NBA Rejects Alleged AGF Directive to Postpone 2026 Election, says only NEC Can Take Such Decision

The Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, has rejected a purported directive from the office of the Attorney General of the Federation, AGF, to disband the Electoral Committee of the NBA and postpone the 2026 National Officers’ Election, insisting that “only the National Executive Council of the NBA can direct the postponement.”

In a statement signed by NBA President, Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN, the association described the alleged directive as “entirely unconstitutional, ultra vires the powers of the Honourable Attorney General” and an attempt to bring the independent professional body under government control.

The NBA said its attention was drawn to a document said to be a report of a Sub-Committee set up after an 11 June 2026 meeting convened by the AGF.

The document allegedly directed the disbandment of the Electoral Committee of the NBA, ECNBA, and postponement of the election of National Officers, termination of the appointment of the current service provider because he is a sole proprietor, setting up a caretaker committee to conduct the elections, incorporation of NIN in the voters’ data, and “Recalibration” of the NBA Constitution to remove universal suffrage.

The NBA stated that the Sub-Committee was only mandated “to liaise with the contending parties for the purpose of overseeing the withdrawal” of the two Egbe Amofin cases pending at the High Court of Oyo State.

It said the committee was not empowered to make findings on the conduct of the NBA President or to propose far-reaching changes to the electoral process, especially when the President was never served with memos used as a basis for the condemnations.

The association also questioned the neutrality of Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, who it said is “the proponent of the cases of the plaintiffs” and therefore “cannot chair such a Sub-Committee as he is clearly biased.”

It added that participants at the 11 June 2026 meeting were not availed a copy of the purported report and that until the AGF reconvenes another meeting to consider it, “there cannot be any decision.”

Citing Section 10(2) of the Legal Practitioners Act, the NBA said no body outside the association is empowered to interfere in its affairs, and none of the conditions for such interference have occurred.

“The Nigerian Bar Association is an independent body not subject to the control and directive of the office of the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation or any other arm of government,” the statement said.

The NBA argued that the AGF, as a party/mediator in the Egbe Amofin suit, “cannot grant reliefs sought” and that “a mediator does not give directives to the parties in a matter in which he is a party.”

It also described the report as “suspect” because it was not on the official letterhead of the AGF’s office and the NBA has received no communication from that office.

The NBA said the National Officers’ electoral process “shall continue as scheduled by the ECNBA” and that the ECNBA “has not been shown to have done anything wrong in its activities since its constitution.”

On the proposal to use NIN, the NBA said a risk assessment showed that “any modification of the current platform configuration will truncate the election, particularly as the NIMC platform may not be able to accommodate the surge in authentication requests during the period of the election.”

It also rejected the claim that a sole proprietor cannot provide services, noting that “most legal practitioners, including members of the Committee, have sole proprietorship law offices.”

Quoting Mohammed v. The Nigerian Army (2001), the NBA said the process reflected “unnecessary prejudice” and violated the constitutional right to fair hearing. “We are committed to due process of the law,” Osigwe stated.

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