Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) presidential aspirants stormed the meeting of Igbo lawyers yesterday to felicitate with the members and express their intention to vie for the presidency of the Bar. Also present at the meeting were some aspirants for the post of General Secretary.

Among the presidential aspirants who attended the virtual monthly meeting of Otu Oka Iwu (Law Society) are Mr. Dele Adesina SAN, Dr. Babatunde Ajibade SAN and Mr. Olu Akpata.

The first to be admitted into the meeting was Adesina. He thanked the leadership of the law society for the opportunity. Turning to judicial corruption, he noted that it is condemnable, adding however that only a negligible number of judges engage in such misfeasance. He stated that the entire judiciary should not be tarred with the brush of its few bad eggs. Emphasizing the need to empower young lawyers, Adesina stated that he would unveil his roadmap in this regard when the ban on campaigns is lifted by the Electoral Committee of the NBA (ECNBA).

The next available aspirant, Akpata told the Otu members that welfare is critical for every lawyer, adding that he would also place premium on health insurance. Harping on his track record as Chairman of NBA Section on Business Law (NBA-SBL), Akpata stated that he “came with credentials.” He stated that aside from disciplining of lawyers, he would foster the administration of justice while ensuring that every lawyer who has a brush with law enforcement agencies is offered legal defence.

On his part, Ajibade expressed worry at the divisions within NBA circles. He vowed to cement the cracks as well as “get the justice sector working again.” Noting that young lawyers should be the focus of NBA, Ajibade said that he has the unique privilege of combining the skills and practical knowledge of a solicitor and advocate, having been engaged in both transactional and litigation practice at relatively high levels.

Coming on the heels of engaging interactions between the members and the aspirants, Chief Chuks Ikokwu, President of Otu Oka Iwu, thanked the aspirants for finding it worthy to felicitate with the law society, and wished them well in their aspiration to lead Africa’s largest Bar.

Among the aspirants for the post of General Secretary who also attended the virtual meeting are Mr. Alex Muoka and Mrs. Joyce Oduah, both members of the law society.

The NBA National Elections is scheduled to hold on July 24 and 25, 2020 through electronic voting.

Please send emails to citylawyermag@gmail.com. Copyright 2020 CITY LAWYER. All materials available on this Website are protected by copyright, trade mark and other proprietary and intellectual property laws. You may not use any of our intellectual property rights without our express written consent or attribution to www.citylawyermag.com. However, you are permitted to print or save to your individual PC, tablet or storage extracts from this Website for your own personal non-commercial use.