ABUJA — Prominent Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Jibrin Samuel Okutepa, SAN, has delivered a scathing assessment of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), declaring that he has lost faith in the body as an association of legal practitioners.
Okutepa’s remarks mark a dramatic escalation in an ongoing institutional feud that has pitted the senior advocate against the current leadership of the Bar, exposing deep ideological and operational divisions within the nation’s premier legal organization.
A Systemic Loss of Credibility
Speaking on the state of the legal profession, the fiery advocate lambasted the association for drifting away from its core mandate as the conscience of the nation and a vanguard for professional ethics.
“I have lost faith in the NBA as an association of lawyers,” Okutepa stated, highlighting what he described as growing hypocrisy, political jockeying, and the erosion of professional integrity within the ranks of the Bar.
According to Okutepa, the association has increasingly tolerated ethical compromises, monetized its election processes, and allowed internal political patronage to supplant the traditional respect and merit-based values that historically defined the legal profession in Nigeria.
The Clash With Leadership
The senior lawyer’s public vote of no confidence follows a high-profile confrontation with NBA President Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN.
The rift reached a boiling point after the NBA leadership submitted a petition against Okutepa to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC). The petition stems from Okutepa’s role as lead counsel in a lawsuit challenging the constitution of the NBA’s Electoral Committee (ECNBA) ahead of the association’s national elections.
The NBA leadership alleged that Okutepa failed in his duty of candour to the court when obtaining ex parte orders affecting the electoral process.
However, Okutepa has vigorously denied any wrongdoing, describing the petition as an abuse of institutional power, a weaponization of the disciplinary process, and an attempt to intimidate counsel for taking on briefs against the association’s sitting leadership.
“The LPDC is not a political arena, and lawyers must not be victimized for exercising their constitutional right to represent clients in court,” Okutepa maintained, accusing the Bar’s leadership of extra-judicial interference and settling personal scores.
A Profession at a Crossroads
The public fallout between two of Nigeria’s most prominent legal figures has sent ripples throughout the legal community, raising serious questions about the future trajectory of the NBA.
Okutepa’s critique taps into broader, long-standing grievances expressed by senior legal practitioners and observers who argue that the NBA has become overly preoccupied with internal politics and administrative perks—what Okutepa previously termed the culture of “free meals” and political financial recklessness.
As the LPDC prepares to navigate the petition, Okutepa’s uncompromising stance highlights a growing crisis of trust within the Nigerian legal architecture—one where even its most distinguished members question whether the Bar still serves the cause of justice or merely the interests of its executive leadership.
