March 26, 2018

President Muhammadu Buhari has joined the Nigerian Bar Association and the Nigerian Body of Benchers in mourning the passing away of a prominent lawyer, bencher and jurist, Chief Idowu Sofola.

In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina in Abuja on Monday, Buhari condoled with the government and people of Ogun over Sofola’s death.

The president also commiserated with the Yoruba Elders Council, family and friends of the legal luminary whose successful career over the years chronicles the history and shaping of Nigeria’s legal framework.

According to him, the elder statesman’s lifelong commitment to learning, and yearning for a better life for the weak and vulnerable, distinguished him early as a leader and role model among his peers.

President Buhari commended Sofola’s contribution to “national development, especially in community and human services that have seen many get right judgments, while others got inspirations to rise in the legal profession, reaching the peak of their careers as Senior Advocates of Nigeria.’’

He prayed that God will comfort the family he left behind, and grant his soul eternal rest.

Sofola, born on Sept. 29, 1934, died on Friday in Lagos at the age of 84.

Sofola, who was the first black to be appointed the Secretary of the International Bar Association, had headed both the Nigerian Bar Association and the Nigerian Body of Benchers.