The newly sworn-in 32nd president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Afam Osigwe (SAN), has identified ways his team will reposition the legal profession and usher it and the nation into “an era of greatness” over the next two years.
Afam Osigwe (SAN) was elected as the new president of the association in July this year.
Results at the end of the NBA National Officers election, conducted via electronic voting on July 21, 2024, showed that Osigwe, a former General Secretary of the association, won with 20,435 votes.
The Chairman of the NBA Institute of Continuing Legal Education board, Mr. Tobenna Erojikwe, trailed him with 10,998 votes, while Mr. Chukwuka Ikwuazom (SAN) came third with 9,018 votes.
The transition of leadership from the outgoing president, Yakubu Chonoko Maikyau (SAN), to Afam Osigwe took place in Lagos on August 29, 2024, and was virtually monitored by a Nairametrics analyst.
The NBA renews its national leadership every two years through elections. The tenure of elected officials of the NBA runs for two years and is non-renewable.
Below is a list of 12 strategies declared by Osigwe during his inaugural speech on August 29, 2024, as monitored by Nairametrics:
1. Stamp and Seal: He promised to engage service providers to resolve the recurrent delay in the issuance of the NBA Stamp and Seal, which he describes as an embarrassing problem that must be tackled head-on to avoid its recurrence. The NBA stamp and seal is a seal and stamp approved by the Nigerian Bar Association, which a lawyer and law firm must affix on legal documents before signing or filing them.
2. NBA Constitutional Amendment: He vowed to consider a further amendment to the NBA Constitution in order to operationalize the remittance of 20% of Bar Practice Fees to branches, among other provisions.
3. Quarterly Review and Commentaries on Court Decisions: To increase Nigerians’ confidence in the judiciary, he established the NBA Adjudicature Review Committee (ARC), which will periodically review decisions from the appellate courts, especially the Supreme Court, and present well-researched commentaries on such cases for the benefit of Nigerians.
4. Justice Sector Reform: According to Osigwe, “The Committee will not only spearhead the NBA Advocacy for Justice Sector Reforms but also advocate for appropriate investments in modernizing court infrastructures, including the construction and renovation of selected court facilities to provide conducive environments for the speedy dispensation of justice.”
5. Continuing Professional Development: “We shall ensure compliance with Rule 12(1) of the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners, 2023, by publishing, not later than a specified date each year, a list of legal practitioners who have complied with the requirements of the Continuing Professional Development Programme (MCLE) and those who have paid their Bar Practicing Fees (BPF) and are, therefore, entitled to practice as legal practitioners in that year,” he said, among others.
6. Local Government Supervision: He said the NBA will ensure strict compliance with the judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, which recently proclaimed financial independence and autonomy for the 774 local governments in Nigeria.
7. Establishment of the NBA National Litigation Committee: Osigwe decried the incessant harassment of lawyers by law enforcement agents, vowing to establish the NBA Litigation Committee to institute court actions in respect of alleged human rights violations of lawyers as well as other matters of public interest to the legal profession.
8. Monthly Inspection of Police Stations and Detention Facilities: Osigwe promised to establish a Citizens’ Liberties Committee (CLC), which will collaborate with NBA branches to liaise with the Chief Judges of the States and the FCT to ensure that all police stations and other detention facilities in each State of the Federation and the FCT are visited and inspected by Magistrates and Judges once a month, in accordance with the provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act/Law.
9. Protection of Legal Businesses: “To ensure that we protect our legal business from non-legal practitioners who encroach on it, as well as from the influx of foreign lawyers/law firms and practice by non-law firms, we shall establish a committee in that regard,” he said.
10. Annual General Conference Repositioning: Osigwe said the NBA, under his leadership, will ensure that its next Annual General Conference (AGC) enables the association to raise funds, enter into partnerships, secure sponsorships, etc.
11. LPDC Rules Watch: “To this end, we commit to ensuring that our members adhere to the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners. Any breach of professional ethics will be met with appropriate disciplinary measures, as maintaining the integrity and credibility of our profession is crucial,” Osigwe added.
12. Legal Education Committee: “This committee will formulate and present the NBA’s position on the reform and development of legal education in Nigeria, drive a proposed review of curricula in law faculties of Nigerian universities and the Nigerian Law School to bring them into conformity with contemporary developments and international standards, propose criteria for the employment of law lecturers and retraining programs for law lecturers, push for improvements in the infrastructural conditions of Nigerian Law School campuses, develop a program to have practicing lawyers actively involved in teaching several courses at the Nigerian Law School and Faculties of Law, and introduce a mentorship scheme for aspirants to the Bar (whereby law students would be assigned to established law firms), beginning at the law faculties and continuing into the law school, as is done in other developed jurisdictions,” he added.
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