President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Afam Osigwe, has rejected allegations that the association’s national officers’ election is being manipulated, describing the claims as politically driven attempts to discredit the process.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Friday, shortly before voting was scheduled to commence, Osigwe said it was unfortunate that some lawyers and candidates were alleging electoral malpractice before the election had even started.
He argued that such claims were aimed at creating doubt about the credibility of the exercise rather than addressing genuine concerns.
According to him, members of the legal profession have a responsibility to uphold facts and should not make allegations that cannot be substantiated.
Osigwe noted that previous claims of election rigging within the NBA had been challenged in court but were ultimately dismissed because those making the allegations failed to provide evidence.
He maintained that the association was committed to delivering a transparent and credible election and accused some individuals of deliberately spreading false narratives for political advantage.
“The allegations are mere politics. Some people are repeating claims that have not been proven in an effort to influence opinion,” he said.
The NBA president also addressed claims that he had a preferred candidate in the election, insisting that he had no role in determining the outcome of the poll.
He explained that the Electoral Committee of the NBA operates independently and does not take directives from him or any other member of the association’s leadership.
To reinforce confidence in his neutrality, Osigwe disclosed that he had chosen not to cast his vote in the election despite being eligible to do so.
He said the decision was intended to assure members that he had no interest in influencing the process.
Osigwe further revealed that the association had opened its election system to external scrutiny by inviting security agencies and international technical experts to monitor the exercise.
According to him, the Department of State Services (DSS), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and foreign specialists were invited to assess the integrity of the voting platform.
He said the NBA had nothing to hide and welcomed independent verification of its electoral process.
The NBA president also disclosed that the managing director of one of the service providers engaged for the election had recently been released after being detained by the DSS.
While expressing concern over the seizure of a laptop containing election-related information, he said measures had been put in place to ensure that the incident would not affect the credibility or security of the poll.
On calls for voter authentication through the National Identification Number (NIN), Osigwe said the proposal could exclude many eligible voters.
He explained that differences between names on the Supreme Court roll and those in the National Identity Management Commission database—particularly among married female lawyers—could result in legitimate members being unable to vote.
He added that the NBA had nevertheless agreed to requests from some candidates to replace email-based one-time passwords with SMS verification for voter authentication.
Although the adjustment would significantly increase the cost of conducting the election, Osigwe said the association considered it a necessary sacrifice to enhance confidence in the process.
He urged lawyers to conduct their campaigns responsibly and avoid actions capable of undermining the credibility of the association’s democratic institutions.
Leave a Reply