Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, the governor of Rivers State, has described how he was arrested and arraigned alongside his father and all the adult males in his family over a ‘trumped up’ murder charge stemming from a dispute over chieftaincy title in his community.
Wike, who spoke at the 65th birthday celebration of Emmauel C. Ukala, a Port Harcourt-based Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), also recounted how robbery charges were leveled against him in an attempt to prevent him from taking over as chairman of the Obio-Akpor Local Government Area after he won election.
He claimed that it was only because of Ukala’s intervention as their lead counsel that they were released and acquitted of the murder charges.
“At one point, the entire family was charged with murder, and every male was taken away.” Only women with children between the ages of one and five remained in the house. I was studying law at Rivers State University of Science and Technology, which is now Rivers State University, at the time.”
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Governor Wike revealed that the legal luminary, with whom he worked after graduating from the Nigerian Law School, took his family’s ordeal very personally and did everything in his power to ensure that they received justice.
When he declared his intention to run for chairman of the Obio-Akpor Local Government Area in 1998, some callous politicians in his constituency banded together and conspired with the police to frame him for armed robbery, according to the governor.
He claimed that it was only because of Ukala’s intervention as their lead counsel that they were released and acquitted of the murder charges.
“At one point, the entire family was charged with murder, and every male was taken away.” Only women with children between the ages of one and five remained in the house. I was studying law at Rivers State University of Science and Technology, which is now Rivers State University, at the time.”
Governor Wike revealed that the legal luminary, with whom he worked after graduating from the Nigerian Law School, took his family’s ordeal very personally and did everything in his power to ensure that they received justice.
When he declared his intention to run for chairman of the Obio-Akpor Local Government Area in 1998, some callous politicians in his constituency banded together and conspired with the police to frame him for armed robbery, according to the governor.
“Then, most people may not believe it, but he never collected a dime from the governorship tribunal to the Supreme Court during my governorship election.”
Wike lavished praise on Ukala on Tuesday night in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, as his children, relatives, and friends gathered to celebrate his 65th birthday. Dr. T. C. Osanakpo presided over the event (SAN).
The Governor, who was accompanied by his wife, Hon. Justice Eberechi Suzzette Nyesom-Wike, said Ukala had been his family’s lawyer before he went to Rivers State University of Science and Technology, now Rivers State University, to study law.
Wike praised Ukala for being a worthy mentor to him and his wife when they first started their legal practice in Port Harcourt, describing him as a refined and disciplined lawyer.
The Rivers State governor praised the celebrant’s children for choosing to honor their parents, Emmanuel and Dr Kate Ukala, in honor of all the sacrifices they have made in raising them to be responsible citizens.
God has endowed Ukala with great learning and wisdom, which he has put to good use in the defense of the vulnerable in society, according to Sokoto State Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice, Suleiman Usman (SAN).
“As a member of the Legal Practitioner Disciplinary Committee, I have worked under your close supervision and agree with all of the compliments that have been heaped on you today.” “You’re a one-man institution,” says the narrator.
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Former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Okey Wali (SAN), stated that when he assumed leadership of the Bar, one of the major challenges he faced was the issue of lawyer indiscipline.
To address the issue head on, he said Ukala was appointed to the NBA’s Legal Practitioner Disciplinary Committee, and the Bar’s discipline was restored before he left office.
Governor Wike, his wife, and everyone who graced the occasion were thanked by Ukala, who said he was duped by his children into attending the surprise birthday party they secretly organized.
