Power changed hand penultimate week when a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN emerged the president-elect at the just-concluded election of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA).
New dawn
Recently, legal practitioners in Nigeria elected their new executives, who are expected to pilot the affairs of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) for the next two years.
In the much publicised virtual election held in Abuja, Afam Osigwe, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), emerged against all odds as the association’s 32nd president.
Osigwe, a former General Secretary of the association between 2014 and 2016, was declared the winner after polling 20,435 votes to defeat Tobenna Erojikwe, SAN and Chukwuka Ikuazom, who got 10,998 votes, and 9,018 votes respectively.
In the same election, Sabastine Anyia polled 12,114 votes, defeating his closest rival, Barthlomew Aguegbodo, who scored 6,864 votes to become the 1st Vice-President of the association.
For the position of the 2nd Vice-President, Bolatumi Olasunbo Animashun polled 26,534 votes to defeat Pius Idemudia Oiwoh’s 11,121 votes.
Similarly, Zainab Aminu Garba defeated Mr. Michael Olarewaju Olorunmola to emerge as the 3rd Vice-President, having polled 23,550 votes against Olorunmola’s 13,897 votes.
The General Secretary position went to Dr. Mobolaji Idris Ojibara, formerly of Kwara NBA branch helmsman who scored 25,713 votes to defeat Mr. Abdulwasiu Alpha, who scored 11,730 votes.
With the result, the Osigwe-led new executives would in the next few days be sworn-in to succeed the outgoing President, Yakubu Maikyau (SAN).
The inauguration of the new president and other national officers will be held during the NBA annual conference slated for the 23 and 28 August in Lagos.
The NBA President is by statutes, a member of the National Judicial Council (NJC), the body responsible for the appointment and discipline of judges; a member of the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC), the body responsible for the appointment of lawyers into the inner Bar as SANs; and a member of the Council of Legal Education, the body responsible for the admission of would be lawyers into the Nigerian Law School.
He is also a member of the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC), the body responsible for the punishment of lawyers who breach the ethics of the legal profession; and finally, he is also a member of the Nigerian Law Reform Commission.
The speeches that follows
While making a speech after the election, the outgoing President of the NBA, Mr. Yakubu Maikyau, SAN, implored those that lost at the poll to take the outcome in good faith and join the winners to move the association forward.
Also in his acceptance speech, the new President of the legal body lauded his opponents, assuring that he would run an inclusive administration that would collaborate with relevant stakeholders to ensure the protection and promotion of rule of law in the country.
He also thanked his campaign team, advisers, and supporters, acknowledging their crucial roles in his success.
“This election demonstrates our shared commitment to advancing justice and fostering a more inclusive legal community. We are not just facing challenges; we are seizing the opportunity to transform our legal system,” he said.
Going forward, Osigwe promised to lead a proactive Bar committed to vigilance and innovation.
He also vowed to push for the modernisation of Nigeria’s court systems, saying he would support integrating digital technologies to expedite case management and ensure efficient justice delivery.
“Under my leadership, our Bar will focus on addressing potential challenges before they escalate,” he stated.
The intrigues
The election was not without its own controversy as some aggrieved aspirants kicked before and after the election.
A particular candidate and his group fingered the presidency for tilting towards a particular candidate.
In the middle of the election, one of the candidates, Ikwuazom, a former chairperson of NBA, Lagos branch, announced his withdrawal from the race, alleging that the process was compromised to ensure a predetermined outcome, insisting that the vote counts did not reflect the support he received.
He said, “It has become increasingly evident that the integrity of the electoral process has been compromised. Despite the overwhelming support from my dedicated supporters, the reported figures do not align with the true expression of our votes. As a candidate committed to upholding transparency and the rule of law, I cannot in good conscience continue to participate in a compromised electoral process.”
But reacting, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), was quick to dispel the rumour.
Fagbemi was quoted as saying; the purported president’s backing of Osigwe was a lie.
In the statement, Fagbemi maintained that President Tinubu did not instruct anyone to campaign for any candidate.
“He (Tinubu) will abide by the outcome of a free and fair election and is ready to work with any candidate that emerges,” Fagbemi added in the statement.
Challenges, setting an agenda
As the new executive takes over the leadership of the NBA, stakeholders in the legal firmament expect it to among other things restore the lost glory of the association.
It would be recalled that the body had for some time been contending with rumored division, which almost split it into two before intervention.
The internal disagreement while it lasted saw some aggrieved members threatening to pull out and form a parallel association of legal practitioners in the country.
Maikyau, Blueprint recalled, was sometimes accused of running a one-man show, as well as spending a whopping N700 million on conference bags used at the NBA 2023 Annual General Conference.
Firing his own salvo, Maikyau also bombed his predecessor, Mr. Olumide Akpata, alleging fraud over the launch of the NBA portal.
In recent times, the association has also dragged itself before the court of law for certain interpretations.
The chairman of the NBA Section on Public Interest and Development Law (NBA-SPIDEL), Mr. John Aikpokpo-Martins, was sacked by the Maikyau-led NBA for engaging in activities that allegedly undermined the authority of the President.
Dissatisfied, the sacked executives went to court, where it is currently challenging the powers of the NBA council to remove them from office.
While speaking on his expectations from the President-elect, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Mike Ahamba, charged NBA to be courageous, and be a watchdog of government and the polity in general.
Awa Kalu, Another SAN and Professor of Law appealed to the new helmsman to direct the affairs of the NBA in a favourable way and justify the mandate reposed in him with a view to moving the Association forward.
“The Bar has come a long way, has seen vibrant presidents and seen how the affairs of the Bar are managed, and I think he would do well,” Kalu said.
A Human a rights lawyer and activist, Professor Mike Ozekhome (SAN), tasked the new NBA head on rebranding.
The new leadership according to Ozekhome should rise to the challenge and be proactive in championing the cause of justice, and in widening the scope of justice attainment and justice delivery,
“I must warn him that he should avoid the pitfalls of the last two NBA administrations where we saw internal wrangling among elected officers. It shows a divided house and a divided house cannot stand, and it remains an embarrassment to the entire image of the NBA when the whole world is watching us dancing naked in the marketplace”, Ozekhome said.
His profile
Osigwe, whose legal career has spanned 25 years from when he was called to the Bar in 1999, is set to take over as the 32nd NBA president when the outgoing president, Yakubu Maikyau, who represents the Northern zone, completes his two-year tenure in August. Osigwe became a Senior Advocate of Nigeria in 2020.
As the new Sheriff mounts the saddle, it remained to be seen how he use law as an instrument of socioeconomic and political development as advocated by stakeholders in the legal community to salvage the association and country at large.
