RESPECTED LEARNED SILK BADEJO-OKUSANYA, NOW NBA PRESIDENT-ELECT: WILL YOU ALSO FAIL IN THIS ASSIGNMENT? OR WHAT SHOULD WE EXPECT?

By Sylvester Udemezue

Leadership is not tested by the brilliance of an election campaign; it is tested by the courage, wisdom and character demonstrated after victory. Every election creates expectations. Every mandate imposes responsibility. Every office presents an opportunity either to make history or merely to occupy space.

The election has been won. The celebrations will gradually subside. What now remains is the far more demanding task of leadership. Learned Silk Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, has already made history as the first woman ever elected President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA). That achievement is remarkable. It deserves sincere congratulations and commands the respect of the entire legal profession.

Yet, history teaches an enduring lesson: it remembers leaders not merely for breaking barriers, but for breaking new ground. Many have succeeded in winning elections; not all have succeeded in governing. The applause that accompanies victory soon fades unless it is followed by purposeful, principled, transparent and transformational leadership. This, therefore, is the real assignment before the President-Elect.

For years, I have consistently maintained that the greatest challenges confronting the Nigerian legal profession are not the increasing number of lawyers. Rather, they lie in strengthening institutional governance, restoring professional ethics, improving the welfare of lawyers, reforming legal education and continuing professional development, enhancing transparency and accountability in the administration of the Bar, reinforcing institutional discipline, and renewing our collective fidelity to the rule of law. The NBA remains the foremost institutional voice of the legal profession in Nigeria. Its leadership must therefore continually inspire confidence through integrity, vision and exemplary service.

Against that background, the questions before the President-Elect become both inevitable and compelling:

1) Can she restore confidence in the NBA’s electoral process?
2) Can she strengthen institutional governance above personalities?
3) Can she deepen transparency, accountability and financial prudence?
4) Can she rebuild trust across the divides created by the recent election and unite the Bar behind a common purpose?
5) Can she improve the welfare of lawyers beyond campaign promises?
6) Can she champion meaningful reforms in legal education and continuing professional development?
7) Can she reinforce ethics, discipline and the dignity of legal practice?
8) Can she safeguard the independence of the Bar while maintaining constructive engagement with other institutions of government?
9) Can she ensure that every lawyer (young or old, male or female, Senior Advocate or newly called practitioner, whether practising in a bustling city or a remote community) feels a genuine sense of belonging within the Association?
10) Above all, can she build enduring institutions that will outlive her tenure and leave the NBA stronger than she met it?

Her election also raises another question; one that extends beyond the legal profession itself. For decades, many have argued that women often bring to leadership a style that is more inclusive, consultative, disciplined and accountable. Whether or not one subscribes to that proposition, the Presidency of Learned Silk Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, presents a unique opportunity to test it in practice. Will she demonstrate that a woman can indeed do better? Or will history simply remember her as another President of the Bar?

The answer to this question will not be found in campaign speeches, congratulatory messages or the symbolism of being the first woman elected to the office. It will be found in courageous decisions, principled leadership, institutional reforms, transparent administration and an enduring legacy of service.

The legal profession does not demand perfection from its leaders. It asks instead for sincerity, humility, courage, competence and consistency. Leadership is measured not by promises made but by promises fulfilled; not by eloquent speeches but by stronger institutions; not by personal popularity but by enduring institutional legacy.

The President-Elect also has a rare opportunity to demonstrate that disagreement need not become division. Elections naturally produce winners and disappointed contestants. True leadership begins where campaigns end. Reconciliation, inclusiveness, magnanimity and respect for differing opinions are not signs of weakness; they are enduring marks of mature democratic leadership.

Every President of the Nigerian Bar Association will one day leave office. What remains is the legacy left behind. Some leave stronger institutions. Others leave stronger controversies. The choice ultimately belongs to the leader.

This article is therefore neither a criticism nor an expression of doubt. It is a respectful challenge borne out of genuine hope. Indeed, it is precisely because many believe in the capacity of the President-Elect that expectations are understandably high.

The Nigerian Bar Association deserves more than routine administration. It deserves courageous reforms, principled leadership, institutional discipline and unwavering fidelity to its constitutional mandate. It deserves a President who will unite rather than divide; who will listen rather than dictate; who will serve rather than seek applause; who will place institutions above personalities, principle above popularity, service above self, and legacy above office.

History has handed Learned Silk Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, an uncommon opportunity. The election has made history. Leadership must now make the difference. The entire Bar watches with hope. The question, therefore, remains simple, but profound: Will Learned Silk Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, also fail in this assignment?

For the sake of the Nigerian Bar, the Bench, the legal profession and the administration of justice in Nigeria, one sincerely hopes that the answer will be an emphatic No. May her tenure be remembered not merely because she was the first woman elected President of the Nigerian Bar Association, but because she proved herself to be one of the finest Presidents in the history of the Association.

Long live the Nigerian Bar Association!

• Sylvester Udemezue (Udems) is the Proctor at The Reality Ministry of Truth, Law & Justice (TRM). He can be reached at udems@therealityministry.ngo
• The views expressed in this article are entirely those of the author
  

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