Renowned Nigerian human rights lawyer and lead counsel to the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Sir Ifeanyi Ejiofor, has challenged the newly elected NBA President, Mrs. Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, to move beyond the euphoria of her historic emergence and confront the deep-seated problems confronting the Nigerian legal profession.
Ejiofor said the new administration must enforce discipline without fear or favour, defend judicial independence while demanding accountability, tackle lawyers’ welfare concerns and undertake serious institutional reforms,warning that the Bar cannot preach accountability to society while shielding impunity within its own ranks.
He stated that the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) must embrace serious institutional reform.
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According to him, the integrity of the legal profession is not merely proclaimed at conferences but demonstrated in courtrooms, chambers, boardrooms, and public life.
Sir Ifeanyi Ejiofor, in his weekend column titled “Weekend Musings: The New Baton at the Bar: Beyond the Ceremony, the Real Work Begins,” said the new administration under Mrs. Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, must go beyond declarations and pursue practical reforms.
According to him, the war against professional misconduct cannot be fought through rhetoric alone; rather, it must be confronted through credible and consistent enforcement.
He said that, in this battle, there must be no sacred cows.
According to Ejiofor, a young lawyer must not be disciplined while a senior lawyer is excused, just as an unpopular lawyer must not be prosecuted while an influential one is protected.
He said the dignity of the profession cannot be selectively defended, noting that the Bar must also turn its searchlight inward.
He urged the new administration to have the courage to confront uncomfortable realities, the wisdom to distinguish criticism from hostility, the humility to listen even to those who disagree with it, and the firmness to act when action becomes necessary.
Ejiofor said Mrs. Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, inherits not merely an office but a profession crying out for restoration, reform, and renewed confidence.
According to the human rights lawyer, the head of the new Bar has the opportunity to prove that the historic significance of her emergence was not simply that a woman occupied the highest elected office of the Bar, but that, under her leadership, the Bar itself became stronger, fairer, more ethical, more prosperous, and more courageous.
Read the full statement:
“Yesterday, 28 August 2026, the curtains finally came down on the 66th Annual General Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association in Port Harcourt, bringing to a close another significant chapter in the life of our profession. More importantly, the occasion witnessed the formal transition of leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association, with Mrs. Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, assuming office as the 33rd President of the NBA.
As we bid farewell to Port Harcourt, therefore, the euphoria of transition must necessarily give way to sober reflection. The conference may have ended, the photographs taken, the handshakes exchanged and the ceremonial speeches delivered; but the unfinished business of rebuilding the Nigerian legal profession remains very much with us.
The conference itself, notwithstanding its many memorable moments, also exposed some of the deficiencies that must no longer be glossed over. The flooding at the conference venue and the unfortunate spectacle of lawyers being compelled to pay money to be ferried across flooded exit routes were particularly disturbing. At a gathering of the nation’s legal minds, one would have expected a more robust contingency plan for such a foreseeable logistical challenge.
There was, indeed, something almost paradoxical about lawyers gathering to deliberate on the rule of law, only to find themselves negotiating with floodwaters at the exit, and, apparently, discovering that even crossing a flooded pathway had acquired a tariff!
But beyond the logistics of one conference lies the larger and more consequential question: what kind of Bar do we desire to build?
I listened carefully to the inaugural address of our new President, and one aspect particularly resonated with me: the resolve to confront the increasing abuse of fellow lawyers, particularly on social media. This is not a peripheral matter. The unchecked vilification, humiliation, cyber-bullying and character assassination of colleagues have become an unfortunate feature of our professional discourse.
A profession founded upon advocacy, reason and the disciplined deployment of language cannot afford to become a marketplace where reputations are destroyed before facts are established.
The new administration must, however, go beyond declarations. The war against professional misconduct cannot be fought by rhetoric alone. It must be fought by credible enforcement.
And in that battle, there must be no sacred cows.
The young lawyer must not be disciplined while the senior lawyer is excused. The unpopular lawyer must not be prosecuted while the influential one is protected. The dignity of the profession cannot be selectively defended. The Bar must also turn its searchlight inward.
Resolve to defend the independence of the Judiciary with every legitimate means available to us. But, in the same breath, we must have the courage to confront allegations and manifestations of corruption, indiscipline, delay, professional misconduct and other institutional weaknesses within the administration of justice.These two obligations are not contradictory.
Judicial independence without judicial accountability is dangerous; judicial accountability without judicial independence is equally perilous.
Our advocacy for an independent Judiciary must therefore proceed pari passu with our demand for a Judiciary that is transparent, efficient, courageous and demonstrably committed to justice. We cannot demand public confidence in an institution while becoming uncomfortable whenever legitimate questions are raised about its internal shortcomings.
The same principle applies to the Bar itself. The Nigerian Bar Association must become increasingly intolerant of impunity, whether committed by politicians, judicial officers, lawyers or the Association’s own officials. The Bar cannot credibly preach accountability to the nation while becoming allergic to accountability within its own household.
There is also the urgent question of the welfare and economic survival of lawyers. A profession cannot be considered healthy when a substantial number of its young practitioners struggle to survive, when remuneration remains disproportionately low, when professional opportunities are unevenly distributed, and when the cost of legal practice continues to rise beyond the capacity of many practitioners.
The welfare of lawyers must therefore not be treated as a ceremonial item in presidential speeches. It must become a measurable policy objective.
The Bar must therefore embrace serious institutional reform. We need a profession whose integrity is not merely proclaimed at conferences but demonstrated in courtrooms, chambers, boardrooms and public life.
To our new President, Mrs. Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, the responsibility before you is enormous. You have made history; now you must make an impact.
You inherit not merely an office, but a profession crying out for restoration, reform and renewed confidence. You have the opportunity to prove that the historic significance of your emergence was not simply that a woman occupied the highest elected office of the Bar, but that under your leadership, the Bar itself became stronger, fairer, more ethical, more prosperous and more courageous.
May your administration have the courage to confront the uncomfortable, the wisdom to distinguish criticism from hostility, the humility to listen even to those who disagree with you, and the firmness to act when action becomes necessary.
As we finally bid farewell to Port Harcourt, may everyone return safely to their respective destinations. And as we look forward to Abuja 2027, let us hope that the next conference will not merely be another grand annual reunion of lawyers, but an opportunity to demonstrate that the lessons of Port Harcourt have translated into institutional improvements.
The ceremony is over.
The applause has faded.
The baton has changed hands.
Now, Madam President, the real work begins.
May God Almighty endow you and your entire administration with the wisdom, courage, strength and grace to justify the confidence reposed in you by the Nigerian legal profession.
Congratulations once again, Madam President. May your tenure be remembered not merely as historic, but as transformative.
