Nigeria's former attorney-general Dr Olu Onagoruwa passes away at the ripe old age of 80

ONE-time human rights activist and former attorney-general of the federation and justice minister Dr Olu Onagoruwa passed away in the early hours of today at the ripe old age of 80.

Dr Onagoruwa was appointed attorney-general by the late head of state General Sani Abacha, in November 1993. He, however, quit the post few months later due to agreements with the then military government.

One of Nigeria's foremost lawyers, Dr Onagoruwa studied law at the University of London where he obtained his LL.B, LL.M and PhD degrees before returning to the country, where he attended the Nigerian Law School. He established the Onagoruwa Chambers in the early 80s and became a key figure in Nigeria’s human rights struggle.

After leaving office in 1993, Dr Onagoruwa was appointed as the African representative to the body that drafted Ethiopia’s constitution in that year. He was also the group legal adviser/company secretary of Daily Times Nigeria for several years.

His core practice areas included constitutional law, legislative matters, banking and insolvency, oil and gas, telecommunication law and litigation. He wrote several books and has to his credit over 250 published articles.