Mr. Silas Joseph Onu, the Convener of Open Bar Initiative, has reacted to the letter written by Chief Awomolo, SAN against Junior Lawyers leading the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) as President.
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In a statement made available to TheNigeriaLawyer (TNL), Mr. Onu said he is not surprised with the letter as he has battled for over 9 years advocating for all inclusive Bar but has been called names as a result.
He said the letter by Awomolo represents the rot in the system as some of the SANs believe that the Bar is the exclusive preserve of their anointed candidates.
He called on members to stand with the NBA as BOSAN is not recognized by the NBA constitution.
Below is the full statement:
RE: AWOMOLO SAN LETTER AGAINST “JUNIOR LAWYERS” LEADING THE NBA – A PERSONAL RESPONSE
I woke up to the sad content of a letter written by Adegboyega Awomolo SAN to the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN) concerning the “threat” posed by “junior lawyers” to wrestle the leadership of NBA from the SANs.
I was not surprised by the content, especially coming from Awomolo SAN. I have been on this path for more than 9 years, fighting for an all inclusive legal profession and Bar. It has earned me many titles, with the most prominent being “a very disrespectful lawyer” for having a position and holding tenaciously to it.
In 2012, during the AGM which held in Abuja, Ikeazu Akaraiwe, Prof. Chidi Odinkalu and I championed the “One Lawyer One Vote” (OLOV) movement from banquet hall of Rockview Hotel Abuja. The purpose was to fight for an all inclusive Bar by opening up the Electoral space and allow all financial members of the Bar have a say in determining the leadership of the Bar. We advocated for universal suffrage in the NBA Elections as the delegates system was badly and unjustly programmed to be an exclusive preserve of the Senior Advocates who automatically are delegates. This was solely responsible for ensuring that a non-SAN can never emerge as President of the Bar.
Thanks to God, in 2014, just 2 years after the campaign began, the issue of Universal Suffrage became the main campaign talking point for all the candidates and in 2015, Augustine Alegeh SAN kept his word by introducing a new NBA Constitution which abolished the delegates system and introduced Universal Suffrage for all lawyers. I participated in the AGM, lobbied many people to vote for it and ensured that we mobilized many young lawyers to attend that AGM to vote for the new Constitution. Make no mistake, the entrenched Bar men (mostly SANs) were against this change and fought hard at that AGM to stop the passage of thw new Constitution, but they failed. That fight has not stopped even now.
I must state for the sake of clarity, that i know as a fact, that so many Senior Advocates, properly so called, are not in support of the letter from Awomolo SAN and will never share his view on the NBA leadership. This is evident in how so many Senior Advocates of great distinction (not the arrangee ones) have come out to endorse the candidacy of a non-SAN. They did that because they know that the Bar and Profession is one – no segregation. They saw the quality of individual members of the Bar, rather than run with a cabal to advance primordial interest. Let’s not pretend, many SANs only got the rank through NBA politics, not excellence in practice. These are the ones that will never let the Bar progress beyond their imagination for it.
My take on Bar leadership is that it should not be led by busy and distinguished members of the profession. This is so, because the Bar requires someone with the ability to be a militant (in terms of legitimate struggle), if need be, in the defence of Rule of Law and advancement of Human Rights. SANs represents the apogee of the legal profession as the inner Bar and should not have any business with the Outer Bar in terms of wanting to lead it. They should play the role of Adviser and members of the Board of Trustees of the NBA at best. The Bar Association is a platform for young vibrant lawyers to make their mark in the profession and society at large and then retire into practice. It should also be a short term activity, not a career as many of these SANs have made.
If the leadership of NBA has not become a means of stealing the benefits that should accrue to all members, why will any Senior Advocates be interested in wasting 2 years of his precious time to be NBA President and only fight for the rights of Nigerians and members of the Bar? It is not about service for these men, it is about power and control. It is power managing the resources of lawyers for the benefit of a few in their circle.
Today, to be an SAN, you must be foolish about your principles by throwing them away in the name of loyal respect for the powers that be and also serve them unquestionably. If they are pleased with you, they’ll make you a member of their body. But, if you are principled, hold your views no matter what, be the best in your field of practice with distinction and all the required cases and more, if they don’t like you, they’ll simply say that you do not have respect and that will be your doom. They use the President of the Bar to ensure this control persist. Is this the Bar we want?
The Nigerian Bar Association is a body that should be managed by young and vibrant lawyers, not more than 15-20 years post call. Then, we can all hold such a person accountable for mismanagement of our commonwealth and even punish them if found wanting. As it is today, we are being led by powerful people who will steal from us and still spit on our faces without consequences whatsoever. How many juniors can call for and insist on the investigation and punishment of a Bar President found to have mismanaged our funds? None! Juniors are busy “idolizing” these SANs in hopes that one day they’ll be made members of the body to continue with the circle of injustice in the profession.
The Bar should be a truly Professional body where any Senior Advocate can call the Bar President and the President will be available to attend to them, just as he will be available to attend to the needs of juniors colleagues. A Bar President should not and must never again be a “big man” who becomes impossible to reach ones elected.
The time for Senior Advocates to take the leadership seat in advisory capacity in the activities of the Bar Association has come and it will be wise for them to do so now and save this profession from eminent catastrophes. It is shameful that the crisis in Abuja Branch of the Bar is fueled and sustained by Senior Advocates, who have now coopted the outgoing Chief Judge of the FCT into swearing in a group of persons who never partook in any Election, with 0 votes as Executives of a factional Abuja Branch. See how some SANs see power and their role in the Bar – they are the oppressors of juniors and do not pretend to be leaders in any way.
I have tremendous respect for many Senior Advocates and still do revere many of them – those who embody the essence of that rank and do not jump in the mud with young people. They guide their juniors and mold them into individuals who will always stand for what they believe. Not the ones who are offended by your principles and call you insultive for being bold to hold your view and even tell them they are wrong to their face. Some of them have incorporated cultural values into a profession with which they have transformed lawyers into timid people who cannot even defend their own rights. A lawyer should be bold, outspoken and vehement in the pursuit of justice, it is a liberating profession. But, sadly, many a young lawyer have been made a captive in the name of respect for Seniors. Those who get respected don’t go about seeking one.
The letter from Awomolo SAN is a reflection of the rot in the Bar Association as some of them believe that the Bar is their exclusive preserve and only their anointed can lead both at the branch level and National. The non SAN who dares to contest against their interest is disrespectful, over ambitious, incompetent and inferior member of the outer Bar – how dare he do so?
No, the Bar is for all of us. Thank God that we now have the right to vote. We fought for that and won. Now, we must also fight for our right to be voted for as that is inalienable and we must jointly stand thumb print to thumb print and vote for a transition in how the Bar is managed. It has to be managed for the benefit of all members.
In the nearest future, the activism record of individual, public interest litigations and penchant for defending the right of person should be the core criteria for Bar leadership. Legal practice is different from leading the Bar. The Bar leadership requires a person who can jump in the mud with the masses to protest agaisnt abuse of human rights and unconstitutional actions of government.
I disagree with Awomolo SAN and they can add this in the list of my insults. I call on all lawyers of goodwill to support the Bar and stand with the Bar. BOSAN is not recognized by the NBA Constitution and i wonder what Awomolo planned to achieve through the body.
Thank you all.
Silas Joseph Onu
Convener, Open Bar Initiative.
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