Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) General Secretary Adesina Adegbite has debunked a claim that he was given N40 million by NBA President Yakubu Maikyau SAN to lodge into NBA account.

A senior lawyer and Bar activist Echika Ejido had asserted in a statement made available to CITY LAWYER that Maikyau “received N50 million gift in cash on behalf of the Association and gave N40 million to the General Secretary to deposit for the Association after deducting N10 million which he incurred within that time.”

But Adegbite vowed that the claim “is not only misleading, it is indeed mischievous, malicious and embarrassing.”

Below is the full text of the rebuttal by Adegbite.

RE: NBA LEADERSHIP BROUHAHA: A REJOINDER TO MAZI ECHIKA’S FALLACY

My attention was drawn late in the evening of Monday, 4th September, 2023 to a publication by Mazi Echika Esq, a legal practitioner based in Abuja. In the said pupublication which was widely circulated on several WhatsApp platforms and other social media platforms, Echika without making efforts to get his facts right, stated that the NBA President gave the General Secretary the sum of N40m to deposit into NBA account. This fallacious account of Echika is not only misleading, it is indeed mischievous, malicious and embarrassing.

To clear the air and deflate the falsehood that Echika’s write up appears to have promoted as countless members of the Association including Senior Advocates of Nigeria have been calling me to confirm the story, it is imperative that I emphatically state that the story is absolutely untrue. For the avoidance of doubt, I hereby reproduce the offensive paragraph in Mazi Echika’s publication below:

‘The NBA President also made a shocking revelation of how he received N50Million gift in cash on behalf of the Association and gave N40 million to the General Secretary to deposit for the Association after removing N10 million he incurred within that time.’

To put the record straight, I state unequivocally as follows:

1. Firstly, the President did not give me the sum of N40m or any sum whatsoever, be it in Naira or foreign currency, to deposit into the NBA account.
2. Secondly, it is true that the President informed me about the donation he received from an anonymous source, I know nothing about how the money was paid into the NBA account.
3. Thirdly, the records of the meeting which speaks for itself will reveal that the President never at any point in time in the course of the AGM made such a statement that he gave the General Secretary money to pay into the NBA account.
4. Fourthly, assuming without conceding that the President made such statement, Echika should provide evidence/transcript of where and when the President made the statement.
5. Lastly, for clarity of record, it must be stated categorically that I, Adesina Adegbite, the General Secretary of Nigerian Bar Association by the Grace of God and popular mandate of our members, has never and SHALL never demand that any money belonging to the Association be paid to me for reason other than official entitlements and refunds.

May I therefore advise Echika who ordinarily ought to have reached out to me or seek accurate account of what transpired at the AGM before embarking on a voyage of willful misrepresentation, to immediately retract the statement which has caused me unwarranted pains, embarrassment and inconveniences, as I’ve had to deal with hundreds of calls and messages within the last few hours as a result of his erroneous publication.

It is my hope that Echika who ordinarily should be my friend would do the right thing and immediately retract this reckless statement that has caused me undeserved hardship and embarrassment. Failure to do so will certainly leave me with no choice than to resort to instituting an appropriate legal action accordingly.

Adesina Adegbite, FICMC
General Secretary, Nigerian Bar Association