Lateef Adegbite
Encyclopedia
Lateef Adegbite is a lawyer who became Attorney General of the Western Region
of Nigeria
, and who later became Secretary-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs.
, Ogun State.
According to one account, he attended Methodist School, Abeokuta.
He says himself that he attended Arabic School, then entered St. Paul’s Primary School in Igbore, Abeokuta in 1942, when he was aged nine.
Adegbite obtained a scholarship to attend King's College, Lagos
, where he was co-founder and first National president of the Muslim Students' Society of Nigeria, graduating in 1956.
In 1959 the Western Region Premier Chief Obafemi Awolowo
awarded him a scholarship to travel to England to study for a Law degree under a plan drafted by Chief F.R.A. Williams.
Adegbite attended the University of Southampton
, graduating with a B.A. in Law in July 1962.
He then studied at the College of Law for Solicitors, Lancaster Gate
in London
, and then at Gray's Inn
(1963–1965).
Later he won a Commonwealth Scholarship
for post-graduate studies in England.
He began his career teaching law at the University of Lagos
, holding this position until retiring to go into private practice in September 1976.
.
He was then appointed Commissioner for Justice and Attorney-General of the Western Region in 1973.
In October 1976 he founded the legal firm of Lateef Adegbite & Co as the Principal Partner, with main office in Lagos and a branch office in Abeokuta, specializing in Commercial and Corporate Law.
The Abeokuta office is in Ago-Oba
.
He was one of the founders of the Abeokuta Social Club in 1972.
Adegbite was president of the Nigeria Olympic Committee
from 1972 to 1985.
He was Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of the University of Maiduguri
from 1984 to 1990.
He became a member of the Executive Committee of the Lagos State Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
He became a Director of Industrial and General Insurance Plc.
Adegbite was appointed a Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON).
He holds the traditional titles of Seriki of Egbaland and Baba Adinni of Egba Muslims.
On 9 March 2011 President Goodluck Jonathan
appointed him Chairman of a Presidential Committee on Public Awareness on Security and Civic Responsibilities.
law.
He has stated "Muslims have no other constitution and law apart from what Sharia had laid down. Sharia as a divine law supersedes all other civil and moral laws".
He was to support efforts by M.K.O. Abiola to introduce Sharia to the southern states in the early 1990s.
He reasserted this position in December 2002 during a period of heightened tension between Christians and Muslims.
Adegbite was chairman of the Ogun State Pilgrims Board and a member of the National Pilgrims Board.
When Ibrahim Dasuki became Sultan of Sokoto in 1988 and President-General of the Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Adegbite was appointed Secretary-General of the council.
Under the leadership of Adegbite and Dasuki the NSCIA, which had been established in 1974, became much more active.
In late 2002 and early 2003, Adegbite was engaged in a public dispute with the Nobel prize winning author Wole Soyinka
, who accused Muslim leaders of inciting violence after rioting in Kaduna
had led to many people being killed. The origin was opposition by Muslims to staging the Miss World
beauty contest in Nigeria.
The riots were triggered by what were taken to be blasphemous statements by a Christian newspaper reporter, Isioma Daniel
, who wrote that if the Prophet had attended the event he might have picked one of the contestants as a wife.
Later the deputy governor of Zamfara State
, Mamauda Aliyu Shinkafi, was reported to have said in a public speech that it might be lawful for a Muslim to shed the blood of Isioma Daniel. Adegbite immediately rejected this position, since the journalist was not Muslim and the newspaper had apologised publicly.
Adegbite stated in an October 2003 newspaper article that "the US and their allies should be persuaded to accept that the prevailing international terror would reduce considerably if justice is entrenched in the Middle East. Give the Palestinians back their land, there will no longer [be] platforms for the Osama bin Ladens of this world to thrive. Without justice there can be no peace".
When UNESCO
arranged a conference on inter-religious dialog in Abuja
in December 2003, Adegbite was invited to speak on The role of religious leaders in conflict resolution.
Western Region, Nigeria
The Western Region was a subdivision of the federation of Nigeria until 1967. Its capital was at Ibadan.It was established in the 1930s under British rule as a subdivision of the Southern Nigeria colony...
of Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, and who later became Secretary-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs.
Birth and education
Abdu-Lateef Oladimeji Adegbite was born on 20 March 1933 into a strictly Moslem Egba family in AbeokutaAbeokuta
Abeokuta is the largest city and capital of Ogun State in southwest Nigeria and is situated at , on the Ogun River; 64 miles north of Lagos by railway, or 81 miles by water. As of 2005, Abeokuta and the surrounding area had a population of 593,140....
, Ogun State.
According to one account, he attended Methodist School, Abeokuta.
He says himself that he attended Arabic School, then entered St. Paul’s Primary School in Igbore, Abeokuta in 1942, when he was aged nine.
Adegbite obtained a scholarship to attend King's College, Lagos
King's College, Lagos
King's College, Lagos is a secondary school in Lagos, Lagos State, Nigeria. It was founded on 20 September 1909 with 10 students on its original site at Lagos Island, adjacent to Tafawa Balewa Square. The school admits male students only, although there were some female HSC students before the...
, where he was co-founder and first National president of the Muslim Students' Society of Nigeria, graduating in 1956.
In 1959 the Western Region Premier Chief Obafemi Awolowo
Obafemi Awolowo
Jeremiah Obafemi Awolowo was a Nigerian politician, trade unionist, author and statesman. A Yoruba and native of Ikenne in Ogun State of Nigeria, he started his career as a regional political leader like most of his pre-independence contemporaries and was responsible for much of the progressive...
awarded him a scholarship to travel to England to study for a Law degree under a plan drafted by Chief F.R.A. Williams.
Adegbite attended the University of Southampton
University of Southampton
The University of Southampton is a British public university located in the city of Southampton, England, a member of the Russell Group. The origins of the university can be dated back to the founding of the Hartley Institution in 1862 by Henry Robertson Hartley. In 1902, the Institution developed...
, graduating with a B.A. in Law in July 1962.
He then studied at the College of Law for Solicitors, Lancaster Gate
Lancaster Gate
Lancaster Gate is a mid-19th century development in the Bayswater district of west central London, immediately to the north of Kensington Gardens. It consists of two long terraces of houses overlooking the park, with a wide gap between them opening onto a square containing a church. Further...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and then at Gray's Inn
Gray's Inn
The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court in London. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wales, an individual must belong to one of these Inns...
(1963–1965).
Later he won a Commonwealth Scholarship
Commonwealth Scholarship
The Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan is an international programme under which Commonwealth governments offer scholarships and fellowships to citizens of other Commonwealth countries.-History:...
for post-graduate studies in England.
He began his career teaching law at the University of Lagos
University of Lagos
The University of Lagos - popularly known as Unilag - is a federal government university with a main campus located at Akoka, Yaba and a college of medicine located at Idi-Araba, all in Lagos, Lagos State, southern Nigeria...
, holding this position until retiring to go into private practice in September 1976.
Later career
In 1971 Adegbite was appointed Commissioner for Local Governments and Chieftancy Matters in the old Western Region of Nigeria during the military administration of Brigadier Christopher Oluwole RotimiChristopher Oluwole Rotimi
Christopher Oluwole Rotimi is a Nigerian Army officer, diplomat and politician. A distinguished officer, he eventually rose to the rank of Brigadier General. He served during the Biafran War,and was the Governor of Western State while Nigeria was under military rule from 1971 - 1975...
.
He was then appointed Commissioner for Justice and Attorney-General of the Western Region in 1973.
In October 1976 he founded the legal firm of Lateef Adegbite & Co as the Principal Partner, with main office in Lagos and a branch office in Abeokuta, specializing in Commercial and Corporate Law.
The Abeokuta office is in Ago-Oba
Ago-Oba
Ago-Oba is electoral ward 13 in the city of Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria.It is part of the Abeokuta South Local Government Area.-Location:...
.
He was one of the founders of the Abeokuta Social Club in 1972.
Adegbite was president of the Nigeria Olympic Committee
Nigeria Olympic Committee
The Nigeria Olympic Committee is the National Olympic Committee for Nigeria, responsible for coordinating and supporting Nigerian competitors in the Olympic Games.-Leadership:...
from 1972 to 1985.
He was Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of the University of Maiduguri
University of Maiduguri
The University of Maiduguri is located in Maiduguri, a city in Borno State in northeast Nigeria. The university was created by the federal government in 1975, with the intention of its becoming one of the country's principal higher-education institutions...
from 1984 to 1990.
He became a member of the Executive Committee of the Lagos State Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
He became a Director of Industrial and General Insurance Plc.
Adegbite was appointed a Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON).
He holds the traditional titles of Seriki of Egbaland and Baba Adinni of Egba Muslims.
On 9 March 2011 President Goodluck Jonathan
Goodluck Jonathan
Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan, GCFR, BNER, GCON is the 14th Head of State and current President of Nigeria.He was Governor of Bayelsa State from 9 December 2005 to 28 May 2007, and was sworn in as Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on 29 May 2007. Jonathan is a member of the...
appointed him Chairman of a Presidential Committee on Public Awareness on Security and Civic Responsibilities.
Muslim leader
At the constituent assembly in 1976, Adegbite argued in favor of introducing Islamic courts of appeal into the southern states of Nigeria, arguing that Muslims had the right to have their affairs judged according to ShariaSharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
law.
He has stated "Muslims have no other constitution and law apart from what Sharia had laid down. Sharia as a divine law supersedes all other civil and moral laws".
He was to support efforts by M.K.O. Abiola to introduce Sharia to the southern states in the early 1990s.
He reasserted this position in December 2002 during a period of heightened tension between Christians and Muslims.
Adegbite was chairman of the Ogun State Pilgrims Board and a member of the National Pilgrims Board.
When Ibrahim Dasuki became Sultan of Sokoto in 1988 and President-General of the Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Adegbite was appointed Secretary-General of the council.
Under the leadership of Adegbite and Dasuki the NSCIA, which had been established in 1974, became much more active.
In late 2002 and early 2003, Adegbite was engaged in a public dispute with the Nobel prize winning author Wole Soyinka
Wole Soyinka
Akinwande Oluwole "Wole" Soyinka is a Nigerian writer, poet and playwright. He was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature, where he was recognised as a man "who in a wide cultural perspective and with poetic overtones fashions the drama of existence", and became the first African in Africa and...
, who accused Muslim leaders of inciting violence after rioting in Kaduna
Kaduna
Kaduna is the state capital of Kaduna State in north-central Nigeria. The city, located on the Kaduna River, is a trade center and a major transportation hub for the surrounding agricultural areas with its rail and road junction. The population of Kaduna is at 760,084 as of the 2006 Nigerian census...
had led to many people being killed. The origin was opposition by Muslims to staging the Miss World
Miss World
The Miss World pageant is the oldest surviving major international beauty pageant. It was created in the United Kingdom by Eric Morley in 1951...
beauty contest in Nigeria.
The riots were triggered by what were taken to be blasphemous statements by a Christian newspaper reporter, Isioma Daniel
Isioma Daniel
Isioma Nkemdilim Nkiruka Daniel is a Nigerian journalist whose 2002 newspaper article comment involving the Islamic prophet Muhammad sparked major religious riots and caused a fatwa to be issued on her life.-The 2002 Nigeria riots:...
, who wrote that if the Prophet had attended the event he might have picked one of the contestants as a wife.
Later the deputy governor of Zamfara State
Zamfara State
Zamfara State is a state in northwestern Nigeria. Its capital is Gusau and its Governor is Abdul'aziz Abubakar Yari, a member of the All Nigeria Peoples Party . Until 1996 the area was part of Sokoto State....
, Mamauda Aliyu Shinkafi, was reported to have said in a public speech that it might be lawful for a Muslim to shed the blood of Isioma Daniel. Adegbite immediately rejected this position, since the journalist was not Muslim and the newspaper had apologised publicly.
Adegbite stated in an October 2003 newspaper article that "the US and their allies should be persuaded to accept that the prevailing international terror would reduce considerably if justice is entrenched in the Middle East. Give the Palestinians back their land, there will no longer [be] platforms for the Osama bin Ladens of this world to thrive. Without justice there can be no peace".
When UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
arranged a conference on inter-religious dialog in Abuja
Abuja
Abuja is the capital city of Nigeria. It is located in the centre of Nigeria, within the Federal Capital Territory . Abuja is a planned city, and was built mainly in the 1980s. It officially became Nigeria's capital on 12 December 1991, replacing Lagos...
in December 2003, Adegbite was invited to speak on The role of religious leaders in conflict resolution.