THE National Catholic Lawyers Association, Abuja, had their 7th Annual St. Thomas More lecture in Abuja, on June 22 and rounded off its one week programme with a Thanksgiving Mass on Sunday.

Present at the lecture with Prof. Chidi Odinkalu as lead keynote speaker was John Cardinal Onaiyekan, Catholic Archbishop of Abuja.

Odinkalu delivering the lecture on the Separation of  Powers: An Imperative for Democracy, posited that the problem with our country does not lie in absence of good policies and institutions to run it but consists more in  our values and belief system, lack of political will power to carry all parties in the country along.

He said the problem lies with both the government and the governed who ignore the right merits to hail and celebrate those who plunder and  make away with the  common wealth of the people.

According to him, we have to have more altruistic leaders, get our values right  where the strong will necessarily carry the weak along while considering the exigencies of the institutions with the Federal Character commission in sight.

He insisted that what we need is a strengthening of our institutions and a re-examination of our value system where meritocracy rules, whether from the North or South  provided he or she is not caught up with the  sentiments of favouritism, or web of tribalism, ethnicity, nepotism among others.

He said only then will things begin to work with proper checks and balances between the three arms of government – the executive, the Legislature, the Judiciary;  each operating within the delineated powers accorded it in the provisions of the Constitution within  the ambience of a free society, where constructive  criticism is allowed  so as to  have positive inputs from the governed. Then we shall have a true and laudable democracy, he said.

In a practical demonstration of a  true altruistic politician and statesman which is what the Nigeria needs, he cited the example of St Thomas More  a lawyer, an English statesmen and politician, who died for love of God and service of King and country. St Thomas More is the patron Saint of Catholic Lawyers and good politicians and Statesmen.

He enjoined all lawyers, politicians and statesmen to emulate the saint.

—  Jun 26, 2017 @ 8:50 GMT