Cracks in the Walls of NBA

By Eric Elezuo
In his campaign messages during the runoff to the Nigerian Bar Association elections, the President-elect, Olumide Akpata, never stopped laying emphasis about his desire to create an ‘NBA for all’, an association of tolerance, interrelationship and devoid of ethnic and religious colourations.
However, with days to the official change of leadership baton and swearing in ceremony of the President-elect, most, if not all things are about to fall apart in the highly revered association of very learned professionals.
What appears like a fragile peace in the administration of the outgoing president, Mr Paul Usoro, is shaky today with the division that has been created with the official withdrawal of the invitation extended to Kaduna State governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai as a speaker at the forthcoming conference of the association.
The lawyers have accused the governor on allegations bordering on killings in southern Kaduna, violation of human rights, disobedience to court orders and others.
Some of these lawyers include former chairman, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Dr. Chidi Odinkalu, former chairman, NBA, Ikeja branch and leader of Radical Agenda Movement in the Nigerian Bar Association (RAMINBA), Mr. Adesina Ogunlana, Open Bar Initiative (OBl) led by Mr. Silas Joseph Onu, and Mojirayo Ogunlana-Nkanga.
The leadership of the NBA withdrew the invitation extended to the governor to participate in the association’s annual general meeting in a resolution at it’s national executive council meeting on Wednesday, saying the decision would be communicated to the governor.
Using it’s official Twitter handle @NigBarAssoc, and confirmed by the Kunle Edun, the publicity secretary, the NBA noted as follows:
“The National Executive Committee 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to the Kaduna State Governor, H.E. Nasir El-Rufai by the 2020 Annual General Meeting Conference Planning Committee be withdrawn and decision communicated to the Governor.”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 Kaduna governor was originally among the guest speakers slated to participate in a session titled ‘Who is a Nigerian?… A Debate on National Identity.’ El-Rufai was scheduled to participate at the session alongside the governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike; former governor of Anambra State and vice-presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party at the 2019 election, Peter Obi; cleric and chairman, African Advisory Council of the Royal Commonwealth Society, Tinder Bakare; activist and former federal minister, Oby Ezekwesili; and immediate past ECOWAS commissioner for political affairs, peace and security, Salamatu Suleiman.
Those billed to speak at the conference include Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; Femi Gbajabiamila, the Speaker of the House of Representatives; and Tanko Muhammad, the Chief Justice of Nigeria; Olusegun Obasanjo, a former president; Ike Ekweremadu, former deputy senate president; and Abubakar Malami, the Attorney-General of the Federation.
The 60th NBA annual general conference, its first-ever virtual event, is themed ‘Step Forward.’
However, the inclusion of El-Rufai among the guest speakers at the annual fiesta, had not gone down well with most lawyers, who expressed their disapproval in a petition. The petition, in turn, had woken other lawyers to reality, and they toe the line, threatening withdrawal if El-Rufai is allowed to speak at the conference.
A Port Harcourt based lawyer, Godwin Odimabo, noted thus concerning El-Rufai’s participation:
“If the association has value for her motto, respect for rule of law, democratic norms and values, it won’t take more than 24 hours to humbly write to Kaduna State governor, El-Rufai, informing him of his substitution as a guest speaker at the AGC.
“If he paid to speak, we should refund him his money. If we paid him to speak, we should bear it as the inconvenience caused him by our withdrawal.”
Consequently, the National Executive Council, the highest decision making body of the association of learned professionals, took a decision to nib in the bud the governor’s participation in the conference scheduled to hold from August 26-29.