I read with utter shock and disbelief the story of N300M given to the Nigerian Bar Association by the Rivers State Government as part of support for the Annual General Conference.

All lawyers in Nigeria pay their practicing fees annually. Money is also charged for lawyers who wish to attend the conference, such that there is no basis for NBA going cap in hand to beg for money to host a conference of lawyers.

Lawyers are the conscience of the society, who are expected to champion the rule of law. Such an organization should not be seen to be romancing with any government, socially in the face of suffering by the masses of our people due to wicked economic policies and human rights abuses by the government. After all, he who pays the piper dictates the tune.

We have no basis retaining the ?gift? from Rivers State, so NBA should refund the money immediately. We should not hide under any semantics or bureaucracy to retain the money. It should be paid into an escrow account with the Central Bank of Nigeria pending the restoration of democracy in Rivers State. NBA is not a bank.

I urge the elders of the Bar to intervene urgently to take away this collective shame. If the money has been spent, I urge all SANs and senior lawyers to contribute N1M each in order to raise the money.

Going forward, NBA should thread cautiously in raising funds from all manner of persons and institutions. Lawyers in Nigeria are well endowed to fund any programme for the NBA.

?Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, SAN, writes from Lekki, Lagos.

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