In praise of a great lawyer and patriot

It is with deep shock and sadness that we received the passing of Dr. Tunji Braithwaite.

Dr. Braithwaite is undoubtedly one of Nigeria’s foremost, quintessential and undiluted patriots whose abiding quest was the common good and upliftment of the suffering masses.

He was a vocal, courageous and forthright rights activist, lawyer, politician and intellectual who was convinced that only national rebirth and renaissance would lift the country out of its debilitating quagmire.

Dr. Braithwaite was light years ahead of his time, having long warned that unless Nigeria dethroned what he rechristened ‘king corruption,’ the country was doomed to failure. Dr. Braithwaite deployed his prodigious lawyerly skills in fighting injustice and in chastising Nigeria’s traducers. His role in combating military dictatorship is legendary.

Dr. Braithwaite longed for a dynamic country that can fully harness its potentials while demonstrating complete abhorrence to politics without conscience. He also longed for an electoral system that can accommodate people with integrity. We can best honour the memory of this great Nigerian by, as he always urged, taking our destiny in our own hands to wrought a just and egalitarian society.

Our thoughts and prayers are with his family in these difficult times. May his patriotic soul rest in peace, Amen.

ABOUT TUNJI BRAITHWAITE

Tunji Braithwaite was born in 1933, the youngest son of eight children. He was educated at the prestigious C.M.S Grammar School, entering the school’s Preparatory Section in 1946 and completing his education there in 1953. He proceeded to sit for his A Levels at the London  University at Kennington College in 1955 and enrolled in 1957/58 as a Law student at the Council of Legal Education, London. He was admitted into Lincoln’s Inn that same year and graduated as a barrister in 1960.

HIS FIRM

Tunji Braithwaite & Co was established in 1961 by the Principal Dr Tunji Braithwaite.

The firm has been an outstanding legal practice in Nigeria for over 50 years and was at the forefront of commercial activity following Nigeria’s Independence. The firm’s clients include multinationals such as Swissair, (obtaining landing rights for the Airline) Julius Berger (incorporated in Nigeria by Dr Braithwaite in 1965 as they began to construct Eko Bridge), BASF; HOESCHT (both German chemical conglomerates), Carrara Marble Co, and Weide & Co.

EMEKA NWADIOKE