The Nigerian Bar Association has summoned an emergency meeting of its National Executive Council to deliberate on the widening controversy surrounding the 2026 NBA National Officers’ Election.
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The virtual meeting is scheduled for Thursday, July 16, 2026, at 2 p.m., barely two days before the association’s electronic election fixed for Saturday, July 18.
A notice dated July 15, 2026, issued by the NBA General Secretary, Dr Mobolaji Ojibara, stated that the meeting would be held virtually, with the participation link to be circulated to eligible members before the commencement of proceedings.
The notice identified the 2026 National Officers’ Election as the only substantive item on the agenda after the opening NEC prayer, underscoring the urgency of the crisis confronting the association’s electoral process.
The NBA said attendance would be strictly limited to statutory members of the National Executive Council.
Those eligible to participate are national officers, past NBA presidents, past general secretaries, branch chairmen, branch secretaries, chairmen and secretaries of the association’s sections and fora, and co-opted NEC members.
The notice directed members seeking further clarification to contact Ms Ayodeji Oni at the NBA National Secretariat in Abuja.
The emergency meeting comes amid an escalating crisis over the conduct of the election, following the “Directions and Outcomes” issued by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, on the report of a three-member committee established to examine disputes within the NBA.
The committee was headed by former NBA President Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, with former NBA President Paul Usoro, SAN, and Prince Lanke Odogiyon as members.
The AGF’s directions reportedly raised issues concerning the continued operation of the Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association, the election timetable, the electronic voting service provider, the use of the National Identification Number in voter verification and the future structure of the NBA’s electoral system.
The NBA leadership and the ECNBA rejected any suggestion that the Attorney-General could unilaterally suspend or postpone the association’s national election.
The NBA maintained that only its National Executive Council could authorise the postponement of the election, while the ECNBA directed lawyers to disregard documents purporting to suspend the poll.
The controversy has also divided regional Bar organisations and senior members of the legal profession.
The Eastern Bar Forum and Midwest Bar Forum rejected the purported interference in the NBA’s internal affairs and insisted that the association’s independence and constitutional processes must be respected.
Egbe Amofin O’odua, however, defended the Attorney-General’s intervention, arguing that critics had focused on personal attacks rather than addressing concerns about the election process.
Former NBA President Chief T.J. Okpoko, SAN, urged the AGF to reject the Olanipekun committee’s report, alleging that the committee’s leadership created a conflict of interest because Egbe Amofin was directly involved in litigation over the election.
Okpoko also warned against recognising Egbe Amofin as a nominating authority for the NBA presidency, insisting that every qualified candidate must be allowed to contest and that eligible lawyers nationwide should freely choose their leaders.
The election crisis has also generated multiple court proceedings.
The Oyo State High Court had issued orders affecting the NBA’s recognition and processing of presidential nominations and restraining members of the ECNBA from taking steps towards conducting the election.
One of the suits arose from Egbe Amofin’s position that, since the presidency was zoned to the Western Zone, the NBA should recognise only the consensus candidate selected through its internal arrangement.
The Court of Appeal in Ibadan subsequently set aside the High Court orders, holding that the proceedings, including the ex parte orders made against the NBA and ECNBA, were a nullity because the lower court lacked subject-matter, personal and territorial jurisdiction.
The appellate decision removed the legal obstacle created by the Oyo High Court orders and restored the ECNBA’s authority to continue with preparations for the election.
Beyond the court cases, concerns have been raised about the composition and independence of the ECNBA, the engagement of the electronic voting service provider and the transparency of the electoral process.
The ECNBA, chaired by Aham Ejelam, SAN, was approved at the NBA National Executive Council meeting held in Edo State on November 20, 2025, to conduct the election.
The committee has maintained that preparations are continuing in accordance with the NBA Constitution, revised election guidelines and timetable.
It released a final voters’ register containing 82,213 eligible lawyers across 139 branches, while stating that an additional 671 lawyers whose branch membership had not been established must regularise their records before they could be confirmed as eligible voters.
The committee also invited domestic and international observers to monitor the electronic election, although the move attracted questions from some senior lawyers over the distinction between the responsibilities of the NBA President and those of the independent electoral committee.
The emergency NEC meeting is expected to provide the NBA’s highest decision-making body between annual general conferences with an opportunity to formally consider the crisis and determine the association’s institutional position ahead of the election.
Members may consider whether the poll should proceed as scheduled, the legal effect of the AGF’s directions, the authority and continued mandate of the ECNBA, concerns surrounding the voting platform and the implications of the ongoing litigation.
The meeting could also address the divisions within the Bar over zoning, consensus arrangements, universal suffrage and the role of regional lawyers’ groups in selecting or supporting candidates for national office.
With the election only days away, the outcome of the emergency meeting is expected to determine whether the NBA proceeds with the July 18 poll under the existing arrangements or adopts additional measures to address the concerns raised by stakeholders.
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