WHEN A GIANT TAKES HIS FINAL BOW: TRIBUTE TO PROFESSOR ALFRED BANDELE KASUNMU, SAN BY KEMI PINHEIRO

There are men whose passing is announced by the tolling of bells. There are others whose departure creates a silence so profound that words themselves seem inadequate. Professor Alfred Bandele Kasunmu, SAN, belonged to the latter class.

Prof. Kasunmu was, in every sense, a great man. He was a formidable and forensic advocate, a distinguished scholar, a former Attorney-General of Lagos State and a Professor of Law at the Obafemi Awolowo University and University of Lagos successively. Beyond these titles and accomplishments, he was a lawyer’s lawyer and, above all, a gentleman through and through.

Indeed, at the time of his passing, Prof. was the living most senior Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and, by virtue of that distinction, the statutory Vice-Chairman of the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN). With his passing, that distinction and position now fall on Chief Folake Solanke, SAN, herself a towering figure of the Nigerian Bar. It is a measure of the stature of Professor Kasunmu that he occupied that position among the very finest advocates of his generation.

That, in itself, tells a story. It tells the story of a man who had become, over the decades, a living institution of the Nigerian Bar; a man whose name carried weight in the courtroom, in the academy and in the administration of justice; aman who belonged to that rare generation whose presence alone commanded respect.

I knew the distinguished Senior Advocate on both sides of the courtroom. In one of the cases I conducted in my first decade of practice (Dioudonne Donnie Ngnoumen v Texaco Overseas), my client of blessed memory, the late Dioudonne (Donnie) Ngnoumen, faced the full force of Prof’s advocacy. Prof. was on the other side, cross-examining our witness and, what a cross-examination it was! Precise, penetrating and devastating. He had that rare ability to dismantle an adversary’s case, piece by piece, without ever losing his remarkable wit and composure. He could inflict forensic damage and somehow make it look almost elegant. There was theatre in his advocacy; there was intellect in every question; there was purpose behind every pause.
Prof’s celebrated photographic memory was extraordinary. His intellectual rigour was legendary. His command of the law was formidable; and perhaps even more enduring was his commitment to mentoring generations of Nigerian lawyers and judges. But the man I remember most is not the formidable advocate who stood across the courtroom from me. It is the man who stood beside me when I needed him most.

My most enduring memory of Professor Kasunmu is not of him as my adversary; it is of him as my friend. Twenty-one years ago, during one of the most difficult periods of my career, I needed a lawyer of exceptional courage, intellect and integrity. I did not have to think twice. I did not have to look far. I just knew where to turn; and Prof. did not disappoint me.

Prof. stood by me like the rock of Gibraltar. He defended me like I was of the same bloodline with him. He stood in the breach for me; and he did so without asking for a fee. I had to insist on making a commitment, but his gesture spoke volumes about the man.

Prof. was never driven by money. He was driven by principle, the law and justice; and, when he chose to stand beside you, he stood beside you with the full force of his loyalty.

Prof. was fearsome in court, warm in friendship, generous in spirit and unshakeable in loyalty. His wit could disarm you, his cross-examination could dismantle you, but his friendship could sustain you.

That was the paradox of Professor Alfred Bandele Kasunmu; the man who could make an opponent tremble in court could make a friend feel completely safe outside it; the man whose forensic mind could tear a case apart could use the same formidable intellect to build, encourage and mentor others; the man who commanded respect gave friendship freely; and the man who had every reason to stand on ceremony was, at heart, simply a good man.

Today, the Bar has lost one of its finest forensic minds; the academy has lost a distinguished teacher; the legal profession has lost one of its great repositories of knowledge and experience and those of us privileged to have known him have lost a good man.

Perhaps, after all, the final measure of a man is not the titles he accumulated, but the lives he strengthened and the people who are left saying, ‘I am better for having known him’, the latter group to which I proudly belong.

Legendary philosopher, lawyer and statements from ancient Rome, Marcus Tulius Cisero, would capture my thought when he said:

‘Death can take the man, but the pillars of justice he helped build will stand forever.’

Professor Alfred Bandele Kasunmu, SAN; my friend, my mentor, my confidant, my soldier and my personal and professional ‘uncle’. You may have taken your final bow, but my bow to you is not the mere ‘duffing of hat’, but one of respect, gratitude, admiration and, above all, one of love.

Rest eternally, Prof.

As you valiantly advocated for justice on earth, may the good angels of heaven now advocate for your easy and deserved passage into Paradise; may the gates of heaven open gently to receive you; may the Almighty Judge, before whom every advocate must ultimately appear, receive you with mercy; and may the record of your life speak for you.

‘Kemi Pinheiro, OFR, SAN, LLD, FCIArb.