The torn gown: when lawyers go to war

By Nwokoye Mpi

“Unfortunately, the Nigerian Bar Association suffers from the same affliction as the Nigeria State, so they are going to end up necessarily having the presidency zoned to them. So when the presidency now goes back to the north, are they now going to rejoin? And then are the rest of us going to create our own NBA?”

THE 60th conference of the Nigerian Bar Association will be remembered for two reasons: the furore that greeted the dis-invitation of Governor Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna State and the emergence of a ‘splinter’ group among the lawyers’ body.

 El-Rufai had been scheduled to speak at the conference alongside Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State; former Anambra State governor, Peter Obi; former President Olusegun Obasanjo; and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

 But one week to the opening of the conference, and following days of persistent agitation by lawyers against el-Rufai’s presence at the conference, the NBA announced it had withdrawn the invitation extended to the governor. 

 “The National Executive Council of the Nigerian Bar Association at its ongoing meeting resolves that the invitation to the Kaduna State Governor, H.E. Nasir El-Rufai by the 2020 Annual General Meeting Conference Planning Committee be withdrawn and decision communicated to the Governor,” the NBA said in a statement on August 20.”

 The decision sparked commendation and condemnation across the NBA membership, with several branches threatening to boycott the conference. 

Boycott threats 

ONE of the first to threaten to stop its members from attending the conference was the Yobe branch of the NBA. In a statement signed by its chairman, Usman Lukman, the association demanded that the decision to disinvite Governor El-Rufai be reversed.

 “The decision of the NEC is against the pillars of natural justice on the presumption of innocent (sic) and fair hearing as enshrined in constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 and equal opportunity to all citizens of this country,” read the statement. “At no time during the NEC meeting that our NEC members from Damaturu branch were afforded right to vote on these resolutions which we consider as thin air, lies and deception.”

 Other branches and groups followed suit, threatening to pull out their members from the conference. The NBA in Bauchi demanded an apology from the NEC arriving at such an “unpopular decision”. The branch in Jigawa accused the leadership of targeting El-Rufai. The Muslim Lawyers Association of Nigeria (MULAN) described it as “selective justice” and demanded that the dis-invitation be extended to Governor Wike and former British prime minister, Tony Blair.

 On August 29, the Nigerian Bar Association swore in Olumide Akpata as its 30th president. Akpata defeated Babatunde Ajibade and Dele Adesina – both Senior Advocates of Nigeria – to clinch the top seat. In response to the outcome of the election, Adesina described it as a “sham” and demanded a fresh poll. Although none of the defeated candidates had headed to court to challenge the election, the ripples from the exercise have continued to spread. 

‘New NBA’

A DAY before Akpata was sworn-in, a group wrote to the Attorney-General of the Federation informing him of the formation of a “New Nigerian Bar Association.”

 “The formation of the new Association has become imperative and expedient especially flowing from the activities, disposition and most recently, the decision of the Nigerian Bar Association – NEC which apparently failed to take into consideration our national interests and particularly do not promote the unity of our indissoluble country, Nigeria,” read the letter jointly issued by Nuhu Ibrahim and Abdulbasit Suleiman, who identified themselves as Convener 1 and Convener 2 respectively.

 “You are, however, to be further informed that work is in progress with regards to all the nitty-gritty of the formation of an Association such as this to which we shall keep you updated.”

 The move by the group elicited diverse reactions from fellow lawyers and Nigerians.

 Dele Farotimi, a lawyer, described it as “complete nonsense.”

 “One thing you can be sure of is that this is one of those reactions that is bound to peter out; it’s a waste of time,” Farotimi told Naija Times.

 “For them to exist right now, you would have to create infrastructure for their existence separate and distinct from the Nigerian Bar Association. Once, you have legitimised that madness, it simply means that it will become turn by turn. 

 “Unfortunately, the Nigerian Bar Association suffers from the same affliction as the Nigeria State, so they are going to end up necessarily having the presidency zoned to them. So when the presidency now goes back to the north, are they now going to rejoin? And then are the rest of us going to create our own NBA?”

 Rapulu Ernest Nduka, the NBA Publicity Secretary, dismissed the allusion that the el-Rufai incident was based on ethnic interests. According to him, the decision to disinvite the governor was strictly a NEC one — which comprises the NBA president, national officers, all the 125 NBA branch chairmen and secretaries, all the branch NEC reps, leaders of different sections in the NBA like the section on Business Law, and co-opted members among others.

 The NBA Publicity Secretary said he doesn’t know the motivation behind the ‘new NBA’. 

 “A lot of people have been saying let them be dealt with but I don’t think that’s the best decision,” Nduka told Naija Times. 

 “Because at the end of the whole thing, if you are trying to build a formidable bar, punishment should not be the best option. What you should be looking for is what is the reason for the agitation. Maybe they are dissatisfied with what is going on in Nigerian Bar Association, maybe they are dissatisfied with the way things are being run, I don’t really know. But whatever it is, the bottom line is we come together and talk about it. 

 “I don’t think it makes sense that in any association, once there is a disagreement, some people feel that they have an axe to grind with anybody, they break away. If we keep on doing that then we will have nothing to work with.”

 Nduka said he saw the letter written by the group on TV and noticed that it was not signed.

 “In law, you don’t really attach so much value to an unsigned document. We didn’t receive any letter so we don’t know how to reach out to them.”

 But the co-convener of the ‘new NBA’, Suleiman told Naija Times that the letter sent to the AGF was duly signed, and that they only made the unsigned one available for social media.

 He added that as of last week, about 5,000 lawyers had signed onto their project.

 “As I’m talking to you now, I do receive calls every day, all over the country, from Lagos, Enugu, Anambra, Damaturu for them to be part of us. So we’re still counting.

 “We are forming committees and we are mobilising, to call for convention for us to select a particular name for the association, that’s what we are working on now.”

 Suleiman insisted that they are not splitting from the NBA and that the ‘new NBA’ is not a parallel association but an alternative one.

“We lawyers, we are one and the same; we are one family. The new NBA is just for us to provide alternative for lawyers, if your interest is in NBA fine and good; if you have interest in staying in the other bar, it’s all the same.

 “We are not breaking away. I may be the convener now, after successfully registering the association I may decide to be in the old NBA or the new NBA, it’s my choice. Nobody can force me to stay here or there. It’s not possible to be in both associations.”

 When the ‘new NBA’ was launched into Nigerians’ consciousness, many branded them as ‘Northern Nigerian Bar Association’ because their agitation was seen to be in connection with the ’embarrassment’ of Governor el-Rufai.

 Suleiman insisted that the welfare of lawyers was the main reason for establishing the new association.

 “It’s not a northern Nigeria NBA. I, myself, I’m a Yoruba man, from Ogbomosho,” he said. 

 “It’s not a Muslim or a Christian issue, it’s all about lawyers; all learned colleagues. I voted for the current president, so the election is not the reason for providing an alternative association.”