Re: Sahara Reporters’ Publication about James Ocholi – Does it matter where the meat is placed?

A husband returned home after a hectic workday. He went straight to the dining table for his dinner while his wife was busy attending to other things in the house. The wife later asked, "Honey, did you see two pieces of meat I put on your meal?" The man's response was a resounding NO. The wife, apparently surprised, was beginning to think one her children must have picked the meat from the food. Then the man quickly said, "HONEY, THE PIECES OF MEAT WERE NOT ON THE TOP OF MY FOOD, THEY WERE ACTUALLY IMMERSED BENEATH POTTAGE."

The pertinent question here is, does it matter where the man found the meat? He has the full right to eat the meat, and it does not matter what kind of meat and where it is positioned. Lawyers have no other meat to eat in life but the cases they so choose to defend. Lawyers all over the world are allowed to defend anyone, including those who have perpetually committed very horrendous crimes. It does not matter where their clients hail from, where the crime originates from, the nature of the crime, and so on. What counts to them is their ability to prove to the world the innocence of their clients. That is their profession, and we must respect them for that.

James Ocholi (SAN) is constitutionally allowed to defend any case – his piece of meat – in the court of law regardless of where the case originates from. As long as his hands have not been soiled in corruption during the course of defending his clients, we must continue to accord him all due respect. He is one of Nigeria’s finest cognoscenti and emerging change champions, and Nigerians need to treat him as such.

Sahara Reporters team needs some ‘koboko’ (horsewhip) for the ignis fatuus published about James Ocholi on Friday October 30, 2015. Such a story does not deserve an editorial mention by an acclaimed reputable news publishing company like Sahara Reporters. That hateful story strikes one like a piece written by a “learner” who has no iota of understanding of the legal profession. Consequently, the writer does understand that the singular fact that James Ocholi (SAN) by defending any of his clients has not contravened the Nigerian Legal Ethics – one of the criteria for screening him as a ministerial nominee.

Furthermore, James Ocholi was never the defense counsel to the accused in two of the three cases Sahara Reporters mentioned in that malicious piece. James Ocholi was never counsel to Dr. Yunus Nazif, the lecturer accused of terrorism in Kogi State. Nazif’s counsel is Barrister Hassan Liman (SAN). Secondly, Barrister Idigbe (SAN) was the counsel to the former FinBank MD Okey Nwosu. Besides, the said case has been dismissed by the court.

At this point of reference, it is pertinent to cite an example in order to clear the clouds further on this subject, and help Sahara Reporters avoid repeating the same mistake in the future. The case of American defense attorney, John Henry Browne, finds wide expression here. Our primary focus is Attorney Bales’ role in the prosecution of the Kandahar massacre in which Staff Sgt. Robert Bales of the U.S. Army was accused of murdering 16 Afghan citizens (mostly women and children). To avoid death penalty, Bales alongside the US military passionately defended Sgt. Robert with the claim that Robert became extremely upset after seeing a friend’s leg blown off the day before the massacre.

“I think the message for the public in general is that he’s one of our boys and they need to treat him fairly,” Browne said in the court. Also Browne cautioned the US Government officials, maintaining that the government should not blame the massacre on the accused but on the war itself. Browne eventually got life sentence for his client in place of death sentence. Browne has been practicing law for 43 years, and has defended high-profile mass murderers, including serial killer Ted Bundy, who sowed fear across the US in the 1970s.

Finally, those who fail to appreciate the works of a defense attorney like James Ocholi (SAN) should pray that they will never be dragged to the court for a crime they know nothing about or did not commit.

this man is a good ministerial material and not the likes of........ Abeg make i no talk before some people go swallow me.