Thousands of lawyers across Nigeria will head to the polls tomorrow, Saturday, as the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) holds its 2026 National Officers and General Council of the Bar (GCB) elections to elect new national leaders.
The election, scheduled to hold electronically, will see members vote for the next NBA President and other executive officers that will steer the affairs of the association for the next two years.
Three candidates are in the race to succeed the current President, Mazi Afam Osigwe (SAN). They include Olumuyiwa Akinboro (SAN), Lateef Omoyemi Akangbe (SAN) and Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya (SAN).
It is the turn of the Southwest to produce the NBA president.
With the Midwest Bar opting out after producing two previous presidents – Augustine Alegeh (SAN) and Olumide Akpata – three core Southwest candidates will slug it out.
Akinboro is a Life Bencher. He was the NBA General Secretary and also served as Secretary and later Chairman of the NBA Abuja Branch.
Akangbe served as Chairman of the NBA Lagos Branch. He was Chairman of the NBA Finance Committee and is a member of the Body of Benchers.
Oyinkansola Badejo-Okunsanya was General Counsel in the Governor’s Office during the Fashola Administration, and before then, was a Senior Aide in Justice Sector Reform. A member of the Board of the Lagos Court of Arbitration, she chaired the Planning Committee for the NBA’s 2024 Annual General Conference.
The NBA elections will take place despite recent developments involving its election service provider.
The Electoral Committee of the NBA (ECNBA) has published the final voters’ register after months of verifying lawyers’ eligibility.
The register contains well over 30,000 eligible lawyers, making it one of the largest electronic elections conducted by any professional body in Africa.
Only lawyers who satisfy the constitutional requirements, including payment of practising fees and branch dues within the stipulated deadlines, are eligible to participate.
There were fears that the election might be halted after the Managing Director of the election service provider was arrested.
But last night, the NBA National Executive Council (NEC) confirmed his release by security agencies and reaffirmed that the election would proceed as scheduled.
At its virtual emergency meeting yesterday, the NBA NEC unanimously resolved that the 2026 NBA National Officers and General Council of the Bar (GCB) elections would be held tomorrow.
The ECNBA briefed NEC on the state of preparations and assured members of its readiness to conduct a free, fair, transparent and credible election.
The committee said there was no operational or logistical basis for postponing the poll, as all necessary arrangements remained on course.
NEC stressed that no external interference or unforeseen circumstance would derail the approved electoral timetable, insisting that the credibility and integrity of the NBA’s democratic institutions must be protected.
The council also condemned the arrest and detention of the Managing Director of the election service provider, describing the development as disturbing.
Reaffirming the association’s commitment to the rule of law, NEC called on all eligible members to remain calm, participate peacefully in the election and uphold the ideals of democracy and the independence of the legal profession.
NBA NEC also urged all relevant authorities to respect the autonomy of the association and refrain from any action capable of interfering with its democratic processes.
The ECNBA has released detailed guidelines for tomorrow’s election.
Voting will be conducted entirely online through the ECNBA electronic voting platform.
Only lawyers whose names appear on the final voters’ register will be eligible to vote.
Eligible voters must use the unique voting credentials issued by the electoral committee, and each lawyer may vote only once.
Lawyers are advised to verify their eligibility before polling opens.
Complaints relating to voter information or technical issues are to be channeled through the ECNBA helpdesk.
Campaign activities are prohibited during the voting period, while candidates and their supporters are expected to comply with the electoral code of conduct.
The ECNBA has repeatedly assured members that adequate technological safeguards have been put in place to ensure a credible, transparent and secure election.
Its timetable indicates that voting will proceed as scheduled, with results expected after the close of polls following collation and verification.
