NBA Invites DSS, ICPC, EFCC to Monitor 2026 National Officers’ Election

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has invited the Department of State Services (DSS), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to monitor its 2026 national officers election scheduled for Saturday.

The association said the move was part of efforts to ensure transparency and strengthen confidence in the electronic voting process.

NBA President, Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN, who spoke on Friday, said the association had opened the electoral process to scrutiny and had also extended invitations to foreign organisations interested in observing the exercise.

Osigwe dismissed allegations that the electronic voting system was designed to favour any particular presidential candidate, insisting that the Electoral Committee of the NBA (ECNBA) was independent and that adequate safeguards had been put in place to ensure a credible election.

He said the seven-member electoral committee was selected through a transparent process approved by the association’s National Executive Committee (NEC).

The NBA president, however, criticised what he described as attempts to disrupt the electoral process through litigation and allegations he said were not supported by facts.

He also expressed concern over the arrest of one of the election’s service providers and the seizure of a laptop by the DSS, saying the development raised questions about possible interference with the electoral process.

“Unfortunately, in the build-up to it, one of our service providers was arrested, but he has been released. We don’t know what may still happen next,” Osigwe said.

“We hope that there will be no further arrests or interference with the electoral process. We are committed to holding a free and fair election.”

The NBA had earlier zoned its presidential seat to the Western region, covering Lagos, Ondo, Oyo, Osun, Ogun, Ekiti, Edo and Delta States.

Following the zoning arrangement, the ECNBA cleared three candidates to contest for the presidency: Aare Olumuyiwa Akinboro, SAN, of the Abuja Branch; Ms Oyinkansola Badejo-Okunsanya, SAN, of the Lagos Branch; and Mr Lateef Omoyemi Akangbe, SAN, also of the Lagos Branch.

However, the Egbe Amofin O’odua, a body representing lawyers of Yoruba extraction, had pushed for Akinboro to be recognised as the region’s consensus candidate.

The disagreement led to legal action, with some lawyers challenging the electoral process and seeking orders to halt the election.

An Oyo State High Court had earlier issued interim injunctions affecting the conduct of the election, but the Court of Appeal later vacated the restraining orders, allowing the NBA to proceed.

Osigwe said the litigation was an attempt to undermine the democratic process adopted by the association to deliver a free, fair and credible election.

He maintained that the electronic voting system would include verification measures, including the use of lawyers’ enrollment numbers, email confirmation, one-time passwords (OTPs) and identity checks linked to the National Identification Number (NIN).

The NBA president explained that the association was not opposed to transparency measures but rejected proposals to conduct the election through the online portal of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), arguing that such a system could create unnecessary difficulties for some voters.

The association assured members that the election would go ahead as scheduled, with the outcome determined by the votes of eligible lawyers.