NBA 2O26 Election: “Bar Elders Always Look Away” — Steve Sun Faults NBA President’s ‘I Cannot Be Neutral’ Stance
A legal practitioner and public affairs commentator, Steve Sun Esq, has delivered a detailed and critical response to the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President Mazi Afam Osigwe SAN’s declaration that he cannot remain neutral in the forthcoming national elections, warning that unchecked partisanship by incumbents could plunge the Bar into institutional crisis.
Steve Sun argued that while the NBA President is partially correct in asserting that no express rule bars him from having a preferred candidate for the office of President of the NBA (OPNBA) or other national offices, the position is also constitutionally flawed when viewed against the broader framework of the Constitution of the Nigerian Bar Association (CNBA).
According to him, although the CNBA empowers the NBA President to constitute committees, it expressly removes the President from the Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (ECNBA), which is constituted solely by the National Executive Council (NEC) and is required to operate with total impartiality.
He cited Section 9(5)(a)(viii) of the CNBA, which provides that the NBA President shall be an ex-officio member of all committees except the ECNBA, arguing that this deliberate exclusion creates a constitutional distinction that must be properly understood.
Steve Sun reasoned that had the President been made an ex-officio member of the ECNBA, he would have been automatically barred from any form of partisanship, since members of the ECNBA are prohibited from being partisan either overtly or covertly. He contrasted this with Section 7(1)(e) of the Uniform Bylaws, which makes Branch Chairmen ex-officio members of all Branch Committees without exception, thereby constitutionally disabling them from partisanship in Branch elections.
He warned that failure to clarify this distinction could embolden unscrupulous outgoing Branch Chairmen to justify partisan conduct by relying on the NBA President’s position, a development he described as dangerous and capable of triggering crises at the branch level.
Beyond constitutional interpretation, Steve Sun stressed that long-standing tradition and convention within the NBA demand that Presidents at least conceal personal preferences during elections, noting that NBA elections are not conventional political contests involving parties and aggressive campaigning.
Turning to the controversy surrounding the distribution of crested bottled water to NEC members, Steve Sun described the act as clearly unconstitutional, citing Section 14, Part 3 of the Second Schedule to the CNBA, which prohibits donations or philanthropic gestures by candidates seeking national office. He also referenced Section 7, Part 4 of the same Schedule, which expressly forbids the publication, printing, or distribution of campaign materials, gifts, or souvenirs by candidates or their supporters, with disqualification prescribed as the penalty for contravention.
According to him, the distribution of branded water at an official NEC meeting falls squarely within the prohibited conduct.
While acknowledging that the NBA President may be constitutionally at liberty to hold personal preferences, Steve Sun cautioned that open and brazen partisanship undermines the traditions of the Bar and unnecessarily heats up the electoral environment.
He emphasized that conventions within the legal profession are not mere courtesies but solemn rules that sustain institutional stability.
Expressing deep concern, Steve Sun lamented what he described as a recurring failure by Bar Elders to reprimand incumbent NBA Presidents, even in situations where their conduct clearly deviates from established norms.
He concluded that the trend is worrisome, disheartening, and dangerous for the future of the Nigerian Bar, calling for collective restraint and adherence to both the letter and spirit of the NBA Constitution in order to preserve the integrity of the Association’s electoral process.
