Senior Advocate of Nigeria Chief Yomi Alliyu has launched one of the most scathing public critiques ever directed at a sitting NBA President, describing Afam Osigwe SAN as “the worst president that has ever presided over the Bar” in terms of leadership qualities, accusing him of openly campaigning for a preferred successor, handpicking the Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association rather than allowing NEC members to nominate its composition, denigrating the judiciary and the Bar by calling them “the worst bribe takers in Nigeria” without providing evidence, selectively responding to attacks on the judiciary, and attempting to destroy the livelihood of a colleague who dared to challenge his decisions.
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In a statement issued on Tuesday and signed as “Chief Yomi Alliyu SAN, FCIArb, mpic, The Jagunmolu of Edeland,” the senior advocate, who was called to the Bar in August 1985 and has participated in every NBA presidential election since Prince Bola Ajibola’s tenure in 1984/85, said Osigwe’s conduct has created what he described as “Leadership Without Conscience,” a new category of leadership where a president refuses, neglects, and fails to walk his talk.
Despite the intensity of his criticism, Alliyu concluded with a constructive proposal, calling on Osigwe to summon an emergency NEC meeting to expand the ECNBA 2026 to include representatives of the contestants and to reform the voting process by using NIN of voters with their Supreme Court enrolment numbers instead of emails that he alleged have been manipulated by “cabals.”
Alliyu established his standing to critique the NBA presidency by recounting his own history within the Association.
“I was called to Bar in August 1985, that will be some 41 years ago,” Alliyu stated. “During this short period, apart from being ex-officio member, auditor, assistant Secretary of the Ibadan Branch of NBA at various times from 1986 to 1991, I had seen many past Presidents of the Nigeria Bar Association.”
He listed the presidents he has observed since his call to Bar: “I had seen them from Prince Bola Ajibola 1984/85, Ebele Nwokoye 1985/87, the radical Aka Basorun 1987/89, Idehen 1989/91, Akpamgbo 1991/92 till Afam Osigwe SAN of today.”
“I participated in all the elections of these Presidents, travelling North and South of the country to cast my votes before the bedevilled online voting was introduced and manipulated by cabals that intend to perpetuate themselves in the politics of the NBA,” Alliyu stated.
The historical context was designed to establish that Alliyu’s assessment of Osigwe is not made from ignorance of the NBA’s leadership history but from decades of direct participation and observation, spanning approximately twenty presidents over four decades of practice.
Alliyu’s central characterisation of Osigwe was blunt and unsparing.
“This leads me to my learned brother silk, Afam Osigwe SAN, who I see as the worst president that has ever presided over the Bar in the sense of his leadership qualities, unguarded and reckless statements,” Alliyu stated.
The characterisation, while severe, was followed by specific allegations that Alliyu offered as the factual basis for his assessment.
Alliyu’s first accusation concerns Osigwe’s conduct in relation to the election of his successor as NBA President.
“For God’s sake, how would a leader worthy of his call openly said that he could not be neutral in the election of his successor!” Alliyu stated, expressing shock that a sitting president would publicly declare his inability to remain impartial in a process he is constitutionally obligated to oversee fairly.
He alleged that Osigwe has been campaigning, “albeit indirectly and without mentioning name,” for a particular candidate, specifically by attending a function organised by women and advocating that gender be considered in the forthcoming election.
“There is only one female that has expressed her interest to contest the coming election. Even the blind knows who the President was selling to the public!” Alliyu stated.
He further alleged that a principal employee of the NBA has been using the campaign motto of a candidate on official publications disseminated through social media, suggesting institutional resources are being deployed in favour of a preferred candidate.
“The atmosphere has never been this sordid in all my years of practice!” Alliyu declared.
Alliyu’s second major allegation concerns the composition of the Electoral Committee of the NBA, the body responsible for conducting the presidential election.
He alleged that Osigwe “brought a list already prepared by him as members of the Electoral Committee of the Nigeria Bar Association for ratification by NEC at Benin NEC meeting, as opposed to calling for nominations by NEC members.”
The allegation strikes at the heart of the ECNBA controversy that has dogged the NBA’s electoral process. If the president presented a pre-prepared list for rubber-stamping rather than allowing NEC members to nominate and discuss candidates for the committee, the resulting ECNBA would be seen as the president’s creation rather than an independent body selected through democratic process.
Alliyu noted that the matter is sub judice, referring to the Egbe Amofin Oodua suit that has now been adjourned sine die following the entry of an appeal at the Court of Appeal. He refrained from elaborating further on the specifics but stated that “one would be a fool to expect the piper to go against the tune dictated to it by its appointor and sponsor,” implying that an ECNBA handpicked by the president cannot be expected to conduct an election contrary to the president’s preferences.
Alliyu alleged that Osigwe “campaigned vigorously against the reappointment of Okutepa SAN and even planned to completely deprive the man from his means of livelihood” at the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee.
“What is the offence of Okutepa SAN?” Alliyu asked. “He took up the leading role in representing Egbe Amofin Oodua aggrieved by steps taken by Afam Osigwe SAN.”
The allegation is that Osigwe attempted to punish Okutepa professionally for the legal challenge to the ECNBA’s composition, using his institutional power to block Okutepa’s reappointment to the LPDC in retaliation for litigation that challenged the president’s authority.
This allegation gains additional context from the recent Okutepa-Osigwe reconciliation, during which the NBA President and former Attorney-General J.J. Usman SAN visited Okutepa at his office in what was described as a resolution of their differences. Alliyu’s account suggests the original dispute ran deeper than personality differences and involved what he characterises as attempted professional retaliation.
Alliyu’s most explosive allegation concerns a speech Osigwe delivered on February 6, 2026, at the Ralph Opara Memorial Lecture organised by the National Association of Seadogs in Enugu, themed “Judicial Corruption in Nigeria: A Menace to Democracy and Social Justice.”
“In flagrant abuse of his position as the president of the Bar and defender of the judiciary, on 6th February 2026, President of NBA Afam Osigwe SAN does not spare the judiciary and the Bar over which he is presiding in tagging them as ‘the worst bribe takers in Nigeria,'” Alliyu stated.
“The President did not give instances of same! Or is the President making a confessional statement?” Alliyu asked.
He described the statement as “unsubstantiated” and “unbecoming of the position of the president of the largest Bar in Africa,” arguing that a president who heads both the profession and serves as its interface with the judiciary should not make sweeping accusations against both institutions without evidence.
Alliyu accused Osigwe of being “selective in his critics,” citing the NBA President’s silence when IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu “was denigrating the Court by saying that a Federal High Court Judge does not know law and harassing both the judge and the prosecution counsel.”
“There is no way the judge could protect himself. It is the duty of the Bar. But our President was in slumber, showing that he is selective in his reactions to issues!” Alliyu stated.
The allegation of selectivity suggests that Osigwe responds to attacks on the judiciary when it suits his political purposes but remains silent when intervention might be politically inconvenient or when the attacker is someone he does not wish to confront.
Alliyu extended his critique to the NBA’s electoral system itself, describing online voting as “bedevilled” and “manipulated by cabals that intend to perpetuate themselves in the politics of the NBA.”
“Nobility has completely deserted the way we run our association from the time online voting was introduced as means of electing our Bar executive,” Alliyu stated.
“Unlike in America, we did not have to go to Russia to hack election results since experts who know how to manipulate members’ emails and Supreme Court numbers abound!” Alliyu added, in a comparison that, while hyperbolic, captures his view that the NBA’s electronic voting system is vulnerable to manipulation.
“I wonder how any product of that election will have the mouth to criticise Nigerian politicians for rigging elections,” Alliyu stated, suggesting that the NBA’s own electoral integrity problems undermine the moral authority of its leaders to lecture politicians about democratic standards.
Alliyu framed his critique within a philosophical framework drawn from classical thinkers, suggesting the standards against which Osigwe’s leadership should be measured.
He cited Confucius on moral integrity and ethical behaviour; Socrates on valuing knowledge through dialogue and creating an environment where followers can challenge assumptions and express ideas; Xenophon on moderation and justice; and Aristotle on “ethos, pathos and logos,” meaning ethical behaviour, inspiring passion, and logical argument to justify decisions.
“The Philosophers mentioned ethos, pathos and logos. They, especially Socrates, said that a good leader must allow followers to express themselves,” Alliyu stated. “Oga Afam entertains no actions taken against his decision as the ‘Kaabiyesi’ one whose authority should not be questioned of the Bar!”
The classical references serve to contrast the ideal of leadership as articulated by philosophers across millennia with what Alliyu describes as Osigwe’s practice of leadership without accountability, consultation, or tolerance of dissent.
Despite the severity of his criticism, Alliyu concluded with a specific proposal for reform rather than merely a call for Osigwe’s resignation or condemnation.
“Instead of Afam Osigwe SAN rushing to LPDC against me, my learned brother silk can still retrace his steps especially on the incoming election,” Alliyu stated, suggesting Osigwe might be considering disciplinary action against him for the public criticism.
Alliyu called on the NBA President to summon an emergency NEC meeting with two specific objectives.
First, expanding the ECNBA 2026 to include representatives of the contestants, ensuring that no candidate can claim the electoral body is stacked against them and providing a measure of transparency and stakeholder participation in the electoral process.
Second, reforming the voting process by using voters’ National Identification Numbers with their Supreme Court enrolment numbers, rather than email addresses, which Alliyu alleges are vulnerable to manipulation.
The proposals address two of the most persistent concerns about NBA elections: the independence of the electoral committee and the integrity of the voting technology.
Alliyu’s reference to “rushing to LPDC against me” suggests he anticipates that Osigwe may respond to his public criticism by filing a professional misconduct complaint against him at the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee, a pattern that Alliyu has already alleged in his account of Osigwe’s treatment of Okutepa SAN.
The mention serves both as a pre-emptive acknowledgment that his criticism may attract professional consequences and as a warning that any attempt to silence him through disciplinary proceedings would only confirm the authoritarian tendencies he has described.
Alliyu’s critique, coming from a Senior Advocate with 41 years at the Bar, extensive branch-level service, and participation in every NBA presidential election since the mid-1980s, cannot be dismissed as the complaint of an outsider or a junior lawyer seeking attention.
It represents a public articulation of grievances that, according to multiple accounts, are shared by a significant segment of the Bar’s membership but which few practitioners of equivalent seniority have been willing to state publicly, given the potential professional consequences of criticising a sitting NBA President.
The statement adds to the growing chorus of concerns about the NBA’s electoral process, the independence of the ECNBA, the President’s neutrality, and the broader question of whether the Association’s internal democracy meets the standards it demands of Nigeria’s political parties and government institutions.
As Alliyu stated, invoking the classical ideal against the contemporary reality: “Afam Osigwe SAN has created a new set of leadership, to wit: Leadership Without Conscience, as he has refused, neglected, and failed to walk his talk.”
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