DRAMA IN LAFIA COURT: POLICE ARREST, DETAIN NBA NYANYA-KARU BRANCH TREASURER AFTER HE CHALLENGES RE-ARREST OF CLIENT
– NBA Fumes: “The courtroom must never become a hunting ground for lawyers” — Demands Immediate Release, Apology and Investigation
A dramatic confrontation at Magistrate Court No. 3, Lafia, Nasarawa State, has sparked a fierce reaction from the Nigerian Bar Association, Nyanya-Karu Branch, Abuja, following the alleged harassment and arrest of its Branch Treasurer, Monday Isah Adah, Esq., by police officers while he was appearing in court as counsel.
The NBA Branch has described the incident as a dangerous assault on the independence of the legal profession and warned that lawyers cannot be expected to represent their clients fearlessly if they face arrest whenever they question the exercise of police powers.
According to the Branch, the incident began when police officers attached to the Police State Headquarters, Lafia, allegedly moved to re-arrest Adah’s client within the court premises.
Adah, who was performing his professional duties as counsel, reportedly questioned the authority of the officers to effect the proposed re-arrest.
What followed, according to the Branch, was a dramatic escalation.
Instead of the disagreement being resolved through lawful means, the police officers allegedly turned their attention to the lawyer himself, subjecting him to harassment and subsequently arresting him.
The alleged arrest of a lawyer inside court premises while performing his professional duty has now triggered an angry response from the NBA Nyanya-Karu Branch, which has vowed not to remain silent.
In a strongly worded statement signed by its Chairman, Alexander Ebi Edim, Esq., and Secretary, Mazi Echika Ejido, Esq., the Branch condemned what it described as the harassment, intimidation and arrest of its Treasurer in the course of his professional responsibility.
The Branch said the incident was not merely an attack on an individual lawyer but a matter capable of undermining the administration of justice itself.
“A lawyer appearing in court in representation of a client is performing an essential function in the administration of justice,” the Branch stated.
It insisted that counsel has a professional duty to question unlawful conduct, challenge questionable procedures and insist upon due process.
The Branch made it clear that a lawyer cannot be expected to surrender that responsibility simply because the persons whose actions he is questioning are police officers.
In one of the strongest passages of the statement, the NBA declared:
“The courtroom must never become a hunting ground for lawyers.”
The Branch warned that lawyers must be able to appear before courts, represent their clients and challenge questionable exercises of state power without living under the fear that doing so could result in their arrest.
It further reminded the police that law-enforcement powers are not unlimited.
According to the Branch, the Nigerian Police Force is itself subject to the Constitution and laws of Nigeria and cannot use its authority to intimidate, harass or arrest lawyers merely because counsel has questioned the legality of an action being undertaken by police officers.
The NBA described the incident as particularly disturbing because it allegedly arose from Adah’s attempt to protect his client’s legal rights within the very institution established to administer justice.
“The exercise of professional advocacy is not a criminal offence,” the Branch declared.
It added that a disagreement between counsel and a police officer over the exercise of police powers cannot, without more, provide a basis for the harassment or arrest of counsel.
The Branch’s position is unequivocal: lawyers must not be punished for doing their jobs.
The NBA Nyanya-Karu Branch therefore issued a direct set of demands to the authorities.
It demanded the **immediate and unconditional release of Monday Isah Adah, Esq., if he remains in police custody**.
It also demanded an immediate investigation into the circumstances surrounding his alleged harassment and arrest, including an inquiry into the identities and conduct of the police officers involved.
But the Branch did not stop there.
It demanded a formal and unreserved apology to Adah over what it described as the harassment, intimidation and arrest of the lawyer while carrying out his professional duties.
The Branch also called upon the police authorities to remind their officers that lawyers are officers of the court and indispensable participants in the administration of justice.
According to the NBA, professional disagreements between lawyers and law-enforcement officers must be settled according to law and professional civility—not through intimidation, harassment or arrest.
The Branch warned that the matter would not be swept under the carpet.
It declared that it would deploy all lawful institutional and legal mechanisms available to it to protect its Treasurer and defend the dignity and independence of the legal profession.
The warning is particularly significant as the Branch insisted that the issue goes beyond Monday Isah Adah.
At stake, according to the NBA, is whether lawyers can continue to represent clients fearlessly when confronted with the coercive powers of the State.
“Where lawyers are intimidated into silence, the administration of justice is imperilled,” the Branch warned.
The NBA therefore called on the Nigerian Police Force and all relevant authorities to act promptly, responsibly and decisively
For the Nyanya-Karu Branch, the message is unmistakable: lawyers appearing in court must not have to choose between doing their professional duty and protecting themselves from arrest.
The Branch ended its statement with a declaration that is likely to reverberate across the legal profession:
“Lawyers must be free to represent their clients without fear, intimidation or harassment.”
“The legal profession must not be intimidated.”
