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Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President, Mr. Afam Osigwe SAN has put a lid on the raging debate whether the lawyers’ association should refund the N300 million paid by Rivers State Government for the Annual General Conference (AGC) earlier scheduled to hold in Port Harcourt.

Meanwhile, hopes have risen for the rebirth of the virtually moribund NBA Section on Public Interest and Development Law (NBA-SPIDEL) given the appointment of respected former Chairman of the section, Prof. Paul Ananaba SAN to spearhead election of a new leadership. CITY LAWYER recalls that it was Ananaba who piloted the section back to reckoning as its chairman after it became comatose for a long period.

In an Executive Report obtained by CITY LAWYER and delivered to members of the NBA National Executive Council (NBA-NEC) meeting which held in Ilorin, Kwara State, Osigwe stated that “the donation was given as an unconditional gift and not tied to any hosting rights or contractual obligations,” adding that “We reject bullying and political interference and maintain our principled stand to uphold democratic norms and the integrity of the legal profession.”

Noting that the demand emanated from an “unconstitutional sole administrator,” the NBA President stated that “The notion that the NBA should refund the donation lacks both factual and legal justification. In February 2025, the Rivers State Government under Governor Similayi Fubara gave sponsorship support of N300 million to the NBA in response to our request for financial support. The money was therefore for support for the AGC and not for the acquisition of hosting rights. It was not for any purported “hosting rights”! We may recall that I announced the choice of Rivers State as the venue for the Conference during my inauguration as NBA President on August 29, 2024. This decision, which was ratified by NEC on November 8, 2024, was made without lobbying or bidding by Rivers State. The privilege given to host states of the NBA conference has never been a result of any bidding process, payment for hosting rights, or as a result of any promise for financial support. As a matter of fact, over time, the NBA conference has been hosted in states where the government of such states gave no financial support to the association. Rather, the Association’s choice of host state is largely influenced by the infrastructural capacity of the state to accommodate the large number of its members who will attend the conference.

“We have therefore consistently reiterated that we will not return any money to the Rivers State government, as the money was a gift meant for the sponsorship and not for “hosting rights”! It must be noted that the things the money was sought were stated in the letter, and are still capable of execution, as we will still hold the 2025 AGC. We have done nothing wrong and are not insisting on holding on to money we are not entitled to. The NBA is entitled to retain the money and will retain it.

“May we also note the argument that the donation was illegal, as, according to the proponents, the money was not appropriated by the Rivers State House of Assembly. Some have even argued that it is a proceed of crime. We beg to differ, as we believe that the argument is not supported by law or fact. If indeed it was a proceeds of crime that we may also suggest that all civil servants, contractors, service providers etc, paid money by Governor Fubara during the said period also received proceeds of crime and should return the moneys paid to them, because, according to them, there was no validly passed budget. The Sole Administrator’s supporters, who are relying on the argument of “unapproved budget” to demand a refund of the donation, have nothing to say about the Administrator who is spending Rivers State money that was not even passed by any lawmaking body, whether valid or not.

“While the Supreme Court judgment on the political crisis in Rivers State stated that four members could not validly constitute the Rivers State House of Assembly or validly transact its legislative business, we are of the view that it does not mean that every money paid to third parties automatically becomes refundable. This cannot be the intention of that decision. While it may emphasize that the budget operated by Governor Fubara was not validly passed, it does not mean that money he paid as salary, contract sums, gifts, or spent on running the state must be refunded on grounds of illegality. That surely cannot be the law. In fact, such a suggestion may lead to absurdity and unending litigation.

“May I refer you to the case of Balonwu & Ors vs. Governor of Anambra State & Ors (2008)16 NWLR Part 1113, where it was held that the nullification of the election of a person as Governor does not invalidate his actions as Governor. We can therefore extrapolate that this simply means that the decision by the Court that there was no validly passed budget would invalidate payments made by it. At the Court of Appeal, Omage JCA stated “It will be unwise and unsafe to declare null and void, the decision and actions taken and performed as Governor in the tenure of Dr. Ngige and Mr. Obi in those years of their governorship because to do so will cause a distrust of subsequent decisions of the government functionaries and create a lawless society, to do so will certainly open a floodgate of fruitless litigation”!

“Permit me to note that the danger in the view that NBA MUST refund the money is that any person who has donated to the Conference, can for non-existent reason or no reason insist on the refund of such donation. This is a floodgate we cannot afford to open as an association. May we reiterate that a gift given without any condition, as in this case, cannot be demanded for or refunded. A gratuitous gift/donation is simply that. The money was for sponsorship, not for any right in the Conference or for acquisition of a right to irrevocably hold the conference in Rivers State. We will therefore not refund any money to Rivers State. In saying this I will not bother asking or answering the question whether an unconstitutional government can ask for the refund of donation voluntarily made by a democratic government.”

Turning to the controversial query issued to its Port Harcourt Chairman Cordelia Eke following a joint statement by chairmen of NBA branches in Rivers State, Osigwe warned that “A lawyer who is a civil servant and official of a branch cannot be queried by the government for a statement issued in his/her capacity as an elected official of the Bar. The Public Service Rules permit civil servants to participate in publications by a voluntary organization, such as the Nigerian Bar Association. The actions by the Chairperson are therefore in tandem with the Public Service Rules, and she has not breached the Rules nor engaged in any act of misconduct that would justify disciplinary action against her. The query is simply a political overreach and witch hunt by the unconstitutional Administrator.”

Osigwe also warned that “The threat to sanction an elected official of the Bar for actions taken in her capacity as an official of the Bar, without legal justification, is precisely the kind of overreach the law is meant to guard against. The Bar cannot be intimidated into silence. We will invoke the laws of the land to ensure that elected officials of the Bar are not unjustly treated for speaking truth to power in their capacity as Chairmen of NBA Branches. Should any disciplinary action be commenced against Mrs. Cordelia Eke or any official of the Bar, the NBA will take all lawful steps to challenge the same and will also take other lawful steps to resist it.”

On the sanctions meted to some judicial officers by the National Judicial Council, the NBA President stated that “We are also of the view that any judge who is not fit for elevation to an appellate court is clearly not fit to remain on the bench. We urge the NJC to revisit the matter and consider permanent removal of the judges from office so that the judiciary would not become a haven for impunity.”

Osigwe restated the position of the association on the unconstitutionality of the removal of Rivers State Governor, adding that “The power given to the President under Section 305 of the Constitution does not empower the President to suspend a Governor, Deputy Governor, or other democratic organs of government.”

To read the full text of the report, click here.

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