By Kayode Adeoti
Death is believed to be inevitable end for every being. The demise of Chief Magistrate Adetoro Nurudeen Adeyanju exemplies this. The jurist ended his earthly sojourn on earth on Saturday 12th October, 2019 that brought to an abrupt end his mission on earth.
Adeyanju was until his death a chief magistrate at the Kwara High Court.
He was reportedly pronounced dead 10:44am on the fateful day at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH) after battling a debilitating ailment believed to be cancer of the liver for years.
Adeyanju might not have lived for so long as Methuselah, ( the biblical oldest man), but his brief sojourn on earth has continued to attract beautiful testimonies especially from legal practitioners who have had contact with him.
Like most people who have gone to the world beyond, Adeyanju’s dreams and aspirations died with him.
The jurist who will bowed out of service in four years time, was said to be one of the top contenders for the Kwara High Court bench.
A source at the judiciary confirmed that Adeyanju was among the three magistrates shortlisted for the high court bench, saying his appointment as a judge would have been announced by December.
Cross section of lawyers and members of the bench both within and outside the state, who thronged the burial ceremony on Saturday betrayed emotions while mourning the death of Adeyanju whom they described as a jolly good fellow.
Reacting to the passing of the jurist, the Chief Judge (CJ) of the state, Justice Durosinloun Kawu and Chairman of the Ilorin branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Muhammed Idowu Akande, described him as an upright man who lived worthy life.
The CJ particularly said that the judiciary will greatly missed him for his humanitarian gestures, saying he has laid enduring legacies that cannot be erased.
Kawu, who reminiscenced on the last moment with the deceased two days before his death, noted that news of his demise of the magistrate came to him and the entire judiciary staff as a huge shock.
According to him, Adeyanju trained most of the young magistrates and was hardworking, adding that positions he held in the past and his contribution to the growth of the judiciary in the state has proved him a worthy man.
“We were disturbed because his death was sudden. Until his death, he was the Chief Registrar Litigation and before, he had been DCR in charge of all the magistrates in the state.”
The Chief Judge regretted that his plan to ensure better treatment for the deceased abroad did not materialise before be gave up the ghost.
According to him, plans had reached advanced stage to seek financial assistance from the state government in order to fly the deceased to India for better medical care.
Also speaking, the Chief Registrar of the court, Chief Magistrate Bola Olainipekun who was appointed magistrate same day with the deceased, described his colleague as a honest jurist who had served diligently.
“Adeyanju was very quiet, gentle to the core, you can hardly offend him, if you’re angry with him, he will just be laughing, because his life was very simple. We joined the service as assistant clerk and through personal effort, he rose through the ranks.”
On his part, the NBA boss described the deceased as one of the finest jurists in the state, saying he was upright until his death.
Akande maintained that Adeyanju was a principled jurist who served equitable justice not minding personality involved in the case.
Also lending his voice, chairman of the Ilorin branch of Young Lawyers’ Forum Forum (YLF), Dauda Olayinka Jimoh expressed sadness over the demise of magistrate Adeyanju.
He noted that though Adeyanju is dead, his works cannot die because he has impacted positively in the lives of many especially young wigs whom he guided during proceedings.
He further described the deceased as a true Muslim who did not abuse the privileges of being a jurist.
He said, “Adeyanju was gentle, calm and grounded in law, he knew his worth as jurist. He was not the type that misused privilege of his position. It is a pity we lost him, ‘Oga’ was very hardworking, tenacious and incorruptible.”
On the roll call of judges who attended the burial ceremony on Saturday were Justice Mahmud Gafar, Justice Sulyman Akanbi, Justice T.S Umaru, Justice Yusuf, Justice Garuba, Justice Abdulkadri and Chief Registrar, Olainipekun.
Also at the event were all the DCRs, magistrates and other judicial staff.
Profile
Adeyanju graduated in 1991 at Usthman Danfodio University, Sokoto State where he obtained degree in Common and Islami Law, he was subsequently called to the Nigerian Bar in 1992.
Adeyanju joined the judiciary 1st January, 1983 as an Assistant Registrar and rose through the ranks to become DCR Magistrate, DCR litigation among other positions he held.
He was appointed DCR Magistrate from 2013 till May 2019 when he was appointed DCR litigation.
He was a member of National Election Petition Tribunal in Nasarawa State.
