Leadership crisis: NBA in the eye of the storm

The leadership crisis currently bugging the Nigerian Bar Association forms the thrust of this piece by VIVIAN OKEJEME

About two months ago, precisely March 30, 2017, Justice John Tsoho of a Federal High Court in Abuja, in a suit filed by Olasupo Ojo, challenging the procedure of amending the constitution of the Nigerian Bar Association, voided the amendment to the constitution, through which Mr. Abubakar Mahmoud, SAN, the incumbent President was elected.
Last week, at a meeting with international donor organisation, Mahmoud called for calm, saying that there are moves to settle the dispute amicably.

Following the controversy surrounding both constitutional and leadership crisis of the Bar, there have been calls for concern by respected leaders of the noble profession. Most of them called for ways to ensure that the fundamental objectives of the organisation are not destroyed.
On Monday, August 1, 2016 the organisation elected Mahmoud, a former Attorney-General of Kano State, as its president in the most controversial election ever in the history of the NBA.

The poll was conducted through e-voting in which Mahmoud scored 3,055 votes to defeat Joe-Kyari Gadzama, SAN. Gadzama, who vehemently challenged the result.
In the suit constituted on July 27, 2016,  Ojo seeks reliefs which were all granted by Justice Tsoho. Some of the reliefs sought include, a declaration that ‘Exhibit C’ the Amended Constitution of the NBA adopted at the Delegates Conference held in Calabar, Cross River State on August 31, 2001 as registered with and approved by the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC, in compliance with provisions of the Companies and Allied Matters Act 2004, is the extant and valid constitution of the defendant.

The plaintiff also pleads the court to declare that by the provision of section 600 of the CAMA 2004, ‘Exhibit B’, the amended constitution of the NBA purportedly amended and adopted at the annual general meeting held in Abuja on August 27, 2015 and pursuant to which the administration of and affairs of the defendant, has been and is being conducted, is void.
Sequel to the outcome of the judgement, the court de-legitimised Mahmoud’s presidency. The judge held that he emerged through a defective or voided constitution. The general counsel of the NBA, by the court ruling, is supposed to be preside over the association’s affairs pending a fresh election under the constitution passed in 2001.

In his reaction, NBA Secretary-General, Mr. Isiaka Olagunju, raised certain issues, which included that it was not joined in the suit alongside the 125 branches executive nationwide.
The political watchers and the international community are keenly watching the professional body of lawyers and expecting that their conducts must be above board.

Furthermore, there is also a concern that if the body fails to put its  house in order, it will lose its respect and moral rectitude to criticize the government and other persons for non-compliance with rule of law and disobedience to court orders, if they do not immediately give effect to the instant judgement.
In view of the development, the principal partner at Law Rescue firm, Abuja, Abel Ozuoko, wrote a note of caution to the Chief Justice of Nigeria CJN, Walter Nkannu Onnoghen, reminding him of the obligation bestowed on him as the head of the body of benchers which he heads.

Ozuoko in the letter dated 30th March, 2017 says, “administration and management of the affairs of the NBA, as well as subsequent appointment of a caretaker committee of the association now rests on the body of benchers which your lordship heads, in line with its statutory obligations as contained in section 10 (2), (3), (b) and (4) of the Legal Practitioners Act, CAP L11, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 (revised edition, incorporating the provisions of the Legal Practitioners Amendment decree number 21, 1994.

“It is not in doubt that the current national executive committee of the NBA whose tenure has been cut short by the judgement in FHC/ABJ/CS/545/2016, cannot function any longer.
“To this end, we urge your lordship in the overall interest and integrity of the bar and the profession, as well as, to forestall a breakdown of law and order, to give immediate effect to the judgement of the federal high court in the instant suit.”

In the same vein, Adegboyega Solomon Awomolo SAN, on 5th April, 2017, in a letter addressed to incorporated trustees of the NBA made up of Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim,  Chief Anthony Mogboh,  Chief T.J.O. Okpoko, Chief Wale Olanipekun, Chief Mrs. Priscilla Kuye and Alhaji Muritala Aminu, all SAN, and copied the CJN, stresses that “the implication of the judgement is so grave that it will appear as if we are drawn back to 1992 when the bar association went into crisis that nearly terminated its existence.
“It is very sad to note that the trustees inadvertently, have left the association to the hands of successive elected leaders, some of whom by omission or commission lost sense of history and abdicated their responsibilities.

It is unthinkable that an elementary thing like the registration of the amended constitution of the association can be left unregistered, where Senior Advocates of Nigeria had led the elected bar officials.”
Stressing his stands, Awomolo submitted that, the registered trustees must step into the scene to put the association right, failure of which one can only foresee the emergence of regional bar association and law societies.
He also requested for an expanded emergency meeting of the trustees to put to rest the fractionalization encouraged by the immediate leadership of the association.

“No legal argument or unauthorized appeal can save the failure, negligence and irresponsibility of the management of the bar. This is not the time for sophistry of the law and legal technicality to elongate the tenure of the present officials. Their desire to secure or save their tenure at the detriment of the association is sad, selfish and should be condemned by all of us.”
Moreover, in another letter to the Attorney-General of the Federation AGF, Mr. Abubakar Malami,SAN, Awomolo pleads with the AGF to use his good office as the leader of the bar, liaise with the trustees and as soon as possible, to  call to order officers of the association to avert their minds to the mandatory order forthwith.
He also believes the intervention of the AGF will pave way for return to the rule of law and respect to the association as an institution, so that the matter may not escalate beyond control.

However, in another twist, on the 10th April, 2017, members of the Lagos branch of the NBA issued a protest letter in respect of the constitution of the 2017 conference planning committee and appointment of body of benchers, stating that, it was clearly in violation of section 11 (2) of the2015 NBA constitution.
The letter which was signed by the Branch Chairman, Martin Ogunleye and Stephen Obajaja, the secretary stresses that “the position of the NBA Lagos branch also protests the nomination of legal practitioners to serve and represent the association on the body of benchers without the prior approval of the NBA NEC and the said appointments are also a violation of section 7 (5) (b) of the constitution of the NBA 2015.”

With the situation on ground and the way the matter is going, there is every tendency that the issue will not be brought to a logical conclusion within a short possible time.
The association has championed the rule of law and democracy in Nigeria. It must therefore complement the sustenance of democracy by the judiciary by rising to confront any unacceptable policy that might negatively affect the well-being of Nigerians.

No legal argument or unauthorized appeal can save the failure, negligence and irresponsibility of the management of the bar. This is not the time for sophistry of the law and legal technicality

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