On Saturday, Afam Osigwe (SAN), became the 32nd president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), after winning the Bar’s national elections following what was described as a reform-focused campaign by his camp to address troubling trends in the legal profession including the judiciary. YEJIDE GBENGA-OGUNDARE reports that expectations are high among lawyers on how Osigwe, who was described as a thorough Bar man, will turn around the Bar.
On Saturday, July 20, 51-year-old Afam Osigwe, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), became the president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA). He became the 32nd president of the NBA when he won the national election of the Bar association with a landslide, after securing over half of the votes cast; polling 20,435 out of the 40,451 votes tallied for the office of the NBA president, with 205 abstentions.
His closest rival, Tobenna Erojikwe, the NBA Institute of Continuing Legal Education Governing Council chairperson, polled 10,998 votes. A former chairperson of the NBA, Lagos branch, Chukwuka Ikwuazom, also a SAN, who announced withdrawing in the middle of the election on Saturday, came third with 9,018 votes.
The result, which was confirmed on the portal maintained by the Electoral Committee of the NBA (ECNBA), set the stage for Osigwe’s inauguration in August.
Osigwe has been described as a passionate professional with long-standing dedication to NBA politics and his robust legal practice since his early days at the Bar which brought him to the limelight and forged his path to the top of the Nigerian Bar leadership.
He has held key elected, ad hoc and appointive positions at the branch and national levels of the NBA since he was called to the Bar in 1999, 25 years ago. Since he was elected the General Secretary in 2014, he has been a constant feature of the NBA at the national level, taking up different roles, including leading the association’s observers committee for the 2019 general elections.
He was elevated to the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria rank in 2020 as a testament of his tenacity, professional excellence in the courtroom, commitment to the rule of law and extensive bar activities.
In 2006, he became a Notary Public of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
He is a well-trained legal practitioner; he graduated from the University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus, in 1997 and was called to the Bar in 1999. He earned a Diploma in International Commercial Arbitration from Keble College, Oxford in 2010 and became a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK) in 2011.
He also holds a master’s degree in law (LL.M) from the University of Jos and another LL.M in Transnational Commercial Practice from the Centre for International Legal Studies, Austria, in collaboration with Lazarsky University, Poland. He is currently pursuing a doctorate.
He began his legal career at Chike Chigbue and Co. in Abuja before founding his firm, Law Forte in 2002. His research and litigation works span corporate and business law, land law, banking law, intellectual property, international commercial law, telecommunications, energy, oil and gas law as well as domestic and international commercial arbitration.
As a member of the NBA Abuja Branch, he served on numerous committees, including the NBA Abuja Law Reporting Committee (2003-2005) and the Committee on Continuing Legal Education (2004-2006, 2008-2010).
He also served as alternate chairman for the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the NBA Annual General Conference 2012 and held other notable positions.
He has also been the publicity secretary of NBA Abuja (2006-2008) and chairman of the branch (2010-2012).
He became the first chairperson of chairpersons of NBA branches in the FCT in 2012. As the general secretary of the NBA (2014-2016), he contributed to significant initiatives, including introducing personalised NBA adhesive stamps, e-voting, universal suffrage, and uniform bye-laws.
He is committed to pro bono legal representation for indigent persons and has served on several committees appointed by the Chief Judge of the FCT, Abuja.
He belongs to key institutions in the legal profession, including the Body of Benchers, the Council of Legal Education, the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria, the NBA National Executive Committee, and the General Council of the Bar.
He is also part of various professional bodies, such as the International Bar Association, the Nigerian Institute of Management, and the Institute of Chartered Mediators & Conciliators. He is also a Knight of Saint Christopher.
Campaign focus
During his campaign, Osigwe made a lot of promises bordering on reforms, including tackling corruption in the legal profession.
In the debate with other presidential candidates in the lead-up to Saturday’s election, Osigwe had stated that, “As NBA president, I must look for reforms. I must make sure that we follow up on cases where judges have been found to be corrupt, where judgments given by a judge indicate either that the judge is corrupt or being induced, or that the judge is incompetent.”
He emphasised the need for a proactive NBA to address the legal profession and judiciary’s evolving challenges.
His campaign also focused on securing partnerships with donors to create an endowment fund for legal education, sponsor training and conferences, and provide resources for legal professionals.
He also planned to enhance benefits for lawyers, advocate for fair compensation, and propose constitutional amendments to support branch welfare funds and lawyers with disabilities and senior citizens.
He also promised to focus on human capital development by establishing mentorship programmes and improving lawyers’ skills through mandatory continuing professional development.
He called for deepening financial autonomy for the judiciary and modernising court infrastructure.
He promised to push for legislative amendments for effective justice delivery and electronic filing of cases.
He also promised to promote case management systems, collaborate with anti-corruption agencies, and strengthen the Human Rights Institute in Nigeria
The race begins
Osigwe, who extended a hand of fellowship to his rivals in the contest, pledged to serve with integrity, transparency, and unwavering dedication.
In his acceptance remarks posted on social media platforms on Sunday, he restated his commitment to “advancing the cause of justice, upholding the rule of law, and fostering a vibrant and inclusive legal community”.
The Anambra Governor, Prof Chukwuma Soludo, has joined the multitude of people that have congratulated Osigwe after President Bola Tinubu. In a statement, Soludo said Osigwe’s tenure would bring a fresh perspective to the legal profession.
The Anambra governor added that Osigwe’s election was a testament to his exceptional qualities and dedication to the legal profession.
He also expressed confidence that Osigwe’s leadership would positively disrupt legal practice in the country and herald a new era of excellence.
Who is Afam Osigwe?
Afam Osigwe was born on October 25, 1972. He attended Dennis Memorial Grammar School, Onitsha for his secondary education before proceeding to the University of Nigeria Enugu Campus, to study law and was called to the Bar in 1999.
He became Senior Advocates of Nigeria, SAN in 2020.
The new NBA President-elect, Osigwe was born on October 25, 1972.
He started legal practice with Chike Chigbue and Co., Abuja Office in 1999.
He left the firm in 2002 to found his firm, the LAW FORTE (Legal Practitioners, Corporate Consultants and Notary Public).
In 2006 he became a Notary Public of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
In 2010, he concluded a face-to-face tutorial at Keble College, Oxford, and obtained a Diploma in International Commercial Arbitration.
Osigwe became a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK) in 2011.
He obtained a Master’s of Laws Degree (LL.M) from the University of Jos. He also holds another LL.M in (Transnational Commercial Practice) from the Centre for International Legal Studies, Austria (in collaboration with the Lazarsky University, Poland).
Osigwe has appeared as a counsel in many arbitral proceedings as well as sat as a sole arbitrator or member of arbitral tribunals in commercial disputes.
He was the last person to hold office as the Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association, Abuja Branch (Unity Bar) for the entire Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
Bwari and Gwagwalada Branches of NBA were created during his tenure as Chairman of the Unity Bar.
By consent of the chairmen of Bwari and Gwagwalada Branches of the NBA, he became the first Chairman of Chairmen of NBA Branches in the FCT, in 2012.
He became the General Secretary of the NBA in August 2014 and held that position till the expiration of his tenure on August 26, 2016.
Our expectations
Chief Yomi Alliyu (SAN) stated that “Afam was the former General Secretary of the Bar and a core litigation lawyer. He is also my learned brother Silk and life Bencher. Thus, he has not only achieved distinction but highest distinction in the practice of law!
“When such heads the Bar, you are bound to see not only professionalism in their handling of Bar affairs but the society will benefit from it in that they speak to power. He is a round peg in a round hole!
“Expectations from him are high but could be surmised in his ensuring equity, fairness and justice in whatever he does. The traditional role of the Bar in being the voice of the voiceless masses had been jettisoned for long. He should endeavour to bring this back and ensure that the Judiciary is retrieved from the shackles of the politicians, especially State Governors, who see it as a department in the civil service.
“Security outfits, especially the SSS and the police, should be made to respect the rule of law by abiding by court decisions. The harassment of lawyers by them has to stop and this has to be made a primary assignment of the new President of the Bar.
I congratulate Afam for a deserved victory at the election and also the legal profession and the larger society for having the right man at the right time in this trying period!
A former chairman, NBA Ikeja branch, Dave Ajetomobi said: “Well the election has come and gone, he should hit the ground running, he is an experienced bar man having served as a Branch chairman and secretary at national level he should make NBA attractive to lawyers by putting programmes in place that ensure that lawyers welfare and security is well catered for. NBA should not be the mouth piece of any government as we are seeing it of late. Lot of people have lost interest in the NBA in recent years because NBA has become a toothless bulldog when it comes to speaking up for the teeming masses. In some instances the NBA has abandoned it is responsibilities and the officers are busy fighting themselves or seeking advantages for themselves.
“He should do something to attract many lawyers who are no longer interested in NBA back into the fold. As you are aware, there are agitations for alternative platforms which have led to the registration of other association of lawyers, if nothing is done to restore the members’ confidence, NBA may soon lose its place in the reckoning of lawyers and the public. He should also carry out electoral reforms that will engender members’ confidence in NBA; this has been a major issue in NBA since electronic voting was introduced by the administration in which he served in 2016. The process should be transparent more that the way it is now, also the audit of the last elections including the last one should be carried out to convince members about the credibility of the processes.
Another legal practitioner, Foluso Olapo, said: “I congratulate the President-elect and at the same time expect several reforms, especially regarding adequate remuneration of new wigs, a good working relationship with the Bench and reducing corruption in the third arm of government to the barest minimum.
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