A Human Rights Group, Access to Justice (A2J) has congratulated the newly-elected Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President, Mr. Olumide Akpata over his victory at the recently concluded NBA polls.
The Non-Governmental Organisation, in a statement, said that the public confidence in justice institutions is possibly at an all-time low and references to the stature of Nigeria’s justice institutions is unflattering internationally.
According to its Executive Director, Joseph Otteh, the newly-elected NBA President has daunting challenges before him and we urge him to rise to the occasion of elevating the Bar’s role in defining the delivery of justice in Nigeria.
Otteh said that had the NBA pulled its weight well in the recent past, it would have served Nigeria better and stood in the gap for citizens who were bewildered by the impunity of government
“It is our hope that he will refurbish and rejuvenate the Bar’s role in shaping how justice is delivered in Nigeria as well as rebuild confidence in Nigeria’s justice institutions.
“Mr. Akpata must ensure that the Bar is not anymore a bit-part player in the scheme of things, but an important lever in shaping policy – both national and judicial – in things affecting the administration of justice and the rule of law.
“Mr. Akpata must raise the bar of the Bar’s influence in resisting tyranny and abuse, safeguarding human rights, and resisting a government’s oft push towards authoritarianism and despotism,” he said.
