Based on the publications of the Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (ECNBA) at the NBA website, 4 lawyers will be contesting for the office of the General Secretary. The publication contains the manifestoes of the contestants.
![](https://thenigerialawyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/NBBSPIDEL.png")
![](https://thenigerialawyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/2026-Summer-IDRI-Masterclass.jpg")
ALEX MUOKA, one of the contestants, pledges to pursue an Agenda of Core Pursuits which encompasses the duties of the General Secretary as enshrined in the NBA Constitution 2015 (as amended), and to further expand those duties in a manner that edifies the office of the General Secretary and benefits the Association.
His Agenda of Core Pursuits revolves around (6) key thematic areas. The first is improvement of Secretariat. He proposes to improve on the great work that previous General Secretaries of the NBA have done in building a virile Secretariat in responsiveness and efficiency, transparency, and improved synergy.
He said Responsiveness and Efficiency can be achieved through training of members of staff and Leveraging on technology to enable quick and efficient web and App based interaction between the Secretariat, members of the Association, and the general public, in a relaxed and user-friendly atmosphere;
Transparency on the other hand will be achieved by ensuring open and accessible leadership of the Secretariat; adhering to the provisions of the Constitution and all relevant protocols that promote transparency and accountability in running the affairs of the Secretariat; avoiding conflict of interest, and ensuring propriety and full disclosure of any pecuniary interest of the General Secretary and members of staff of the Secretariat in all and any interface with members of the Association and the general public; and updating members monthly on the activities of the Association – via email to every member of the Association whose details are captured in the NBA Database.
As for Improved Synergy, by promoting better interaction between the Secretariat and the various Branches and cooperation between the Secretariat and the Leadership/Secretariat of the various Sections and Fora of the NBA.
- BUILDING/ENHANCING THE CAPACITY OF PRACTITIONERS
Muoka said he will promote affordable quality Continuing Legal Education and Professional Capacity Development for members of the Association; promote and facilitate sponsorship of practitioners by the Secretariat and their local Branches to programs beneficial to their professional growth; Identify and focus on acquiring expertise in under-served and emerging areas of the Law where practitioners can develop new competencies and accordingly enhance their capacity to earn better fees; etc
- ELECTRONIC STAMP/SEAL AND LICENSE
He said he will work with other leaders to strengthen the recently introduced online portal for stamp application, payment and processing; Initiating and creating an easy process for approving the use of electronic stamps/seals by practitioners; and Issuance of Electronic Practice License to members upon payment of Annual Bar Practicing Fees.
- ENHANCING THE WEBSITE AND BUILDING A COMPREHENSIVE DATA-BASE
Muoka said that will be achieved by Strengthening the existing website of the Association and upgrade it into a larger more encompassing and interactive website; Reconfiguring the website to function effectively as a payment portal with customized payment receipts issued to practitioners for all payments via the web portal; and Creating a clean, up-to-date, reliable, and searchable comprehensive data-base of members of the NBA duly uploaded on the website and updated regularly to keep track of financial members, new and out-going members, and members under disciplinary sanction.
- PROMOTING THE INTEREST OF YOUNG LAWYERS AND OTHER VULNERABLE PERSONS
Pay special attention to and flag their needs for tailored continuing professional development and financial independence; Recommend that the NBA incorporates them more into the affairs of the Bar by appointing more of them into NEC and other Committees of the NBA in leadership positions; Strengthen the Young Lawyers Forum, the NBA Women’s Forum and create other special interest fora for vulnerable persons and groups agitating for same so they can better aggregate their views and articulate their interests to the leadership of the NBA; Encourage senior lawyers in the private and public sector who have the capacity to take up mentorship training programmes aimed at impacting younger lawyers on emerging areas of legal practice and career development; Develop a digital library at the Secretariat and e-resources on the NBA website to assist lawyers (especially young lawyers) in their research; Address the issue of realistic minimum remuneration and conditions of service for young lawyers; Collaborate with the NBA Young Lawyers Forum to institute exchange programmes for young lawyers with regional and international Bar associations – this will promote co-operation, collaboration and networking, which are essential keys for success in legal practice; and Liaise with the bankers of the Association to provide loans to young lawyers who may be desirous of investing in partnerships or developing their practice.
His last thematic agenda is promotion of rule of law. He said he will champion public interest litigation to protect the rights of citizens and members from abuse; Support the advocacy for implementation of fiscal independence for the Nigerian judiciary; Liaise with the judiciary and offering support to facilitate the efficient administration of justice in Nigeria; Sensitize lawyers and the general public by organizing workshops, conferences and summits on human rights and the rule of law; Offer leadership and a focal rallying point to all Nigerians and relevant institutions in defending and expanding the frontiers of the Rule of Law; Strengthen the Pro Bono and legal aid programmes of the NBA to make their impact felt (especially) by indigent members of the society; and Propose a “legislative desk” for the NBA at the National Assembly which shall be saddled with the task of legislative advocacy, monitoring and liaising with the law makers in the task of enacting laws.
JOYCE ODUAH, FICMC too listed 9 things she intends to achieve. She said she wants Effective Management and Revamping of the NBA National Secretariat by creating an NBA app to engage and synergize the stakeholders – lawyers, law firms, 128 branches of the NBA and enhance easy access to NBA resources and materials. The app will have three main features; Administrative; online payment of dues, lawyers directory, membership verification, requesting and receiving stamps and seal, information dissemination, etc.; Social; serve as uniting platform for lawyers, contain the links to the various social media platforms and forums for lawyers and contain the trending legal news and videos etc.; and Career Advancement; it will also contain an e-library for easy sourcing of legal resources through partnership with online law reports and schools, contain employment opportunities for lawyers, have career advancements training openings and serve as a veritable networking platform especially to the benefit of young lawyers etc.
She also pledged to establish the Official NBA Call Centre and will also maintain and update annually a comprehensive E-directory of lawyers all over the country and produce same in hardcopy along with the calendar of activities of NBA and will ensure that the database is frequently updated with the names of all lawyers from the Supreme Court.
Joyce also pledged Professionalizing the National Secretariat through regular training of staff and attending capacity building seminars; effective Records Keeping/Electronic Filing System; effective Planning and Organizing of Meetings; effective Communication and Management of Correspondence; Regulatory Compliance/Due Process; updating of the NBA National Secretariat Library/Establishment of National Law Library with well equipped with up-to-date laws, law books and law reports.
Furthermore, Joyce pledged to work with the NBA President to raise funds for speedy completion of the NBA Secretariat building project; speedy processing of complaints and petitions and will ensure that transparency will be the watchword in the management of the Association’s resources including its finances and assets.
Joyce said when elected as the General Secretary, she will advocate for and work with the NBA President to ensure swift production and delivery of the NBA stamp and seal to lawyers. I will also advocate for a reduction of the cost of procuring NBA stamp. To further alleviate the challenges and delay in delivery of the NBA stamp, I will advocate for and ensure the introduction of electronic stamp.
She also said the NBA National Secretariat in collaboration with the NBA President and the Committee will, in addition to other programmes, sponsor training and education on various emerging areas of law. They will foster strategic partnerships with various local and foreign institutions (i.e. exchange programmes), resource persons who are part of the system and major corporate bodies (local and international) that offer specialized courses with a view to providing free or discounted courses for our members. This shall hold both offline and online
As her fourth point, Joyce talked about Establishment of NBA Liaison Offices in the three geopolitical zones recognized by our Constitution. In the North, it will be established in Kano State. In the West, it will be established in Lagos State and in the East, it will be established in Port Harcourt.
Apart from Bridging the Gap Between the NBA National Secretariat and the Branches’ Secretariats, Joyce said they will constantly relate and interface with law firms, NBA branches, other Bar Associations and key stakeholders in the legal profession in new ways that are beneficial to the NBA. She added that there will be Adequate Remuneration and Mentorship Scheme for Young Lawyers and will also encourage capacity building for young lawyers.
On Advancing the Welfare of all Lawyers as her seventh agenda, she said she will ensure that the NBA National Secretariat headed by the NBA President will engage relevant officers within government and private organizations to identify those roles for which lawyers are best suited, thus, creating jobs for lawyers. For instance, I will advocate that every legislator should appoint a lawyer as his special aid at the National Assembly. She said they will also create NBA Welfare Foundation or Charity Funds; Housing Scheme for lawyers and Health insurance scheme for lawyers as is obtainable in other jurisdictions.
On her eighth point she said when elected as the NBA General Secretary, she will “advocate for and work with the NBA President and NBA-SPIDEL to encourage public interest advocacy and litigation by the NBA. I will relentlessly advocate for access to justice by facilitating pro bono and quality legal defence and representation for poor and vulnerable persons. At the National Secretariat, I shall ensure the NBA Pro Bono Scheme is set up.”
Her last agenda was Promotion and Protection of the Rule of Law, Good Governance and Human Rights. She said “Incidence of impunity and executive lawlessness, breach of human rights and assault on the judiciary will be sternly condemned. I shall constantly advocate for and promote the culture of obedience to court orders and compliance with the principles of rule of law.”
Another candidate, OKEY LEO OHAGBA, stated his vision for NBA as “a professionalized, innovative and IT-driven Secretariat that accords with modern and international best practices; and above all, accessible to all members from any part of the world.” While his mission is “to uplift the NBA through the operation of a Secretariat driven, robust, responsive and membership friendly e-governance policy.”
Ohagba enumerated 9 achievements that he intends to record and they include the following:
INNOVATIVE AND IT-DRIVEN SECRETARIAT (THE IBA MODEL). This he shall do by introducing an interactive portal to maintain effective communication between the National Secretariat, branches and especially, members. The administration of the Secretariat shall be efficient, seamless and professional as is run at the International Bar Association (IBA) level; and most importantly, shall be accessible, responsive and friendly.
Other things in in the Secretariat shall include Inventing the IBA model Secretariat with robust e-governance; Official NBA Call Center; an interactive NBA ‘Mobile App’ free for all lawyers for easy and first hand access to NBA products and services; creation of an interactive ‘Feed Back’ column on the NBA Portal to collate and assess members’ views and overall acceptability of a particular policy decision; improvement on electronic mailing of minutes and NEC bundles prior to NEC meetings in line with IBA model agenda; ensure that AGM Notices and minutes are promptly and electronically disseminated to all members and published on the website prior to AGM; introduction of e-stamping in line with the globalized e-filing innovation and establishment of a functional and comprehensive E-Library.
PROFESSIONALIZED SECRETARIAT AND ENHANCED STAFF CAPACITY. Ohagba said staff of the Secretariat are usually the first point of contact for both members and non members of the Bar who visit the National Secretariat. It is pertinent that these staff are properly schooled and groomed to exhibit high level decorum, nobility, modesty, competence and professionalism at all times in the discharge of their official duties. To achieve this, he said they shall fine tune the administrative structure of the Secretariat in line with the proposed e-governance plan and periodically train the staff to adapt quickly to the new policy adding that they will ensure that job specifications and deliverables are attached to staff positions and institutional memory of the Association through efficient record keeping/management and enhanced archival system shall be improved.
MEMBERSHIP DIRECTORY. He said he will facilitate the establishment of a comprehensive database and an annual e-directory of all branches and members to reduce the recurring verification issues during National elections and to maintain a clean database.
PATENT AND CUSTOMIZED NBA STICKERS. Preservation of NBA patent and introduction of customized membership stickers just like the NBA stamps.
ESTABLISHMENT OF MEMBERSHIP DIRECTORATE. Ohagba said with the consent and approval of the President, they shall create a dedicated new directorate to be called ‘Membership Directorate’ with competent and motivated staff. This directorate shall, inter alia, interface with the branches, members and answer to all their needs, including the preparation/update of the proposed membership e-directory and database.
CAPACITY BUILDING AND IMPROVED WELFARE OF LAWYERS. This they shall achieve by ensuring that only private legal practitioners prepare legal mortgages, land instruments and other legal documents in Nigeria, taking steps at regulating fees/charges for all legal documentations. This uniform remuneration is long overdue and very critical at sustaining the dignity of the Profession and protecting the job of lawyers, facilitating capacity building programs for lawyers on new and emerging areas of law and facilitating special CLE seminars/webinars for young lawyers on specialization and emerging areas of law.
FACILITATION OF A SEAMLESS LEGAL MAIL/E-FILING EXPERIENCE TO SUPPORT LEGAL PRACTICE. Ohagba said the Secretariat can offer support in this regard, by interfacing with the Judiciary and concerned stakeholders. You prepare your pleadings online, using the generic web forms, stamp online, file online and effect service online.
PROFESSIONAL DISCIPLINE AND ETIQUETTES. He said they shall “review, restructure and reinvigorate our disciplinary mechanisms and introduce a more robust and sustainable system.” Facilitate special CLE seminars/webinars focused on ethics and professional discipline, for a continued sensitization of lawyers, especially young lawyers.
TRANSPARENCY AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT. Ohagba concluded that they shall run a transparent and financially prudent administration in line with our proposed e-governance policy. We shall study and review the existing NBA diagnostic report by KPMG and improve where necessary.
The fourth candidate for the office of the General Secretary is YAKEMEWERIGHA CHRISTOPHER OPUTE from Bayelsa State and a member of the Yenagoa Branch of the NBA. He is the immediate past Chairman of the Law Officers Association of Nigeria, Bayelsa State Chapter. He had also held the positions of Secretary, Financial Secretary and Assistant Financial Secretary of NBA Yenagoa Branch
He intends to do 9 things when elected as NBA General Secretary including making himself accessible at the NBA Secretariat, pursuing having database of lawyers, prompt delivery of stamp and seal, optimal function of NBA Committees in line with the Association’s constitution, diligent implementation of instructions of the President, NEC and that of AGM and synergy between the Executive and the Bar. Other agenda include:
- Unity and inclusiveness of all lawyers across various sectors of practice, i.e. private practitioners, Law Officers in the ministries of Justice, other Government Parastatals, and the Armed Forces, Law Teachers, Lawyers in the Para-Military, Lawyers in Corporate Practice etc.,
- Relationship between the Association and Security agencies so as to address brutality against lawyers.
- There is an unhindered flow in the symbiotic relationship between the National Secretariat and the Bar Branches as stated in Article 13(10) by improving upon the currently social medium of communication, i.e. WhatsApp, Facebook, Telegram etc.
Interested buyers are encouraged to place their orders and enquiries via:
0704 444 4777, 0704 444 4999, 0818 199 9888
Website: www.alexandernigeria.com
