the hands of your uncle. Neither is it even in the hands of your parents.

Your parents can make every arrangement for you. You can take the horse to the river, but you cannot force it to drink.

So, my advice, first to young lawyers and young Nigerians generally, is to be determined and focused.

Set for yourself goals that you desire to attain and work towards them, no matter how difficult it could be. You will get there.

After all, the person using a jet gets to the same place that the person trekking will get to, if the person trekking has endurance.

So, patience is important. Integrity is crucial. Honesty is non-negotiable.

You must therefore decide not to defile yourself, in the language of Daniel, not to defile yourself with the king’s meat. Because whatever you do, except it is not done, people will know.

People know good lawyers from bad lawyers. They know good students from bad students.

And propose in your heart that you will work with your hands, and you will succeed.

After all, God said that whatever you lay your hands to do, you will prosper.

My advice is that young lawyers and young Nigerians should have patience and should not make easy ways of making money their focal point.

Those who want to make it easy may end up having a head-on collision with the law of the land.

And once you have a head-on collision with the law of the land through a process that is not legitimate, that is not correct, and that is surrounded by corrupt motives and evil intentions, you are likely to be found out.

I mean, your sins will find you out. So, I will advise that you have patience.

If I can be where God wants me to be, and I am there, and I am on my way to an even higher ground than where I am now, then you can be too.

Your greatness is not a function of your location or where you come from. It is a function of what God has allocated for you to do and how you work towards acquiring that allocation.

The State Of Nigeria’s Democracy

Pinnacle Daily: Moving to political issues, Nigeria is just months away from another general election, and there have already been concerns about intimidation and attacks. How serious do you think the risk of political violence is, and what should be done before the election?

Okutepa: I don’t know what to say, but speaking for myself, the Nigerian brand of democracy defies logic.

It is not a function of people determining who is to be our leaders. We have made public office so lucrative that those who have nothing before getting to public office become billionaires overnight without question.

So, we only hope and pray that Nigerian people will take their destiny into their hands.

Right now, you see people who have failed in the trust they gave themselves, because they forced themselves on us and took over power from people and claimed that they were going to work for us.

Yet, they are not working for us, and yet we cannot hold them accountable.

If you have read what I wrote on my social media some days ago, I said that bread and butter are the bane of accountability in Nigeria.

Today, poverty is virtually at the doorstep and in the household of everybody. And you are told that over three-something billion has been shared to vulnerable Nigerians, and you cannot lay your hands on any reasonable documents transferring so-and-so amount of money to vulnerable people in the villages.

I come from the village, and nobody in my village, which is part of Nigeria, has ever benefited a dime from that so-called distribution of money to vulnerable people.

We heard of Empower Traders, Money Point and all of those things.

You see, these are political avenues that people invented while in power in order to take our commonwealth without accountability.

‘Our Problem Is Not The Absence Of Law’

Pinnacle Daily: What, in your view, is the fundamental problem with Nigeria’s democracy?

Okutepa: Until we are able to have leaders who have the love of the Nigerian masses at heart and leaders who are ready to enforce the law of the land, we will continue to have problems.

Because our problem in Nigeria, in my humble view, and the problem of democracy, is not the absence of law. It is not the absence of law, but the willingness to enforce the law.

The problem of democracy is not the absence of the judiciary. It is the absence of independence of the judiciary.

The judiciary and the legal profession holding political actors accountable- that is the problem we have.

And when you look at even the elections that were purported to have been conducted as a professional association of lawyers, it leaves much to be desired.

When salt becomes tasteless, then what do you say about everything else that it is intended to preserve?

Salt must have taste to preserve.

And when fire becomes cold at the material time it is needed for the purposes of doing something good for the people, then what do you say about it?

We are in a society where those who have the responsibility to do what is right prefer to follow what is wrong.

Freedom Of Movement And Political Campaigns

Pinnacle Daily: We have seen instances where political figures have faced obstacles while trying to visit or campaign in certain states. Does the Constitution permit authorities to restrict a politician’s movement?

Okutepa: The Constitution, as I have said, guarantees freedom of movement.

Not too long ago, a presidential candidate was stopped from moving. Despite the fact that under Sections 39 and 40 of the Nigerian Constitution, freedom of movement and related rights are protected.

We are in a country where a governor will wake up and say he is banishing a traditional ruler to one portion of the country.

But if you look at the Nigerian Constitution, the 1999 Constitution, Section 1(1), it says the Constitution is supreme and has binding force on all persons and authorities, including politicians, presidents and governors, legislators and the judiciary.

Most, if not virtually everything in Nigeria, has been done in breach of the law.

And if you follow me well, I have consistently said, and I mean it, that nobody respects the law of the land.

The judiciary does not. The executive does not. And the legislature does not.

In fact, even ordinary citizens prefer to do things contrary to the law rather than follow the law.

There is nowhere democracy thrives where the rule of law has taken a back seat. Every advanced country that has flourished in democratic principles has the rule of law as its bedrock. In other words, when things are not done according to law, democracy suffers shipwreck.

So, we can only hope and pray that Nigerians will one day come to a conclusion that enough is enough.

Pinnacle Daily: Does a presidential candidate need to inform a governor before coming into a state for a political rally?

Okutepa: Protocol demands it, yes.

Not necessarily informing the governor as a legal requirement. You need to inform the police that you are coming for a rally.

Maybe Peter Obi, as a high-ranking politician seeking to become Commander-in-Chief, out of courtesy, can pick up his phone and speak to the governor: “I am coming to Benue.”

It is the duty of the governor, as the chief executive officer of the state, to receive him and ensure the safety of his life.

So, it is not out of place to do so.

If I were to run for the presidency or any office in this country, I do not see how politics in Nigeria has become such a destructive competition, because it is not politics of ideas.

In a marketplace of ideas, the essential commodity is the superiority of arguments or what you can do, and then people will have to buy your idea.

That is why there are periodic elections. You renew your mandate, or you get punished for misconduct.

Promises, Performance And Governance

Pinnacle Daily: You have criticised political leaders for making promises that they eventually fail to fulfil. What is your assessment of governance in Nigeria?

Okutepa: In Nigeria, politicians will wake up, promise you heaven and earth, and at the end of the day, when the time for accountability comes, they change their mouths.

Were we not told that electricity would be free? Were we not told that roads would be tarred?

But if you go to virtually every part of this country, the roads are in very dilapidated states.

Apart from Governor Alex Otti, for instance, who I am told is making judicious use of the allocation to the state by the things we see, most government developments are by advertisement.

I have always argued that a man or woman who advertises his achievements is a failure, because success is visible and recorded.

For instance, I do not need to put a signboard to tell a person that I am a lawyer. I do not need to put a signboard on the road to tell anybody that I can see.

So, I do not need to put a signboard to tell anybody who plies Nigerian roads that the roads of Nigeria are bad.

You need to take a trip from here to Kaduna, take a trip from here to Kogi, or from here to Akwanga. From Akwanga to Jos, you need to pray very seriously to have a good car.

Or you are coming from Makurdi through Akurba, on your way to Kabba. Apart from not knowing who will be waiting for you to take you to the bush, the road itself is as dangerous as every other thing.

It is because of the bad nature of the road that a kidnapper can lie in wait and stop you.

If you are coming at top speed on a good road, no kidnapper will want to stand on the road.

But the roads are bad.

‘Enough Is Enough’: Nigerians And Corruption

Pinnacle Daily: You have spoken strongly about corruption and public accountability. What do you think Nigerians should do differently?

Okutepa: Until Nigerians come to their right senses and say enough is enough, those who have the propensity to cheat and are enjoying the dividends of cheating will continue to do so until the people being cheated say, “No, enough is enough.”

I have propounded a very dangerous theory at one point in time, and some people asked why I should say so. But I want to say it again: let every one of us continue to steal.

We steal and we steal. You steal, I steal, until there is nothing to steal again. Then we will come to our right senses that stealing is bad.

Otherwise, the resources that God has given to us, if we have leaders who apply these resources equitably and justly, to the good and greatest benefit of everybody, Nigeria will be where we ought to be.

But today, you see a certified thief, well certified by the people, being given a ticket to go to the Senate and then promising that the moment he gets to the Senate, he will make laws to fight corruption.

So, how does a thief make a law to outlaw stealing?

The Legislature And The Question Of Accountability

Pinnacle Daily: Are we putting too much emphasis on the judiciary and ignoring the role of the legislature in Nigeria’s governance crisis?

Okutepa: We also need to take a critical look at those who make laws for us.

The Constitution has given power to the three arms of government.

We have hammered too much on the judiciary. Let us also hammer on the legislative arm of government that has the power of impeachment, which has not been used, and which has powers of checks and balances and oversight functions.

Where oversight functions have become an avenue for political enrichment and aggrandisement, then there can be no oversight.

That is why you have always heard about budget padding.

What have our legislators across the 36 states of the federation done?

The National Assembly, have they been able to hold the executive accountable? And why?

Because they are in the same shoes. They are beneficiaries of a rotten process.

Otherwise, the law and the Constitution are very detailed about the power of the National Assembly to remove a President through a process that Nigerians popularly know as impeachment.

We have not been able to use that.

When Critics Become Defenders

Pinnacle Daily: What explains the sudden change in position among some Nigerians who once spoke strongly against injustice but later defend the same system they criticised?

Okutepa: You discover that those who were firebrands, speaking against an unjust system in this country, are the ones defending it now because they are observing table manners.

Just name it. Who and who are around the people lording it over us now?

Even within the mass media, I know of a friend who was a firebrand. He always consulted with me and spoke about national issues but simply making his father a traditional ruler, he shifted allegiance and loyalty and analysis.

So, my view is that for Nigeria to be good, we must be consistently consistent.

We must reject what is evil and embrace what is good, no matter the cost.

This interview continues in Part Two, where Okutepa turns his attention to some of the most contentious issues in Nigeria’s political and electoral landscape, including questions surrounding President Bola Tinubu’s academic credentials, constitutional qualifications for political office, election malpractice, vote buying, political accountability and voter apathy ahead of the 2027 elections. Anticipate!

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Rafiyat SADIQ

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Rafiyat Sadiq is a political, justice, and human rights reporter with Pinnacle Daily, known for fearless reporting and impactful storytelling. At Pinnacle Daily, she brings clarity and depth to issues shaping governance, democracy, and the protection of citizens’ rights.

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