*Urges NBA To Discipline Lawyers In Public Service Undermining Rule Of Law
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Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Jibrin Samuel Okutepa, on Sunday, expressed deep concerns over what he described as the celebration of lawlessness in Nigeria, particularly among those in power. In a strongly worded statement, Okutepa lamented the blatant disregard for the rule of law, judicial precedents, and constitutional provisions by political leaders and institutions, including the National Assembly.
He stated:
“Each time I see how lawlessness is celebrated in Nigeria by those who profit from the desecration of our laws and our constitution, I am always pained, and I weep that almost all those in charge of the affairs of Nigeria and their supporters are just there for themselves. They do not respect Nigerian laws and the constitution, they do not mean well for Nigeria and the rest of Nigerians, and they are not true leaders and citizens who have the love of Nigerians and Nigeria at heart.”
“The Nigerian state is seen and deemed as their private estate and property. They do with it as they like, and they do so in conspiracy with themselves, their supporters, and other institutions that should act as checks and balances. The National Assembly, which ought to make laws for peace, order, and good governance, has over the years engaged in breaking the constitution and always in disobedience to laws, the constitution, and court orders or decisions and binding precedents. They have continued to do so with the audacity of impunity in the suspension of the representatives of the people in the National Assembly without any remorse.”
“When I speak of law in this context, I am speaking of the Nigerian constitution and judicial precedents, which are parts of the laws that guide the decisions of our courts or any other authority. I am not sure there are no lawyers in the National Assembly. From my knowledge, there are many lawyers there who are of considerable years of legal practice.”
“Are the rules of professional conduct in the legal profession not binding on these lawyers in the National Assembly in the discharge of their duties? I think it does. It is the duty of all lawyers, whether in the National Assembly or elsewhere, to foster the cause of justice and defend and promote the rule of law. Lawyers must not act or do anything that makes a mockery of the rule of law or obstructs the cause of justice. It is our duty as lawyers not to undermine the laws of the land and the constitution. It is our duty to take the path of honor and obey the laws, not to disregard them in support of primordial partisan selfish interests. To do so is a breach of the code of conduct in the legal profession.”
“There are several decisions of the Court of Appeal, the second-highest court in Nigeria, that have consistently held that the National Assembly has no power to suspend any member of Parliament. Even if it must suspend its members, it cannot do so for more than 14 days. These decisions are part of our laws that the National Assembly has the duty and responsibility to observe and obey in accordance with Section 287(2) of the 1999 Constitution. The right of a senator to sit for not less than 180 days in a legislative year is a constitutional right that is not negotiable. The right to a fair hearing is a constitutional right and is enshrined in Chapter 4 of the 1999 Constitution. The Constitution is the supreme law of the land, and all actions must be done in accordance with it, as stated in Section 1(1) and (3). Each member of the National Assembly swore to uphold and defend the Constitution.”
“Decisions such as those in Ndume’s case, Omo-Agege’s case, Dino Melaye’s case, and many others should guide the National Assembly in any decision it intends to take against any of its members. But each National Assembly from 1999 till date has engaged in suspending members as if they are deaf to these decisions. No member of the National Assembly or even State Houses of Assembly is an employee of the Assembly. No, they are not. Members of Parliament are employees of the people they represent.”
“Each time they take decisions against their members, they usually say, ‘You can go to court.’ It is our inability as a people to respect laws and court decisions that has led to the unreasonable rise in the dockets of our courts. If each institution in Nigeria paid respect to law, the rule of law, and court decisions, our courts would not be so clogged with unnecessary cases to the detriment of the health of judicial officers.”
“Our electoral contests should not be thuggery and thuggish selections. These uncouth and uncivilized conducts are anti-law and unconstitutional. Yet, some of these barbaric conducts are sometimes supported, aided, and abetted by some lawyers in the name of primordial partisan political interests.”
“The leadership of the NBA must, as a necessity, look at the conduct of its members who are in public service or political offices and whose actions aid and abet the desecration of the rule of law and the cause of justice. They must bring them before the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee of the Body of Benchers, no matter how highly placed. We cannot, as a noble profession, tolerate the intolerable misuse of power in breach of the Nigerian Constitution and other laws, and then plead that it is politics. Any lawyer whose conduct in political office undermines the rule of law or contaminates the purity of justice must be made to face disciplinary processes. The application of Rule 1 of the Rules of Professional Conduct is universal to all lawyers and is not restricted only to those who appear in court.”
“Until we take discipline seriously and all negative actions are met with sanctions, the much-needed respect for law and order will elude us as a nation. It is an elementary principle of law that no one can be a judge in their own case. In the case of the National Assembly, it has always been the accuser, prosecutor, and judge in cases against its members. Even when there are precedents that it cannot do so, it has always done so without regard for previous court decisions. Lawyers in the National Assembly have, in most cases, stood by and done nothing, in breach of the duties they owe the legal profession. We must take this seriously.”
“In my view, any rules of the National Assembly or State Houses of Assembly that allow them to act as accuser, prosecutor, and judge are contrary to the Constitution, which reserves adjudicatory powers for the courts. Even if the National Assembly or any State House of Assembly has inbuilt disciplinary powers, those accused of wrongdoing should not be part of the decision-making process. To do so violates the principle of fair hearing. But in the case of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan’s six-month suspension, the Senate President, who was accused by Natasha—whether rightly or wrongly—presided over the session where she was suspended.”
“Even if the Senate President was not actuated by malice, his decision to preside over the proceedings was a complete negation of natural justice and a breach of Section 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution. The rule of law was thereby murdered, and the principle that justice must not only be done but must be seen to be done was slaughtered on the altar of primordial partisan selfish interests. This is not good for our image in the comity of civilized nations.”
Quoting former Ekiti First Lady, Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi, Okutepa reiterated:
“What happened in the Senate Chambers on March 6, 2025, was a travesty. The impunity and disregard were breathtaking. The Senate President should have demonstrated leadership by allowing someone else to receive the petition against him. You cannot sit in judgment over a case that involves you. As if that was not bad enough, there was a rush to suspend Senator Natasha for six months, minus her privileges, even when there are court rulings that suspending legislators for more than 14 days is detrimental to their representational functions. This was clearly designed to humiliate, punish, and demean Senator Natasha as much as possible. Time and history will be the judge of all concerned. In my own opinion, this is not about Senator Natasha.”
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