Wike Accuses NBA of Hypocrisy, Destroying Legal Profession

Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja

The FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, has taken a swipe at the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), accusing it of hypocrisy and trying to pull down the legal profession.
He fired the rebuke yesterday, when the Body of Benchers, led by Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN) and Vice Chairman and former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, paid him a courtesy visit at Life Camp, Abuja.
Wike accused the NBA of the tendency to declare a judgement of the Supreme Court as unconstitutional and illegal without reading the judgement of the court. He described the practice as unfortunate.
He urged the Body of Benchers to wield the big stick on defaulters, saying they should not watch and allow some individuals for whatever interest kill the profession.
He affirmed that the situation is unacceptable, adding no lesson would be learned if nobody is disciplined.
He said: “We shall no longer allow our profession to be pulled down. I cannot believe that as lawyers you make a contribution to help and you will be criticized.
“You just heard judgement had been given, you did not even have the opportunity of reading it. The next thing you do is to go the national television to begin to criticize and nothing happens.
“We are scared of our judges to a point that a judge is going to mosque or church, he cannot great somebody he knows; he runs away before he will shake somebody, and people start saying he collected bribe.
“Somebody will write a petition and you will sit down to listen to the petition that bribery is given in the church; bribery is given in a mosque. I have never seen this in my life.

“When NBA was building their National Secretariat, it wrote and nobody saw that as bribe.
“I was the only one who contributed to NBA to build the National Secretariat and I said ‘name a floor after Rivers and not after me’. NBA didn’t see it as bribe. When you contribute to Benchers is bribe but when you contribute to NBA is not a bribe; they will take it. The same NBA will rely on state government to sponsor them for whatever activities and that one is not bribe”.
He also faulted the NBA of talking about a state of emergency in Rivers because the state government had assured them of hosting their Annual General Conference.
He alleged that since no government is interested in bankrolling the conference in Rivers State, the NBA is now making hues and cries by objecting to the emergency rule.
“What kind of hypocrisy is this? Sir, the time has come that you will all say, ‘enough is enough’. We cannot continue to discourage our judges and justices. It is not done anywhere.
“I have never seen where members of a profession are the one that are bringing the profession down. Nobody is perfect.
“All arms of government have problems. So why must it be the judiciary that people will say nothing good happens there? It is not correct. It is time we tell our lawyers that enough is enough.
“Judges cannot attend anything again because they are judges? You cannot worship your God because you are a judge?
“I can assure that whatever you want us to do to support you, we will support you. There is nothing you will do that some people will not write,” Wike said.
He assured he would not miss the opportunity to contribute to the legal profession.
He also defended the Annex Building as a project approved by the President and passed in the budget by the National Assembly.
He insisted the construction of the Annex was not his decision as FCT Minister.
Wike stated that the Court of Appeal Complex and the judges’ quarters in Katampe under construction were also appropriated.
The minister stressed provision had also been made in the 2025 budget to build a female and a male hostel at the Nigerian Law School, Bwari, saying it would reduce accommodation problems.
He said the staff housing under construction would be handed over to the Council of Legal Education upon completion.
He assured the Body of Benchers of the Fire Station promised at the Annex, saying it was already taken care of in the budget.
In his remarks, Chief Awomolo commended the FCT Minister as a faithful member of the legal profession and lauded his responsive interventions on matters of the judiciary, notably in the construction of accommodations for judicial officers and office complex for the Benchers, not only in the FCT but also in Rivers State.
In recognition, the Body of Benchers presented the FCT Minister with an award of excellent service and also disclosed the body’s reformative initiatives, including the introduction of technology in legal proceedings and efforts to improve the legal profession by empowering young lawyers.
Also on the delegation were a former Chief Judge FCT High Court, Hon Justice Ishaq Bello, former FCT NBA Chairman, J.K. Gadzama (SAN) and other very eminent legal practitioners.