How Osigwe emerged NBA president

Lawyers’ prediction came true as Osigwe emerged as the President of the Nigerian Bar Association in the recently concluded national officers’ election, ONOZURE DANIA writes

On July 21, 2024, the Chairman of the Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association, Oluseun Abimbola (SAN), declared Afam Osigwe (SAN) the winner of the NBA presidential election after securing 50.52 per cent of the votes cast to defeat the two other contestants.

Osigwe, a former NBA general secretary, scored 20,435, votes to beat the Chairman of the NBA-Institute of Continuing Legal Education Governing Council, Tobenna Erojikwe, who secured 10,998 votes (27.19 per cent).

In the NBA national officers’ election which was conducted on Saturday, July 20, 2024, former NBA Lagos branch chairman, Chukwuka Ikwuazom (SAN), came third in the NBA presidential election, with 9,018 votes (22.29 per cent).

Announcing the results at NBA House in Abuja on Sunday, Abimbola said 40,451 votes were tallied, while there were 205 abstentions.

Just like every election, there are usually predictions of who would emerge the winner among the candidates. This also happened at the just concluded NBA general election where the candidate many lawyers predicted emerged as the NBA president.

Earlier in the year four aspirants for the association’s president emerged from the South-East region but were  eventually reduced to  three candidates who later contested for the NBA presidency on July 20, 2024.

Immediately the ECNBA announced that candidates could start campaigning for votes, Osigwe’s name was always on the lips of lawyers, even the ones who didn’t have any personal relationship with him.

The newly elected NBA president, in his acceptance speech on Sunday, pledged his commitment to actively tackle issues hindering the administration of justice and respond to emerging trends impacting legal practice.

He expressed his commitment to leading a proactive Bar that diligently identifies and addresses potential challenges, adding that under his leadership, the Bar would “uphold vigilance, responsiveness, responsibility, constructive engagement, and forward-thinking initiatives.”

According to him, “The outcome of the NBA 2024, National Officers Election is a testament to the collective commitment to advancing the cause of justice, upholding the rule of law, and fostering a vibrant and inclusive legal community.”

Osigwe, the Bar’s 32nd President and set to succeed the outgoing president, Yakubu Maikyau (SAN), said, “I am enormously grateful for the privilege and honour to be entrusted with the responsibility of piloting the affairs of the NBA effective end of August 2024.

 “We are therefore all winners. I extend my sincere appreciation to my colleagues and friends, Chukwuazom and Erijiokwe, for their dedication to our profession and democratic process.

“Our shared commitment to the NBA and our profession fostered robust discussions throughout the campaign. Your passion and dedication to the legal profession ensured that our contest remained focused on substantive issues.

“We face many challenges, but I am confident that together, we can overcome them and usher in a new era of progress for our association.

“We will work tirelessly to enhance the welfare of our members, uphold the dignity of our profession, and contribute meaningfully to the advancement of our society.”

Other positions contested during the election included the 1st Vice-President, in which Sabastine Anyia emerged as the winner with 12,114 votes. His closest rival, Bartholomew Aguegbodo, garnered 6,864 votes to clinch the second position, while Williams Soseipiriye, who secured the third position, polled 5,718 votes. Dr. Promise Iwezor polled 5,365 votes to clinch the fourth position while Reginald Ugwuadu secured the fifth position with 3,261 votes. Dr Gerald Abonyi polled 3,227 votes, securing the sixth position.

Mrs Bolatumi Animashaun won the 2nd Vice-President position with 26,534 votes, defeating Pius Oiwoh, who scored 11,121 votes. For the 3rd Vice-President position, Mrs Zainab Garba won with 23,550 votes, while her closest rival, Michael Olorunmola, scored 13,897 votes.

Dr Mobolaji Ojibara emerged as the association’s general secretary with 25,713 votes, while his rival, Abdulwasiu Alfa, got 11,730 votes. Henry Barnabas won the Assistant General Secretary position with 28,552 votes, defeating Oluwaseun Aka, who scored 8,317 votes.

Mrs Blessing Udofa-Poromon won the position of Treasurer with 17,998 votes, defeating her closest rival, Mbamala Chukwuemeka, who scored 9,825 votes. Also, Nyada Auta won the Welfare Secretary position with 18,369 votes, defeating Oaikhena Osagie, who scored 12,855 votes.

Bridget Edokwe emerged as the Publicity Secretary, scoring 19,542 votes, defeating incumbent NBA Assistant Publicity Secretary Charles Ajiboye, who scored 10,989 votes. For the Assistant Publicity Secretary position, Miss Ebiere Ekpese won with 26,955 votes, defeating Lawrence Ayewa, who scored 9,690 votes.

Eleven candidates were also elected as NBA Representatives to the General Council of the Bar.

On Tuesday, President Bola Tinubu congratulated Osigwe on his election. In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, Tinubu also commended Maikyau on his leadership of the association and congratulated all newly elected officers and members on a successful election.

“The President congratulates all newly elected officers of the NBA and members of the association on a successful conduct of the elections.

“The President assures the new leadership of the NBA of his administration’s support in addressing challenges affecting the association and the legal profession in general,” the statement read in part.

The outgoing NBA president, Mr Yakubu Maikyau, (SAN), also congratulated the newly elected NBA National Officers and Representatives at the General Council of the Bar on their electoral success.

Maikyau in his congratulatory message on Monday said the victory of the elected NBA officers was a “call to service.”

He stated, “Their desire to serve in various positions is a clear demonstration of their commitment to making sacrifices and continuing to promote the primary objectives of the Bar for the good of our members and the generality of the people.

Meanwhile, Ikwuazom who came third in the election, said that the electoral system was manipulated, stating that he had pulled out of the race several hours to the end of the poll. He said despite “overwhelming support,” it appeared that the system was manipulated towards a predetermined outcome, consistently placing him in third.

“As a candidate committed to upholding transparency and the rule of law, I cannot in good conscience continue to participate in a compromised electoral process,” he said.

However, Ikwuazom asked the ECNBA to grant him access to the server and related information within 48 hours.

In a letter dated July 21, 2024, addressed to Abimbola, he alleged the process was marred by irregularities and demanded about 18 documents relating to the elections.

Ikwuazom alleged identity theft, discrepancies in vote patterns, suspicious vote increase patterns and discrepancies in vote display and update.

He said: “Multiple voters reported being unable to cast their ballots as the system indicated they had already voted when they had not.

“Upon complaining, some of these supporters subsequently received another link to cast their votes.

“This situation demonstrates clear instances of either double-voting or possible data manipulation.

“These occurrences raise serious concerns about the voter database’s integrity, the security of the voting process, and the potential for unauthorised manipulation of voting records.

 “Suspicious vote increase pattern: Throughout the entirety of the election, the number of votes attributed to the winning candidate exhibited a steady increase in an almost exact geometric progression at the top of each hour.

“This pattern is strongly indicative of a pre-programmed vote allocation, rather than a natural accumulation of votes.

“This observation raises serious concerns about the authenticity of the vote-counting process and the overall integrity of the election results.

“Pursuant to paragraph 8(C), Part II of the Second Schedule of the NBA Constitution 2015 (as amended), I hereby formally request access to all critical information, documents, and databases used in the recently concluded NBA Presidential Elections, including the back end of the election portal.”

Commenting on the election, Erojikwe said the electoral process and the election were not credible or satisfactory and demanded an audit.

Some of the issues he highlighted included “pre-election concerns: It is on record that in the process leading up to the elections, I wrote to the ECNBA on at least three occasions to express my concerns and highlight certain breaches and irregularities surrounding the election.

“It was not until four hours before the commencement of polls that the ECNBA published the full list of eligible voters in defiance of the provisions of Paragraph 9 of Part V of the Second Schedule to the NBA Constitution, which provides in mandatory terms that the ECNBA shall publish the full list of voters at least 45 clear days before the date of the election.”

On vote tallying, Erojikwe said, “The rare phenomenon where the number of votes ascribed to the winning candidate steadily increased in an almost exact geometric progression at the top of each hour for nearly the entirety of the election in a manner which, our cyber analysts professionally believe, is demonstrative of a pre-programming of votes.”

On discrepancies in vote counts, the candidate said, “At different times, the sum of the votes cast for the candidates was either in excess of, or less than, the total votes tallied at the relevant time.

“For a process where the tallying is automatic, such a statistical discrepancy is inexplicable.

“Despite the fact that the election was widely advertised to commence by 11:59 pm. and end by 11:59 p.m. on Saturday, July 20, 2024, voting continued into the early hours of Sunday, July 21, 2024, and the numbers of votes continued to increase.

“I am, at this time, unable to accept the election result announced by the ECNBA. Instead, I am immediately calling, in the first instance, for an official audit of the election result by the provisions of Paragraph 8(c), Part 2, Second Schedule of the NBA Constitution.

“This step has become necessary to ensure that we instil full faith and confidence in our electoral process within the NBA.”

Responding to the accusations of compromise in the election, Abimbola said their system was foolproof, stating that there was no compromise.

“In executing our mandate, we made tough decisions under our constitution.

“We adopted measures and pre-emptive steps to insulate the electoral process and system from undue interruptions and interference, whether by default or design.

“Our final report will capture these to guide our future electoral process.”

While congratulating the NBA president-elect, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Wahab Shittu, urged Osigwe, who he described as “truly a Bar man,” to unite the Bar.

“He should raise and project the Bar in all ramifications. I expect him to work and collaborate with his co-contestants, who are equally star-studded and sterling.

“He should prioritise the welfare of the bar and fight for a truly independent judiciary that strives for the enthronement of justice.

“Under his leadership, I expect increased professionalism, adherence to standards, discipline and ethics,” Shittu stated.

Governing Council Chairman of the NBA-Young Lawyers Forum, Abdulrauf Aboki, described the vision of Osigwe as inspiring.

In a congratulatory message on Tuesday, Aboki said, “Your leadership and vision for our association is truly inspiring. As a YLF, we attest to your commitment and dedication to serving the Bar.”

Also congratulating Osigwe, the Chairman of the Nigerian Forum of African Bar Association, Mohammed Ndayako (SAN), said, “Your victory is a clear manifestation of your track record of service and reward of same by the Nigerian lawyers.

“It is my hope that you will bring to bear a proactive Bar that will work for all lawyers in Nigeria and to the benefit of the entire people of Nigeria.

“Meanwhile, we look forward to also working with you at the African Bar Association to improve interactions amongst legal practitioners on the African continent.”