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NBA says election was credible, challenges Ngige to name unqualified delegate

The Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) on Friday said that the allegations of Emeka Ngige, who accused the leadership of the association of manipulating and rigging … Continue reading NBA says election was credible, challenges Ngige to name unqualified delegate


The Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) on Friday said that the allegations of Emeka Ngige, who accused the leadership of the association of manipulating and rigging the recent election of the NBA, as “figments of his imagination, emanating, surprisingly from his inability to handle shattering electoral defeat he experienced at the poll.”

The NBA position was contained in a press statement signed and issued by Olumuyiwa Akinboro, the General Secretary of the association.

The association said that it was surprised that, less than 24 hours after the poll that was conducted “in the full glare of the public and television camera’s”, Mr Ngige, who had contested to be the NBA president, would issue a statement discrediting the election.
Mr Ngige, who was the main opposition candidate in the just concluded NBA election, on Thursday released a statement faulting the outcome of the election.

He alleged that the election held in Abuja on Tuesday was seriously manipulated and rigged to truncate the true wishes of the delegates.

He specifically accused the outgoing President of the NBA, Joseph Daudu and the electoral committee of manipulating voters’ register in favour of Okey Wali, adding that the displayed voters’ register contradicts the actual voters’ register used for the elections

Below is the full text of the statement the NBA released in response to Mr Ngige’s allegations:

RE: REJOINDER BY THE NIGERIAN BAR ASSOSIATION TO THE PRESS STATEMENT ON NBA ELECTION ISSUED BY MR. EMEKA NGIGE SAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE IN THE ELECTION
The attention of the Nigeria Bar Association has been drawn to widely- circulated press statement issued by Emeka Ngige SAN, a contestant in the 17th NBA delegates election which was widely circulated on the print and electronic media. The first reaction leadership of the NBA was to ignore the scurrilous and baseless publication as being the outcome of post-election stress syndrome. However we have had to bow to the superior reasoning of our numerous members round the world that misinformation and dishonourable conduct must be vigorously and ferociously stamped out of the NBA and that a response setting the facts which the author knew well straight must be made. For the record this is the NBA’s response to Ngige’s concocted inaccuracies, distortions and weird innendoes.

At the end of the well conducted 2012 NBA elections Mr Ngige in the full glare of the public and television camera’s conceded the election and congratulated the winner Okay Wali SAN only to turn around in less than 24 hours to submit an ‘election petition’ to nobody in particular and as described above purporting to discredit the electoral process for the reasons best known to him. It is most unfortunate that a person of Mr. Ngige’s knowledge and experience at the Bar would allow sheer emotionalism and the pressure of electoral defeat to overwhelm him to the extent of making unfounded accusations against the NBA.

As a lawyer, Mr Ngige ought to be abundantly aware of the simple fact that outlandish and untrue allegations, no matter how outrageous, have no value in themselves, except they are supported with hard, incontrovertible and unshakable evidence to back them up. It is only in the face of facts that such allegations can be adjudged worthy of consideration by reasonable minds. All Ngige’s allegations were figments of his imagination, emanating, surprisingly from his inability to handle shattering electoral defeat he experienced at the poll. The new leadership of the NBA as with past leaderships will only be interested in working with all and sundry in moving the association forward and impacting positively in the administration of justice, it would not be in the interest of the Bar if some people allow mere sentiments impel them to introduce divisiveness and rancor in the hierarchy of the Bar. That would be an ill wind that does not blow anybody good. We shall now deal with the said allegations in seriatim.

1. LETTER TO MR OLUMIYA AKINBORO ON 28/6/2012, REQUESTING FOR NBA DELEGATES LIST

As a body of lawyers which prides itself on constitutionalism and due process, we wish to state that it is not the practice to give contestants the delegates list in advance so as to avoid any undue advantage or favour that this line of action may encourage. The NBA General Secretary is not constitutionally empowered to release the ‘’voters list ‘ to contestants.The tradition is that contestants source for delegates list from branch chairmen who compile and send the list of their delegates to the National Secretariat. Since the 2009 amendment to the NBA Constitution, the office of the General Secretary’s role in the actual conduct of the election has been taken over by the Electoral Committee. Consequently, contrary to Ngige’s suggestions, there was no conspiracy or concerted action to deprive Mr Ngige of the delegates list. His request is simply ultra vires the office and functions of NBA General Secretary.

2. ALLEGED MANIPULATION OF NEC LIST TO INCLUDE NON-NEC MEMBERS.

According to Ngige the (NEC) list was manipulated to include non-NEC members and even those “who are constitutionally disqualified”
He gave the example of MRS RANTI BOSEDE DAUDU and MR PAUL TUNDE DAUDU, the wife and son respectively of the outgoing NBA President.We notice with utter bewilderment that the learned silk could elevate mischief to an art in his desire to demonise the President. More worrisome is the fact that he is deliberately projecting himself as someone who is oblivious of the NBA constitution and NEC resolutions.
The composition of NBA NEC is contained in article 9(a)(1-iv) and (vi1-3).MR PAUL BABATUNDE DAUDU is the secretary of the Young Lawyers Forum and by virtue of that office, he was co-opted into NEC with the Chairman of the forum. Paul Daudu’s involvement with the NBA Young Lawyers forum preceded his father’s ascendancy as President of the Nigerian Bar Association. This is not the first time that the chairman and the secretary of the YLF will be co-opted into NEC. Mr Opayinka, (one of those who contested this election) was a member of NEC all the years that he served as Chair of the Young Lawyers Forum and he was below 7 years then. Furthermore, there are NEC members who are less than 10 years at the Bar and they include the 1st and 2nd Assistant Secretaries, the Assistant Publicity Secretary and Assistant financial Secretary. These are statutory exceptions to the Rule that a NEC member should be at least 10 years at the Bar. There are also branch executives who are less than 10 years who represent their constituencies on NBA/NEC. This has been the tradition since the inception of the sections and fora. As for MRS DAUDU, she has been a NEC member since the inauguration of the current NEC. She also in her own right based on her human rights work with children with disability appointed as a Commissioner to the National Human Rights Commission on the recommendation of NBA/NEC. Their names with other nominees were approved at GOMBE NEC.

It seems entirely strange that Mr. Ngige is now feigning ignorance of this tradition all in a bid to malign the NBA which he had attempted to serve in the capacity of a President. May we say that it is an act of unfathomable bad faith to suggest that friends and relatives of the President or any other leader of the NBA who have been active in NBA activities should suspend their involvement with the NBA because of the latter’s ascendancy to leadership in the NBA.

3. MANIPULATION OF VOTERS’ REGISTER.

The allegation that NBA manipulated the voters register to procure some sinister ends is absolutely false as alleged by Ngige. On the contrary, all the names submitted by the chairmen were published in the voters register. No single name or names were added in favour of the winner as alleged. MR NGIGE made reference to the Port Harcourt branch’ list ostensibly to show that it was padded in favour of the winner. The fact is that Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja branches have over the years turned out the largest numbers of delegates. In this year election, Abuja branch had 45 delegates, Lagos which is Mr. Ngige’s branch had 43 and Port Harcourt 42. It is a known fact that the highest percentage of lawyers in Nigeria are concentrated in these cities and since the delegates derivation scheme is premised on the population of the lawyers who paid practicing fees in each of the branches, the reason why the aforementioned three cities will always have disproportional number of delegates viz-a-viz other branches becomes obvious.

4. DECEASED SANs IN THE LIST.

The list of the Senior Advocates of Nigeria and benchers were given to the electoral committee by the Secretariat who sourced same from the Supreme Court of Nigeria with qualifying remarks where applicable.The names of deceased SANs and benchers he mentioned were appropriately annotated in the register with remarks reflecting their deceased status. At any rate, the deceased SAN’s and Benchers mentioned by Mr. Ngige are recently deceased and that fact was not known to the Secretariat staff. No deceased delegate voted or could have voted. Ngige should name a SAN or Bencher who voted without being qualified to do so instead of making misrepresentation with apparent intention to mislead and lie.

5. DUPLICATED NAMES IN THE REGISTER

The allegation of duplicated or multiple rendition of voter names in the list is yet another malicious lie. It is remarkable that Mr. Ngige did not say the purported duplication of names resulted in multiple voting since he himself knows that such voting is not possible in NBA election as a result of diverse mechanism embedded in the electoral process to check all forms of fraud and manipulation. The electoral committee had a duty and indeed an obligation which it creditably discharged by its inexorable adherence to the fair principle of “one delegate one vote.”

CONCLUSION

We urge the learned silk not to discredit the process which in the estimation of most lawyers and journalists who covered the election was credible,free and fair. Having congratulated the winner earlier, Mr. Ngige should eshew bitterness aimed at rubbishing a well conducted elections; he should not allow mere self interest goad him into discrediting our esteemed association in which he, Ngige, is or was also a stakeholder.

Olumuyiwa Akinboro esqr

General Secretary, Nigerian Bar Association

20th July 2012