Continuous stay of Mahmoud as NBA boss raises dust

Controversy is now trailing the status of the President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN) as some stakeholders are now questioning the propriety of his continuous stay in office, following a recent court judgment.

The Daily Times recalls that Justice John Tsoho of the Federal High Court, Abuja had on March 30, 2017, nullified the 2014 and 2015 constitutions of the NBA under which Mahmoud was elected as the NBA boss.

The judge’s verdict was sequel to a suit filed by a Lagos-based lawyer, Mr. Supo Ojo.

It is instructive to note that Justice Tsoho also voided the 2015 amended Constitution of the NBA for non-compliance with mandatory provisions of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) and also voided all actions howsoever described taken under the said constitution, amongst other reliefs.

The NBA has however filed an appeal against the judgment at the Court of Appeal in Abuja and a stay of execution of the verdict.

But The Daily Times exclusively gathered that the development is causing disquiet in the association.

The ongoing controversy has also prompted one the prominent leaders of the Bar, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), to write to the Registered Trustees of the NBA, warning them of the grave consequences of Justice Tsoho’s judgment.

According to Awomolo, it is inappropriate for the leaders of the Bar to seat on the fence in view of the weighty pronouncement of Justice Tsoho on the image of the NBA.

Awomolo further decried a situation where the registration of the amended constitution of the NBA could be left unregistered where SANs had led the elected Bar officials, saying that the development is unthinkable and shameful.

In his letter to the trustees of the NBA, Awomolo said: “I write respectfully to invite your attention to the judgment of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, delivered on Friday, March 30, 2017.

“The implication of this judgment is so grave that it will appear as if we have been drawn back to 1992 when the bar association went into crisis that nearly terminated its existence.

“I recall that Chief F.R.A. Williams, SAN (of blessed memory), Alhaji Abudullahi Ibrahim, SAN, CON, Chief Tony Mogboh SAN, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN and Alhaji Muritala Aminu, OFR rose to support me and the Committee of Chairmen and Secretaries of the 44 branches of the NBA to bring us a body corporate. Chief T.J.O. Okpoko, SAN was elected as President at the 1998 August Conference held here in Abuja.

“It is very sad to note that the trustees inadvertently, have left the association to the hands of successive elected leaders, some of whom by omission or commission lost sense of history and abdicated their responsibilities.

“It is unthinkable that an elementary thing like the registration of the amended constitution of the association can be left unregistered where Senior Advocates of Nigeria had led the elected Bar officials.

“It is my humble view that your leadership of the association as Registered Trustees is now called upon to put right the Bar association, failing which one can foresee the emergence of Regional Bar Associations and Law Societies.

“The arguments put into public domain by elected officers of the Bar association are very unfortunate. No legal argument or unauthorised appeal can save the failure, negligence and responsibilities of the management of the Bar.

This is not the time for sophistry of the law and legal technicality to elongate the tenure of the present officials.

Their desire to secure or save their tenure at the detriment of the association is sad, selfish and should be condemned by all of us.

“I wish to request that a meeting of the Board of Trustees be held very urgently to save the Bar from disintegration and put to rest fractionalization encouraged by the immediate leadership of the association.

“We think our labour to save the association should not be allowed to waste on the altar of negligence and irresponsible leadership,” Awomolo added.

The senior advocate also addressed the letter to Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim, (SAN), Chief Anthony Mogboh, (SAN), Chief T.J.O. Okpoko, (SAN), Chief Wole Olanipekun, (SAN), Chief (Mrs) Prsicilia (Kuye), Alhaji Murtala Aminu, Registered Trustees of the NBA.

But a cross section of lawyers interviewed over Justice Tsoho’s judgment on the status of the NBA president, Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN) have expressed divergent views on the matter.

Some lawyers said that it is hasty to ask Mahmoud to step aside, as an appeal has been filed against the judgment, insisting he should remain in office to avoid a situation that will create more problems for the association.

Pius Efulue and Richard Sekidika, both Abuja based legal practitioners, said that the blame for none registration of amended constitution of the NBA with the Corporate Affairs Commission should not be solely laid on the current leadership but all past leaders of NBA.

But Sam Abi, another legal practitioner based in Abuja, said that the current leadership headed by Mahmoud, under whose tenure the court made the far reaching pronouncement, should resign as mark of respect for members of the association.
He was surprised like Awomolo that since March when the judgment was delivered, all the personalities concerned have been going about their businesses as if nothing has happened.

Also, some Senior Advocates of Nigeria who were polled and who did not want their names in print, said it is an embarrassment to the association that the current President is still occupying that exalted position. They argued that the honourable thing for the President to do now is to resign to pave way for a fresh election into key positions of the lawyers’ umbrella body.

The senior lawyers who spoke exclusively to The Daily Times on Thursday said until that is done, the association may yet witness another crisis like it happened in 1992.

One of them said: “You journalists you know the truth but you fail to write it. Even the association is no longer criticising the government. What we hear every day is that we should support and encourage it even in the face of wrong acts. We need to be serious as lawyers and lead by example.

Judgments of court, no matter how bad they may be, are meant to be obeyed. If we don’t obey court’s order, we have no moral ground to blame government when it does the same. Let him leave when the ovation is loudest”.

Arguing differently, however, another senior lawyer, Yusuf Ali (SAN), had this to say: “Well, I am not aware of any nullification of the constitution by a Federal High Court, Abuja.

The law is sacrosanct that a court cannot make an order to a party that is not before it. The NBA President was never joined in the suit, the current president was never a party. I don’t think the judgment has any implications most people are attributing to it”.