Abdication Of Duty! How NBA Leaderships Chase After Shadows To The Detriment Of The Security, Welfare And Economic Advancement Of The Legal Profession And Its Members

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By Sylvester Udemezue (udems)

A CORE AIM OF THE NIGERIAN BAR ASSOCIATION
(NBA):”Establishment of schemes for the promotion of the
welfare, security, and economic advancement of members of the legal
profession” (See section 3(13) of the NBA Constitution, 2015)

In response to my earlier commentary titled, “IF THE JUDICIARY
IN NIGERIA IS NOT INDEPENDENT, BLAME IT ON SUCCESSIVE NBA
LEADERSHIPS”, and posted on LPD et al on 05/04/2021, Mr Folarin
ALUKO (a respectable and respected bar leader) said, “How do you
defend an institution that rewards those who undermine it? The
question of the moment is one of priorities:Of all the problems
plaguing the Judiciary, which problem should be addressed first? I
think the best answer is that charity begins at home.The biggest
way the NBA can defend the judiciary is to hold it accountable to
its public duty”.

His humble reaction however provoked further comments from me,
as summarized below:

MY RESPONSE:

Dear sir , it doesn’t matter how you frame the question or how
you prefer the question to be framed; it doesn’t change the
gravamen of my worry, as expressed in my SHORT comment, last night,
which simply is this: the NBA (whether at the National or at the
Branch level) is doing practically nothing either to achieve true
independence for the judiciary or to hold the judiciary
“accountable to its Public duty”. And, my brother, if you ask me to
say exactly what the Nigerian Bar Association is currently doing or
preoccupied with , and these are they only things the NBA (national
and Branches) is interested in doing, I will respectfully give you
the list as follows:

1️⃣. Collecting Bar Practicing Fees, Branch
Dues, etc, much of which NBA wastes or lavishes on frivolous and
jamboree (white elephant) projects, resulting in TOTAL FAILURE OF
CONSIDERATION as lawyers, most of whom are practically compelled to
pay these fees and dues (sure, in order to get NBA seal), get no
practical value in their professional lives, for the money paid.
NBA leaders EGOISTICALLY take collection of BPF/dues very
seriously; with due respect, it shouldn’t be so. By going about to
beg and coerce lawyers to pay BPF and Branch Dues, NBA leaderships
are subtly exposing their vested selfish interest in the monies
ultimately collected. NBA leaders have no business and no reasons
“appealing” to anyone to pay BPF and dues. Members ought to pay
WILLINGLY and HAPPILY, knowing (1) what they stand to benefit (ie.,
assuming they stand to gain anything) and (2) what the consequences
of failure or neglect in this respect are. See why such appeals or
reminders are not necessary: (a) section 4 of the NBA Constitution
provides that if you don’t pay BPF, you’re disqualified from
practicing law in all its facets and from doing anything whatsoever
that only a lawyer may do, for the rest of that year, until you
pay. The same section says non payment of BPF is a form of
unprofessional conduct. Gentlemen, are these not enough warning and
eyeopener to Lawyers? Why should the NBA keep reminding and
pestering lawyers to pay and more often than not, even playing the
role of a town crier? I will tell you why NBA is doing this! It is
all our of selfishness; money collected or to be collected is too
important to the nba leaderships, they desperately want the money
in order to be able to continue to sustain their misadventures,
egoistic grandstanding and play-to-the-gallery. They want that
money to continue to WASTE and LAVISH on frivolous projects and
useless policies and programs. Useless because they have no direct
or indirect positive impact on the professional lives of those who
are forced to pay these monies.

If things were going on well within the NBA, if NBA members were
happy with the NBA, if they were getting VALUE FOR THEIR MONEY,
they would happily and promptly pay BPF and any other dues without
any reminders, without any town-crying adverts by the NBA
leaderships and without any compulsion. I tell you again, there is
a situation of TOTAL FAILURE OF CONSIDERATION, as I have come to
realize. Nigerian lawyers hardly get any value for the monies they
pay to the NBA. This is partly why the Hon. AGF wanted to stop the
COMPULSIVE PAYMENT of BPF by lawyers. 90 percent of lawyers who pay
BPF do so only because they want to be able to collect Stamp and
Seal. In other words, they pay because NBA practically COMPELS them
to pay. Else, they wouldn’t and the NBA knows this, because there’s
hardly anything lawyers get in return, BY WAY OF VALUE.

2️⃣. Organizing conferences, workshops and
seminars aimed to “expand” the horizon of members’ knowledge or to
increase the knowledge in their heads. Meanwhile, and this is where
the real problem lies, NBA hardly ever does anything to help create
job opportunities for these lawyers; these lawyers need to get
gainfully employed SOMEWHERE in order to be able to apply, use or
ventilate the knowledge “acquired” during the conferences,
seminars, etc. If a lawyer is or remains JOBLESS, homeless, hungry,
and therefore frustrated, of what use are your conferences,
seminars and workshops and the irrelevant topics discussed
thereat?NBA, please answer me!

I give a PRACTICAL ILLUSTRATION: Section 66(3) of the Nigeria
Police Force (Establishment) Act (NPFEA), 2020 provides that it is
henceforth mandatory for the Nigeria police to post AT LEAST one
lawyer who is a policeman to each and every police
formation/location in all states in Nigeria, to supervise
compliance with human rights provisions of our laws. There are
approximately more than 3,500 police locations/formations/stations
in this country. To be able to post at least one lawyer to each of
these stations, the Nigeria Police need to employ no fewer than
3,500 additional legal practitioners. Seniors and colleagues, is
this not a good job-opportunity for our unemployed lawyers? Is it
not the NBA leaderships that ought to take steps to get the
Inspector-General of Police (IGP), the Minister of Police Affairs,
the PSC (Police Service Commission) etc, to do the needful in this
respect? What is the NBA currently doing to make this beautiful
provision a reality? Of what use is the provision if it is not
implemented? As investigations have shown, the NBA is doing
practically nothing? Rather, NBA is busy organizing lectures in the
name of “Continuing Professional Development,” on topics such as
“Introduction to Energy Law”, etc. What a funny situation? How can
the NBA be organizing lectures for persons already called to the
bar, on topics usually taken and concluded in their 200/300/400
level as undergraduate students in the law faculties of
universities? What an irony? Why not leave all this grandstanding
and urgently liaise with the AGF, the PSC, the Minister of Police
Affairs, and the IGP, to ensure a speedy implementation of the
directive in section 66(3), NPFEA, 2020? There are no fewer than
four immediate benefits accruable from putting section 66(3) into
action:

▪️1). Many unemployed Lawyers would get immediately employed.
Nigerian lawyers need the job urgently oooo.

▪️2). Rule of law would be promoted and enhanced at the police
stations, and future ENDSARS protests may thereby be averted.

▪️3). We would have lawyers on hand to assist or advise in
criminal prosecution (by the police) in magistrates’ courts around
the various police stations.

▪️4). Filing of baseless charges by ignorant lay police officers
would be drastically reduced leading to decongestion of our
courts.

3️⃣. NBA is busy Issuing Press Releases it
never follows up. Since I became a lawyer, every other day, one
wakes up to see a “Statement” issued by the NBA on this, on that
and on all sorts of things under the earth. The problem is not so
much with issuing statements as it is with following up the
statements issued. Of what use is it if you issue statements to
condemn an alleged illegal or unconstitutional action taken by
government, which actions still later goes on unhindered,
unchallenged, and without any iota of further protest or action by
you? I think Nigerian political leaders have perfectly understood
the psyche of the NBA; the governments never ever bother themselves
about NBA’s public statements; the governments already know that
NBA is merely a barking dog that never bites. They know that beyond
issuing statements, NBA does nothing else to either follow up its
statements or to hold leaders accountable. Ironically, in the face
of brazen violation of rule of law by governments and political
leaders, it’s to the NBA and its members that the ordinary man
looks for protection. NBA, where then at thou, beyond issuing
statements?

Is any one shocked that one person sat down inside his living
room or office in 2020, and singlehandedly (albeit purportedly)
“altered” the provisions of the Rules of Professional Conduct
(RPC), 2007 and later sent it to be gazetted? Come off your shock,
dear friend! If he had believed the NBA could/would bite and not
only bark, he wouldn’t have done any such a legally unsupportable
thing. And, true to his expectations, beyond issuing the usual
statements, NBA has till today done nothing concrete to end the
unnecessary controversy and uphold the rule of law.

4️⃣. NBA PUTS OTHER PEOPLE (NON-LAWYERS) FIRST;
THIS IS WHY OTHER PEOPLE (INCLUDING GOVERNMENTS) PUT THE NBA
MEMBERS LAST. The most worrisome aspect of NBA’s character is that
NBA whose house was, still is, on on fire ?over the purported RPC
amendment, left that issue and went to court against Buhari over
the latter’s extension of the tenure of the then retiring IGP. Dear
NBA, what have you done about the crises inside your own household?
The very foundation of Legal Ethics is under an assault, assault
considered by many as legally unsupportable, and which has thrown
NBA’s household into chaos and commotion! And the NBA folds its
arms and does nothing meaningful, but would suddenly wake up, jump
up and start fighting against Buhari over the latter’s extension of
the IGP’s tenure.

I HAVE A QUESTION:
Between the extension of the IGP’s tenure and the RPC amendment
crisis, which should the NBA have taken more seriously? Does
charity not begin at home? Even the Bible says, love your neighbors
as you love yourself, an indication that love must start with
yourself. It is after you’ve loved yourself well enough and
satisfied, that you begin to look for outsiders to extend love to.
It is not even wise to love outsiders well unless you’ve loved and
taken good care of yourself, because the yardstick for measuring
the amount of love you’re expected to shower on another person or
on others, is how you’ve loved yourself. NBA doesn’t know this. If
it doesn’t, it would make a u-turn, and come home to face its
internal obligations. Section 3 (13)& (14) of the NBA Constitution
provides that the aims of the NBA shall be, among others: “(12).
Creation of schemes for the encouragement of newly qualified
members and assistance to
aged or incapacitated members of the Association. (13).
Establishment of schemes for the promotion of the welfare,
security, and economic
advancement of members of the legal profession”. Can someone name
one concrete activity, scheme or policy of the NBA of late that is
genuinely targeted towards “the promotion of the welfare, security,
and economic
advancement of members of the legal profession”? I can see none!
And I know how NBA can contribute to promoting the welfare,
security and
economic
advancement of its members: they include (See section 3, NBA
Constitution, 2015):

(a). Expansion of the Legal Practice Areas/Space by creating job
opportunities for lawyers outside law firms, Ministries of Justice,
the Legal Aid and Legal Departments of Private Institutions and a
handful (only a handful) of public Institutions. Legal Department
in all the 775 LGA’s (Local Government Councils) in Nigeria; Legal
Departments in all MDA’s (Ministries, Departments and Agencies);
Legal Departments in all police formations and stations; Legal
Departments in all Universities, and schools; etc.

(b). Setting machinery in motion to retrieve or recover legal
practice jobs/areas already stolen by non-lawyers. Fighting to stop
external encroachments on traditional legal practice areas. Land
agents, commercial banks, foreign embassies, consular sections and
high commissions in Nigeria, the CAC, Probate staff members, Land
Registry officials, Omo N’Iles, the Police, the army, Area Boys and
Louts, etc , each and all now share and enjoy law practice
rights/jobs with lawyers in Nigeria — these even get paid higher
than lawyers for jobs the right to which is ordinarily exclusive to
lawyers.

(c). Taking steps, in conjunction with relevant stakeholders, to
standardize lawyers’ remuneration and for professional jobs, and
working to stop underpayment of lawyers which is one of the
greatest menace currently ravaging the profession, driving many
lawyers out of law practice.

(d). Fighting with all stakeholders to enthrone true
independence and financial autonomy for the Judiciary in Nigeria.
If the Judiciary is not independent, NBA can never be independent
and its members can never be safe.

(e). Working to enthrone smooth and symbiotic working
relationship between the NBA and other institutions especially the
law enforcement agencies — police, EFCC, NDLEA, Customs,
Immigration, Correctional Services (the Prisons), Banks, etc.

(f). Encouragement and protection of the right of access to
courts at reasonably affordable fees
and of representation by counsel before courts and tribunals.

(g). Working together with relevant stakeholders to enthrone
speedier dispensation of justice and a more effective
administration of justice in Nigeria.

(h). Promotion and advancement of Legal Education through
assistance to, and in collaboration with, existing legal
educational Institutions in Nigeria, especially the Council of
Legal Education ( Nigerian Law School).

(i) Maintenance and promotion of the highest standard of
professional conduct, etiquette and discipline among lawyers in
Nigeria.

(j). Instigating, promoting and supporting law reforms,
especially in those areas that are beneficial to the NBA and its
members while making lawyers more relevant to society.

(k). Genuine promotion of peace, unity and good relations among
members and segments within the NBA. NBA Abuja Branch has two
Branches. What’s the NBA doing to end the perennial feud? If you
ask me, na who I go ask?

The list is not exhaustive. Please, tell me, which one is the
NBA seriously working on now? None is the answer!
NBA is still seriously too busy organisizing Conferences, seminars
and workshops, in addition to issuing Public statements and
dragging Buhari to court over alleged illegal extension of the
IGP’s tenure. Dear NBA, please come back home, I beg thee. There’s
a raging fire on the mountain, and the mountain is right inside
NBA’s own household. There is no time to stand and stare. Enough of
this holier-than-thou attitude because the NBA is not any better
than our political leaders and any other institution. You can’t
help others people unless you’ve helped yourself and your (NBA)
members. Peter Drucker said, “You can not manage other people,
unless you manage yourself first” Jada Pinkett said, “You always
have to remember to take care of you first and foremost, because
when you stop taking care of yourself, you get out of balance and
you really forget how to take care of others”.TEmily Maroutian
said, “If you want to have enough to give to others, you will need
to take care of yourself first. A tree that refuses water and
sunlight for itself can’t bear fruit for others.”

I agree with all these because self-care is not selfish; you
cannot serve from an empty vessel. Looking after yourself is the
greatest act of kindness you can give the world. Loving yourself
first is the best way to spread love to others. Whenever you feel
compelled to put others first at the expense of yourself, you are
denying your own reality, your own identity. Besides, always
putting others first creates deep resentment, destroys your
happiness, and is unsustainable. Putting yourself first allows you
to meet your needs in the most skillful way. This, in turn,
increases your happiness, joy, and capacity to love, so you can
give freely to others. Rachel Bartholomew said, “You have to be
self-interested in order to be selfless. You have to put yourself
first if you want to be of use to other people.” Put yourself first
right now. Because right now is all we have. Holly Bourne put it
this way, “You don’t have to stop looking after yourself just to
help the world. In fact, sometimes it’s better for the world if you
put yourself first. That’s not being selfish, in fact looking after
yourself is the greatest act of kindness you can give the world.
Loving yourself first is the best way to spread love”. In a
somewhat illustrative manner, Shelley K Wall said, “There is a
reason flight attendants tell you to put your mask on first in an
emergency…you cannot be important to anyone else if you are not
first and foremost important to yourself. Appreciate and love
yourself then use that to do the same for others”.

The bottomline line, therefore, is that NBA Leaderships must
urgently repent of their sin of misadventure and misplacement of
priorities, retrace their steps and start prioritizing the
profession and welfare of its members, by giving priority to the
profession’s priorities. By putting the profession and its members
first, NBA could and indeed would ensure that our cup is always
full so we can then have enough to give and help others. The ball
in NBA’s court. I have said my own! He or those who have ears, let
him or they hear. You cannot continue doing the same thing over and
over again and still expect a different result. Nigerian lawyers
are disappointed and angry that their professional association (the
NBA) is hardly doing anything to improve the profession and the
professional life of its members as well as to give the profession
a better deal in a country in which it ought (with its members)
ordinarily to be on top!

▪️Not End Of Discussion; Discussion to be
CONTINUED!
Respectfully,
Sylvester Udemezue (udems)
08109024556.
udemsyl@gmail.com. (06/April/2021)