The President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Olumide
Akpata has released the monthly report of his administration for
November and December, 2020.
![image](/2020/10/lawreport.jpg")
Mr. Akpata in his report has listed fourteen key highlights of
his administration for November and December, 2020.
![image](/2020/10/NWLRland.jpg")
This ranges from an insurance cover for Lawyers, access to
finance, police reforms, NBA legislative agenda, launching of eight
priority projects amongst others.
The monthly report reads:
31st December 2020
To: All Lawyers in Nigeria
MONTHLY REPORT FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE NBA: (NOVEMBER
AND
DECEMBER 2020)
Dear Learned Colleagues and Friends,
I trust you have been well and safe.
It has been two (2) months since I last wrote to you and I thought
to round off the year today by providing you with an update on some
of my activities in office in the months of November and December
2020. For details of my activities in my first two months in office
(September and October 2020), please refer to my previous monthly
reports which can be accessed via this
link: https://nigerianbar.org.ng/presidents-statement-0.[1]
A quick highlight of some of our administration’s activities in
November and December 2020 are as follows:
1. An Improved and Efficient Insurance Cover for
Lawyers: As part of our commitment towards the
welfare of lawyers, my team and I met with the Chief Executive
Officer of Leadway Assurance to discuss the breadth of the
insurance cover which they provide to our members. As you may be
aware, the NBA currently provides certain insurance cover at no
additional cost to its financial members through Leadway Assurance.
This is different from the health insurance cover which we are
working on institutionalising. Our meeting sought to expand the
scope of the insurance cover for lawyers, increase by 100% the
insurance payout to our members and to ease the process of making
claims. The meeting yielded positive results which will be
communicated in the New Year. On a related but separate note, we
ensured that all eligible but outstanding payments of death
benefits or claims submitted to, or pending at, the NBA both before
and during my administration were settled. Our goal is to
coordinate the prompt settlement of all eligible claims going
forward.
2. Access to Finance, et al: I also
met with the MD/CEO of Access Bank to discuss delivery of value
adding services for the benefit and welfare of our members. Among
other things, the meeting focused on the need to set up/revitalize
an access to finance scheme for lawyers on concessionary terms (a
priority project of my administration that I will make further
reference to in this report).
3. The NBA’s Position on National
Issues: My administration has remained committedand
is consistently taking steps to ensure that the Bar remains the
conscience of the society and a clear voice on all national issues.
During the period under review, we, among other things, took a firm
stand on, and intervened in, the infamous killings in Oyigbo
community; intervened in the freezing of accounts and seizure of
passports of some known #ENDSARS advocates; reiterated at different
times the NBA’s position that respect for the fundamental rights of
citizens is non-negotiable; and in the wake of kidnapping of scores
of school boys in Katsina, we called on the Service Chiefs to live
up to their responsibilities or resign from their positions as
Nigerians would no longer accept the mediocre performance recorded
in addressing the insecurity challenges in our nation. We will
continue to add our voice in the call for good governance and
accountability.
4. Police Reforms: In line with the
expressed commitment of the NBA to provide institutional support
towards the reform of the Nigerian Police, I served as a panellist
at the Legislative Agenda and Public Policy Dialogue Series
organised by the House of Representatives on ‘Policing and Human
Rights in Nigeria’. The Panel discussed amongst other issues, the
proposed Police Service Commission (Reform) Bill 2020, which the
NBA actively participated in preparing. The Bill has now passed 2nd
reading. I also participated at a Town Hall meeting on Police
Reforms hosted by Channels Television. These are in addition to
other steps that we are taking in this respect. Indeed, the NBA,
under my watch, is now playing very active and diverse roles on the
holistic reforms of
the Police in Nigeria.
5. NBA Legislative Agenda: Taking an
active interest and participating in the law-making process is at
the core of NBA’s duty to the society. This will not only ensure
that our laws are current and fit for purpose but will also ensure
that better laws are made for the good and advancement of the
society. In this respect, my office has during this period been
engaging the National Assembly on a collaboration that will see the
NBA providing technical and specialist support to the legislature
on key bills that are presented for enactment. The NBA will play
this role through an adequately resourced law reform committee
(with a secretariat at the National Assembly) that will, inter
alia, act as a liaison between the NBA and the National Assembly
and represent the NBA at public hearings by the legislature. Some
work has already begun on this collaboration and detailed reports
on our progress and activities in this space will be communicated
in the New Year.
6. National Executive Committee Meeting
(NEC): We recently held the first regular meeting of
the NEC during my administration on 15 December 2020 (the NEC is
the highest decision-making body in the NBA after the Annual
General Meeting). At the meeting, several policy directives and
guidance were given to my team, and many key decisions were taken
including approval of the co-opted members of NEC whom I nominated,
approval of a number of projects that my team and I presented to
NEC and approval for the establishment of different committees to
drive the policies and agenda of the current administration. A
communique outlining the key decisions reached at the NEC meeting
will be circulated separately.
7. Launching of Eight (8) Priority
Projects: Following the recently concluded NEC
meeting at which we received approval for eight (8) priority
projects of my administration, we have started taking active steps
towards achieving the objectives of the said projects in the New
Year. The approved priority projects are:
(a) Project Do Good – this is our public interest and society
focused project that has been initiated to drive our vision of
intervening in relevant matters of public interest.
(b) Project Benjamin – the primary focus of this project is to
design a workable and enforceable framework under which lawyers
will (i) charge the right fees for their legal services using
acceptable and realistic metrics; and (ii) ensure that lawyers in
paid employment earn reasonable living wages and emoluments.
(c) Project WAY (Who Are You)– this is
our digital NBA Project. The goal of this project is to digitise
most of our processes at the NBA and issue a proper multipurpose
means of identification to our members.
(d) Project Dignity – this focuses
primarily on restoring and protecting the dignity of our members by
addressing the wanton abuse and harassment of lawyers carrying on
their legitimate businesses.
(e) Project Enhancement – this involves
the reactivation of the NBA Human Rights Institute; establishment
of a Career Development Centre and the empowerment of the NBA
Institute of Continuing Legal Education to drive our agenda around
capacity building and assist our members to diversify their
practice areas and methods, deepen competencies and expand the
frontiers of legal practice, which in turn will create more wealth
and career options for lawyers. It is my hope that through this
project, these ideals will become entrenched and institutionalised
at the NBA beyond my administration.
(f) Project Well-being – as part of my
administration’s wellness program for lawyers, we are currently in
discussions with reputable Health Management Organisations for the
establishment of a scheme that will enable our financial members to
access affordable health insurance across the country. Project
Well-being is the platform through which we will drive this
scheme.
(g) Project Exchequer – this project is
squarely about developing a framework that will make it easier for
lawyers to access finance at concessionary rates for their capital
expenditure and working capital purposes. The Project Exchequer
team recently commenced discussions in this respect, and we will
provide progress reports in due course.
(h) Project Engine Room – through this
project, we are working on a system that will allow for the running
of the NBA National Secretariat in a more professional,
customer-friendly, and efficient manner that will ensure that
certain administrative matters are left to competent career NBA
staff with the elected national officers focusing on broader policy
issues. These are by no means the only projects or activities that
we are working on. However, we believe that they signify a
commitment to the actualisation of our core mandate of making the
Bar work for its members and the society.
8. Working Visits: During the period
under review, I embarked on a 3-day working visit to Jos, Plateau
State in the course of which I participated in activities marking
the Law Week of the NBA Jos Branch, and held an interactive session
with Legal Practitioners in the State. I also paid a visit to the
Chief Judge of the State to discuss ways of improving justice
administration within the State and visited the #ENDSARS Judicial
Panel of Inquiry in Plateau State to observe the proceedings
first-hand. I also attended the quarterly meeting of the Eastern
Bar Forum (EBF) during which I promised that the leadership of the
NBA will continue to enthrone inclusiveness in the NBA, while
fulfilling its mandate to members of the NBA and the larger
society. I also attended the Law Week of NBA Ibadan branch during
the period. The essence of the
sessions was to get feedback directly from the members on how the
Bar can work for them in their respective branches, while taking
into cognizance, the peculiarities of each
jurisdiction.
9. Security and Safety of
Lawyers: The security situation around the country is
still worrisome. In the period under review, a lawyer was kidnapped
in Taraba State, the spouse of another colleague kidnapped in Benue
State and another colleague and her husband kidnapped in Edo State.
The NBA, working with the relevant security agencies, intervened in
all three cases and thankfully they were released unharmed.
10. Updates from Troubled Branches –
I am pleased to report that we have resolved the imbroglio that
engulfed the Ikeja branch of the NBA for several years. Under the
leadership of Seni Adio, SAN (whom my administration appointed in
September 2020 to lead a Caretaker Committee), the branch held
successful elections in the first half of December 2020 and the
elected officials have been sworn in.
I held a meeting with the caretaker committee of the Abeokuta
branch of the NBA to discuss their challenges and plans towards
resolving their issues as soon as possible. The Abuja, Dutse,
Katsina and Oyo branches of the NBA have been involved in different
degrees of leadership and related crisis. For Oyo and Katsina, we
are in the process of setting up caretaker committees to manage
their affairs, while for Abuja and Dutse, we are setting up
fact-finding teams to provide the National Secretariat with a
detailed report that will enable my team and I to intervene
appropriately.
11. Speaking Engagements, Statutory Meetings, and
Public Appearances: During the period, (i) I was at
the Special Session of the Supreme Court on 14 December 2020 to
mark the opening of the 2021 Legal Year at which 72 (seventy-two)
of our eminent colleagues were conferred with the distinguished
rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria. At the event, I urged the Legal
Practitioners Privileges Committee under the leadership of the
Chief Justice of Nigeria to reconsider the criteria for conferment
of the rank, noting that the present requirements are susceptible
to irregularities, manipulation, policy somersaults and
inconsistencies; (ii) I attended a meeting of the Body of Benchers
at which critical decisions were taken around the amendment of the
Legal Practitioners Act, the changes to the Legal Practitioners
Disciplinary Committee Rules and the criteria for
admitting students of the National Open University of Nigeria into
the Nigerian Law School; (iii) I attended a meeting of the Council
of Legal Education to discuss, inter alia, online training and
possible resumption date for the students of the Nigerian Law
School; (iv)I attended a meeting of the National Judicial
Council(“NJC”) on appointment of new judges and the extension of
the tenure of the Acting Chief Judge of Gombe State. On behalf of
the NBA, I strenuously objected to the extension on the ground that
it was unconstitutional; (v) I attended a meeting of the NJC
Technology Committee where electronic filing of processes across
our courts was top on the agenda; (vi) I was a guest speaker at the
National Judicial Institute on the subject of curbing corruption in
the judiciary which for me was topical given recent reports around
the magnitude of corruption in the judiciary; (vii) I was a guest
speaker at the Court of Appeal Justices Conference in Lagos at
which I called for more divisions of the court, better welfare for
the Justices, infusion of technology into the system, and very
importantly, better cohesion in the court to avoid conflicting
judgments; and (viii) I was a keynote speaker at the event
organised by the Lagos branch of NBA to mark the 72nd International
Humans Rights Day where I addressed issues arising from the
#ENDSARS movement, the Lekki Massacre, other forms of human rights
violations across the country and the impact of COVID-19 on human
rights. In keeping with our motto of “Promoting the Rule of Law”
the NBA under my watch is not relenting in its quest to ensure that
it remains the leading watch-dog organisation in Nigeria.
12. Miscellany: I also wish to
further report as follows (i) the feedback that I have received
from various lawyers is that the CAC is still not functioning
optimally. The RegistrarGeneral has assured us that all steps are
being taken to significantly improve the service experience. The
Task Force on the Ease of Doing Business at the CAC set up by my
administration has now released a communique outlining the steps
that have been taken, key agreements that have been reached with
the CAC and next steps. The expectation is that the CAC will begin
to implement these steps and the NBA will continue to monitor the
process to ensure that results are achieved; (ii) the Court of
Appeal Rules are currently being reviewed. The NBA has reviewed and
sent in its comments addressing, among others, the better
functioning of the court and ease of interface with legal
practitioners. Special thanks to the Chairman of the NBA Section on
Legal Practice and his team for their support on this; and (iii) we
recently learnt about the purported appointment of 40 magistrates
by the Federal Capital Territory Judiciary. We are investigating
this at the NBA and will provide an update in due course.
13. My Heart Bleeds: A number of
lawyers and judicial officers in Nigeria either passed on,or were
buried, during the period under review. Three of such sad events
particularly stand out for me: (i) the demise of Ms. Sylvia Nneka
Okonkwo, a young lawyer who until her death was a member of the
Abuja branch. I made out time to attend the Service of Songs
organised in her honour and was saddened to learn about the
circumstances of her sudden demise; (b) the death of Mr. Moses
Idam, a member of the Makurdi branch of the NBA who was gruesomely
murdered in cold blood alongside his wife at their residence. The
NBA is working with the authorities to ensure that the perpetrators
of the heinous act are apprehended and brought to book; and (c)
most recently was the painful exit of Pa Emmanuel Abiodun, a
foremost lawyer and patron of NBA Ibadan branch
whom many refer to as the “Encyclopaedia of the Bar”. Pa Abiodun
lived a worthy and exemplary life, and I could not miss the
opportunity to visit his home at Ibadan to pay my respects and
commiserate with his family.
14. Raise the Bar With Me: As we
continue to formulate and implement different policies for the Bar
and the legal profession, if you have any brilliant ideas on how we
can together raise the Bar and make it better for you, please send
me an email at nbapresident@nigerianbar.org.ng and be assured that
my team and I will give it the attention that it deserves.
I thank you again for your faith in, and mandate to, us. Please
be assured that I remain committed to delivering on your mandate
and bequeathing a Bar that you will be most proud of. I wish you a
Happy New Year in advance.
The President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Olumide
Akpata has released the monthly report of his administration for
November and December, 2020.
Mr. Akpata in his report has listed fourteen key highlights of
his administration for November and December, 2020.
This ranges from an insurance cover for Lawyers, access to
finance, police reforms, NBA legislative agenda, launching of eight
priority projects amongst others.
The monthly report reads:
31st December 2020
To: All Lawyers in Nigeria
MONTHLY REPORT FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE NBA: (NOVEMBER
AND
DECEMBER 2020)
Dear Learned Colleagues and Friends,
I trust you have been well and safe.
It has been two (2) months since I last wrote to you and I thought
to round off the year today by providing you with an update on some
of my activities in office in the months of November and December
2020. For details of my activities in my first two months in office
(September and October 2020), please refer to my previous monthly
reports which can be accessed via this
link: https://nigerianbar.org.ng/presidents-statement-0.[1]
A quick highlight of some of our administration’s activities in
November and December 2020 are as follows:
1. An Improved and Efficient Insurance Cover for
Lawyers: As part of our commitment towards the
welfare of lawyers, my team and I met with the Chief Executive
Officer of Leadway Assurance to discuss the breadth of the
insurance cover which they provide to our members. As you may be
aware, the NBA currently provides certain insurance cover at no
additional cost to its financial members through Leadway Assurance.
This is different from the health insurance cover which we are
working on institutionalising. Our meeting sought to expand the
scope of the insurance cover for lawyers, increase by 100% the
insurance payout to our members and to ease the process of making
claims. The meeting yielded positive results which will be
communicated in the New Year. On a related but separate note, we
ensured that all eligible but outstanding payments of death
benefits or claims submitted to, or pending at, the NBA both before
and during my administration were settled. Our goal is to
coordinate the prompt settlement of all eligible claims going
forward.
2. Access to Finance, et al: I also
met with the MD/CEO of Access Bank to discuss delivery of value
adding services for the benefit and welfare of our members. Among
other things, the meeting focused on the need to set up/revitalize
an access to finance scheme for lawyers on concessionary terms (a
priority project of my administration that I will make further
reference to in this report).
3. The NBA’s Position on National
Issues: My administration has remained committedand
is consistently taking steps to ensure that the Bar remains the
conscience of the society and a clear voice on all national issues.
During the period under review, we, among other things, took a firm
stand on, and intervened in, the infamous killings in Oyigbo
community; intervened in the freezing of accounts and seizure of
passports of some known #ENDSARS advocates; reiterated at different
times the NBA’s position that respect for the fundamental rights of
citizens is non-negotiable; and in the wake of kidnapping of scores
of school boys in Katsina, we called on the Service Chiefs to live
up to their responsibilities or resign from their positions as
Nigerians would no longer accept the mediocre performance recorded
in addressing the insecurity challenges in our nation. We will
continue to add our voice in the call for good governance and
accountability.
4. Police Reforms: In line with the
expressed commitment of the NBA to provide institutional support
towards the reform of the Nigerian Police, I served as a panellist
at the Legislative Agenda and Public Policy Dialogue Series
organised by the House of Representatives on ‘Policing and Human
Rights in Nigeria’. The Panel discussed amongst other issues, the
proposed Police Service Commission (Reform) Bill 2020, which the
NBA actively participated in preparing. The Bill has now passed 2nd
reading. I also participated at a Town Hall meeting on Police
Reforms hosted by Channels Television. These are in addition to
other steps that we are taking in this respect. Indeed, the NBA,
under my watch, is now playing very active and diverse roles on the
holistic reforms of
the Police in Nigeria.
5. NBA Legislative Agenda: Taking an
active interest and participating in the law-making process is at
the core of NBA’s duty to the society. This will not only ensure
that our laws are current and fit for purpose but will also ensure
that better laws are made for the good and advancement of the
society. In this respect, my office has during this period been
engaging the National Assembly on a collaboration that will see the
NBA providing technical and specialist support to the legislature
on key bills that are presented for enactment. The NBA will play
this role through an adequately resourced law reform committee
(with a secretariat at the National Assembly) that will, inter
alia, act as a liaison between the NBA and the National Assembly
and represent the NBA at public hearings by the legislature. Some
work has already begun on this collaboration and detailed reports
on our progress and activities in this space will be communicated
in the New Year.
6. National Executive Committee Meeting
(NEC): We recently held the first regular meeting of
the NEC during my administration on 15 December 2020 (the NEC is
the highest decision-making body in the NBA after the Annual
General Meeting). At the meeting, several policy directives and
guidance were given to my team, and many key decisions were taken
including approval of the co-opted members of NEC whom I nominated,
approval of a number of projects that my team and I presented to
NEC and approval for the establishment of different committees to
drive the policies and agenda of the current administration. A
communique outlining the key decisions reached at the NEC meeting
will be circulated separately.
7. Launching of Eight (8) Priority
Projects: Following the recently concluded NEC
meeting at which we received approval for eight (8) priority
projects of my administration, we have started taking active steps
towards achieving the objectives of the said projects in the New
Year. The approved priority projects are:
(a) Project Do Good – this is our public interest and society
focused project that has been initiated to drive our vision of
intervening in relevant matters of public interest.
(b) Project Benjamin – the primary focus of this project is to
design a workable and enforceable framework under which lawyers
will (i) charge the right fees for their legal services using
acceptable and realistic metrics; and (ii) ensure that lawyers in
paid employment earn reasonable living wages and emoluments.
(c) Project WAY (Who Are You)– this is
our digital NBA Project. The goal of this project is to digitise
most of our processes at the NBA and issue a proper multipurpose
means of identification to our members.
(d) Project Dignity – this focuses
primarily on restoring and protecting the dignity of our members by
addressing the wanton abuse and harassment of lawyers carrying on
their legitimate businesses.
(e) Project Enhancement – this involves
the reactivation of the NBA Human Rights Institute; establishment
of a Career Development Centre and the empowerment of the NBA
Institute of Continuing Legal Education to drive our agenda around
capacity building and assist our members to diversify their
practice areas and methods, deepen competencies and expand the
frontiers of legal practice, which in turn will create more wealth
and career options for lawyers. It is my hope that through this
project, these ideals will become entrenched and institutionalised
at the NBA beyond my administration.
(f) Project Well-being – as part of my
administration’s wellness program for lawyers, we are currently in
discussions with reputable Health Management Organisations for the
establishment of a scheme that will enable our financial members to
access affordable health insurance across the country. Project
Well-being is the platform through which we will drive this
scheme.
(g) Project Exchequer – this project is
squarely about developing a framework that will make it easier for
lawyers to access finance at concessionary rates for their capital
expenditure and working capital purposes. The Project Exchequer
team recently commenced discussions in this respect, and we will
provide progress reports in due course.
(h) Project Engine Room – through this
project, we are working on a system that will allow for the running
of the NBA National Secretariat in a more professional,
customer-friendly, and efficient manner that will ensure that
certain administrative matters are left to competent career NBA
staff with the elected national officers focusing on broader policy
issues. These are by no means the only projects or activities that
we are working on. However, we believe that they signify a
commitment to the actualisation of our core mandate of making the
Bar work for its members and the society.
8. Working Visits: During the period
under review, I embarked on a 3-day working visit to Jos, Plateau
State in the course of which I participated in activities marking
the Law Week of the NBA Jos Branch, and held an interactive session
with Legal Practitioners in the State. I also paid a visit to the
Chief Judge of the State to discuss ways of improving justice
administration within the State and visited the #ENDSARS Judicial
Panel of Inquiry in Plateau State to observe the proceedings
first-hand. I also attended the quarterly meeting of the Eastern
Bar Forum (EBF) during which I promised that the leadership of the
NBA will continue to enthrone inclusiveness in the NBA, while
fulfilling its mandate to members of the NBA and the larger
society. I also attended the Law Week of NBA Ibadan branch during
the period. The essence of the
sessions was to get feedback directly from the members on how the
Bar can work for them in their respective branches, while taking
into cognizance, the peculiarities of each
jurisdiction.
9. Security and Safety of
Lawyers: The security situation around the country is
still worrisome. In the period under review, a lawyer was kidnapped
in Taraba State, the spouse of another colleague kidnapped in Benue
State and another colleague and her husband kidnapped in Edo State.
The NBA, working with the relevant security agencies, intervened in
all three cases and thankfully they were released unharmed.
10. Updates from Troubled Branches –
I am pleased to report that we have resolved the imbroglio that
engulfed the Ikeja branch of the NBA for several years. Under the
leadership of Seni Adio, SAN (whom my administration appointed in
September 2020 to lead a Caretaker Committee), the branch held
successful elections in the first half of December 2020 and the
elected officials have been sworn in.
I held a meeting with the caretaker committee of the Abeokuta
branch of the NBA to discuss their challenges and plans towards
resolving their issues as soon as possible. The Abuja, Dutse,
Katsina and Oyo branches of the NBA have been involved in different
degrees of leadership and related crisis. For Oyo and Katsina, we
are in the process of setting up caretaker committees to manage
their affairs, while for Abuja and Dutse, we are setting up
fact-finding teams to provide the National Secretariat with a
detailed report that will enable my team and I to intervene
appropriately.
11. Speaking Engagements, Statutory Meetings, and
Public Appearances: During the period, (i) I was at
the Special Session of the Supreme Court on 14 December 2020 to
mark the opening of the 2021 Legal Year at which 72 (seventy-two)
of our eminent colleagues were conferred with the distinguished
rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria. At the event, I urged the Legal
Practitioners Privileges Committee under the leadership of the
Chief Justice of Nigeria to reconsider the criteria for conferment
of the rank, noting that the present requirements are susceptible
to irregularities, manipulation, policy somersaults and
inconsistencies; (ii) I attended a meeting of the Body of Benchers
at which critical decisions were taken around the amendment of the
Legal Practitioners Act, the changes to the Legal Practitioners
Disciplinary Committee Rules and the criteria for
admitting students of the National Open University of Nigeria into
the Nigerian Law School; (iii) I attended a meeting of the Council
of Legal Education to discuss, inter alia, online training and
possible resumption date for the students of the Nigerian Law
School; (iv)I attended a meeting of the National Judicial
Council(“NJC”) on appointment of new judges and the extension of
the tenure of the Acting Chief Judge of Gombe State. On behalf of
the NBA, I strenuously objected to the extension on the ground that
it was unconstitutional; (v) I attended a meeting of the NJC
Technology Committee where electronic filing of processes across
our courts was top on the agenda; (vi) I was a guest speaker at the
National Judicial Institute on the subject of curbing corruption in
the judiciary which for me was topical given recent reports around
the magnitude of corruption in the judiciary; (vii) I was a guest
speaker at the Court of Appeal Justices Conference in Lagos at
which I called for more divisions of the court, better welfare for
the Justices, infusion of technology into the system, and very
importantly, better cohesion in the court to avoid conflicting
judgments; and (viii) I was a keynote speaker at the event
organised by the Lagos branch of NBA to mark the 72nd International
Humans Rights Day where I addressed issues arising from the
#ENDSARS movement, the Lekki Massacre, other forms of human rights
violations across the country and the impact of COVID-19 on human
rights. In keeping with our motto of “Promoting the Rule of Law”
the NBA under my watch is not relenting in its quest to ensure that
it remains the leading watch-dog organisation in Nigeria.
12. Miscellany: I also wish to
further report as follows (i) the feedback that I have received
from various lawyers is that the CAC is still not functioning
optimally. The RegistrarGeneral has assured us that all steps are
being taken to significantly improve the service experience. The
Task Force on the Ease of Doing Business at the CAC set up by my
administration has now released a communique outlining the steps
that have been taken, key agreements that have been reached with
the CAC and next steps. The expectation is that the CAC will begin
to implement these steps and the NBA will continue to monitor the
process to ensure that results are achieved; (ii) the Court of
Appeal Rules are currently being reviewed. The NBA has reviewed and
sent in its comments addressing, among others, the better
functioning of the court and ease of interface with legal
practitioners. Special thanks to the Chairman of the NBA Section on
Legal Practice and his team for their support on this; and (iii) we
recently learnt about the purported appointment of 40 magistrates
by the Federal Capital Territory Judiciary. We are investigating
this at the NBA and will provide an update in due course.
13. My Heart Bleeds: A number of
lawyers and judicial officers in Nigeria either passed on,or were
buried, during the period under review. Three of such sad events
particularly stand out for me: (i) the demise of Ms. Sylvia Nneka
Okonkwo, a young lawyer who until her death was a member of the
Abuja branch. I made out time to attend the Service of Songs
organised in her honour and was saddened to learn about the
circumstances of her sudden demise; (b) the death of Mr. Moses
Idam, a member of the Makurdi branch of the NBA who was gruesomely
murdered in cold blood alongside his wife at their residence. The
NBA is working with the authorities to ensure that the perpetrators
of the heinous act are apprehended and brought to book; and (c)
most recently was the painful exit of Pa Emmanuel Abiodun, a
foremost lawyer and patron of NBA Ibadan branch
whom many refer to as the “Encyclopaedia of the Bar”. Pa Abiodun
lived a worthy and exemplary life, and I could not miss the
opportunity to visit his home at Ibadan to pay my respects and
commiserate with his family.
14. Raise the Bar With Me: As we
continue to formulate and implement different policies for the Bar
and the legal profession, if you have any brilliant ideas on how we
can together raise the Bar and make it better for you, please send
me an email at nbapresident@nigerianbar.org.ng and be assured that
my team and I will give it the attention that it deserves.
I thank you again for your faith in, and mandate to, us. Please
be assured that I remain committed to delivering on your mandate
and bequeathing a Bar that you will be most proud of. I wish you a
Happy New Year in advance.