The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Lagos Branch has debunked claims made by Aare Olumuyiwa Akinboro, SAN, in his goodwill message to the branch’s ongoing Annual Law Week, in which he alleged that a resolution of the branch bars non-members from participating in its technical sessions.
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Aare Akinboro, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and former General Secretary of the NBA—who is widely believed to be one of the contenders for the NBA presidency in the 2026 national elections—stated in his message circulated across several lawyers’ WhatsApp and Facebook groups that he would have attended the Lagos Law Week in person “but for the Lagos Branch’s resolution that non-branch members cannot feature in the law week technical sessions.”
He further recalled what he described as “resistance by some members of the Branch to my being one of the panelists at the Young Lawyers Summit,” noting that such actions go against the spirit of unity and inclusion within the NBA. He emphasized that the association should be accommodating and free from what he described as “unnecessary and unhealthy competition, division and discrimination.”
Responding to the claims, the Chairman of NBA Lagos Branch, Olabisi Makanjuola, in an official statement issued on behalf of the Executive Committee, categorically denied the existence of any such resolution.
“As the Chairman of the Branch, I state categorically that no such resolution exists. Branch resolutions are passed at properly convened meetings and are a matter of public record given that they are recorded in minutes of Branch meetings, which are publicly available,” Makanjuola said.
He stressed that the Planning Committees of the branch’s conferences have full discretion regarding the choice of resource persons, irrespective of their branch affiliations. “For the avoidance of doubt, no member of the Bar has ever been denied entry or attendance at our Law Week or other events,” she added, pointing out that Akinboro SAN himself was present at the branch’s Annual Bar Dinner in December 2024.
The statement reaffirmed NBA Lagos Branch’s commitment to the advancement of the legal profession and noted that the ongoing Law Week, themed “Reimagining the Practice of Law: Ethics, Innovation and the Future of Legal Services,” was curated in furtherance of that commitment.
It is also widely known that the NBA Lagos Branch has a long-standing tradition of endorsing its own members who are contesting for national positions within the Nigerian Bar Association. This practice, rooted in internal loyalty and strategic branch unity, is often viewed by other branches as a display of Lagos’ numerical strength and influence within the Bar. As the largest and arguably most powerful branch of the NBA, Lagos’ internal support base is seen as a potential game-changer in national elections.
However, this does not always translate into electoral success. In fact, the branch has often failed to clinch key national offices, largely because multiple candidates from within Lagos Branch frequently contest for the same position. This internal division tends to dilute their collective strength and gives an advantage to more united branches.
Aare Akinboro, a Life Bencher and Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK), belong from the Mid West-Zone of the NBA, which is projected to produce the next NBA President according to the association’s rotational zoning formula. Although he is a member of the Abuja Branch, his legal pedigree and national visibility have positioned him as one of the likely candidates for the top position in 2026.
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