Two Senior Advocates of Nigeria, Aare Muyiwa Akinboro and Lateef Omoyemi Akangbe, have petitioned the Board of Trustees of the Nigerian Bar Association, calling for the immediate resignation of the Association’s President, Afam Osigwe, over what they described as an “open admission of bias” and persistent partisan conduct ahead of the NBA’s forthcoming national elections.

In a letter dated February 15, 2026, and addressed to the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, the senior lawyers alleged that Osigwe publicly declared at the National Executive Council meeting held in Maiduguri, Borno State, on February 5, 2026, that he “cannot be neutral” in the electoral process because he has a voting right. According to them, the statement, made on the floor of the NEC in response to concerns raised about the distribution of campaign materials at the meeting, has triggered a crisis of confidence in the leadership of the Association.

The petitioners further accused the NBA President of engaging in partisan activities since the 2025 Annual General Conference in Enugu, alleging that official events, including the Health Walk and the “Unbarred Party,” were used to project a particular presidential aspirant. They claimed that the President permitted the distribution of campaign-branded materials at official NBA functions and allowed campaign visuals to be displayed during conference activities.

Beyond conference activities, the SANs alleged that Osigwe personally lobbied members of the Bar, including Senior Advocates, to support a preferred aspirant. They also claimed that he attended branch programmes where he openly canvassed support for the same candidate, citing a recent Law Week event of the NBA Yola Branch as one of such instances.

The petition further alleged that the National Secretariat of the Association was deployed to distribute campaign materials, including umbrellas and face caps, in various branches, describing the development as a misuse of institutional resources. The lawyers also questioned the independence of the Electoral Committee of the NBA, arguing that the President’s open declaration of non-neutrality had undermined confidence in the credibility of the electoral process.

They called on the Board of Trustees to intervene urgently by compelling Osigwe to resign, reconstituting the Electoral Committee, and establishing an independent election oversight mechanism to ensure transparency and fairness.