When judge announced in court my client attempted to bribe him with yams without my knowledge

He is the principal partner of Ogidiolu Simeon Olugbenga Ogidiolu & Co and a former chairman of the Kwara State Christian Pilgrims Board. Called to the bar in 1990, Barrister Olugbenga Ogidiolu had his youth service in the Ministry of Justice, Port Harcourt, Rivers State in the Public Prosecution Department then led by Barrister Adokie Amiesimeka. He practiced for a year in Warri before moving down to Ilorin to establish his private firm. In this interview with ACTING EDITOR, MUMINI ABDULKAREEM, he speaks on his most dramatic experience since he began practice over three decades ago.

The one I can easily recall took place some years ago when I was handling a case before then Magistrate Suleiman Durosinlohun Kawu, now the State Chief Judge. Looking at the fact of that case and everything that transpired, I was very hopeful that we are going to win by the grace of God. We had concluded the giving of evidence, cross examination and had done our addresses so the case was adjourned for judgment. On the day the magistrate was to deliver the judgment, he came into the court and I expect that he would begin to read the judgment. But he called me out and said he was aware that I knew nothing about what he wanted to say. He said after the last adjournment, my client came to his house with some tubers of yam and for that reason; he will not be able to deliver the judgment but transfer it to another magistrate. My client kept me completely in the dark about all his moves. I was not only embarrassed but disappointed. It was a very terrible experience but I was happy that the magistrate had confidence in me that truly I didn’t know anything about it. Then I was still very young at the bar and that incident made me to develop more respect for Kawu then.