Dele Adesina, SAN: Praise Singing is a Hard Job | Adeboye ‘Seye Thompson

Asese tun se
ti a ba se yi tan, a o se mi si
asese tun se

(There would always be a repeat.
After this, you will have another event
There would always be a repeat.)

Pardon my crude translation of this Yoruba proverb but it was the best I could come up with in the circumstances. A major part of my growing up was spent supporting my dad who pastored our church (a quite small one). My church had a self-acclaimed master talking drummer who was always fond of playing with his talking drum the above-highlighted proverb, usually used to sing the praises of patrons and equally praying that such wonderful event would recur. Our talking drummer, however, met his ‘waterloo’ when he played this proverb with his talking drum at the burial ceremony of a 40-year old man who had died in a ghastly motor accident. The rest as they say is history! Such is the enormity of praise singing that I rarely embark on it as it could lead to the opposite of one’s intention. How else can you qualify the act of a woman singing “be thou exhausted” while trying to worship God? Her intentions of exalting God almost got Baba God exhausted. That’s on a lighter note, sure we know Baba God can never get exhausted.
Writing about Dele Adesina SAN, could sometimes be seen as praise singing by an average reader, but the fact is, one can hardly be immodest while talking about the learned Silk. William Hazlitt (1778-1830) famously noted that “the greatest offence against virtue is to speak ill of it.” You would never find me speaking ill of a man of virtue like Deacon Adesina SAN. One virtue has particularly stood out in Deacon’s interaction with people over time and this is the virtue of modesty. This coupled with his deep understanding of the tasks ahead of him makes him a stand-out candidate for the office of President of the Bar. It is not uncommon for him to use phrases like ‘by the grace of God’, ‘God willing,’ etc.
Against the background of easily the busiest and most challenging period the NBA and the world at large has seen in recent times, calmness and yet precision are unarguably key assets the next NBA Boss needs to have. Talking about calmness, candour, precision, integrity, experience and capability, the learned Silk Adesina has them in abundance. He is not flatulent (borrowing Prof Olu Obafemi’s word in the poem “Do Gooders”) and his spot-on answers to questions posed at him depict him as a reservoir of knowledge and as someone who is always prepared. His views on partnership as the future of the legal profession amongst other views depict him as someone who aptly understands the past, present and future of the legal profession. Bob Marley’s famous song title “Who the cap fits” is apt at describing the suitability of Deacon Adesina for this role. He is in the words of Confucius, the great one who possesses a perfect virtue resonating around ‘gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness and kindness.” He is who he is, the son of his father. I dare say that praise singing is hard afterall.
Since awaiting NCDC’s daily update has now become a routine, I hope and pray that Coronavirus will today afflict less Nigerians and indeed totally exit the world soonest.

I am Adeboye ‘Seye Thompson and I am a member of the Nigerian Bar Association.