Badejo-Okusanya pledges inclusive leadership after emerging 33rd NBA president

Newly elected President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mrs Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, has pledged to lead the association with integrity, humility and accountability, promising to build a Bar that works for every lawyer.

Badejo-Okusanya, who emerged as the 33rd president of the NBA after defeating two other candidates in the association’s 2026 national election, made the pledge in a statement issued shortly after her victory.

The Chairman of the Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (ECNBA), Aham Ejelam, SAN, announced the results at the NBA National Secretariat in Abuja on Sunday, saying Badejo-Okusanya polled 12,317 votes, representing 47.18 per cent of the total votes cast, to defeat Lateef Akangbe, SAN, who secured 7,934 votes, while Olumuyiwa Akinboro, SAN, garnered 5,855 votes.

A total of 26,106 votes were cast in the election, which was delayed by technical challenges and a cyberattack.

With the victory, Badejo-Okusanya will serve a two-year term from 2026 to 2028 and becomes only the second woman to lead the NBA after Priscilla Kuye, who served as president between 1991 and 1992.

In her acceptance statement titled “A BBOLD Message of Gratitude,” the president-elect thanked members of the association for their confidence in her leadership.

“Today, I am filled with profound gratitude and a deep sense of responsibility. Thank you to the members of the Nigerian Bar Association for the confidence you have reposed in me by electing me as your President. I am deeply humbled by your trust,” she said.

Describing her victory as a collective one, Badejo-Okusanya said, “This victory belongs to all of us who believe in A BOLDER BAR THAT WORKS FOR EVERYONE. Thank you to every member who supported this vision, to my fellow contestants for enriching our democratic process, and to every colleague who participated in this election.”

She also expressed appreciation to members of her campaign organisation, volunteers, supporters, family and mentors for their support throughout the electioneering process.

Declaring that the campaign had ended, the senior advocate said attention would now shift to delivering on her promises.

“The campaign is over. The work begins now. I pledge to serve every member of the Nigerian Bar Association with integrity, humility, courage, and accountability. Together, we will build an NBA where lawyers can earn better, live better, and practise better,” she stated.

Congratulatory messages also poured in following her emergence, with Professor of Law and Vice-Chancellor of Protestant University of Rwanda, Olu Ojedokun, commending the conduct of her campaign.

“Today I congratulate Mrs Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, the President-Elect of the Nigerian Bar Association who ran a textbook operation from the start (ab initio), never focusing on personalities, staying focused and doing her homework,” Ojedokun said.

He added that her campaign had demonstrated that “if you do not denigrate your opponents but lift yourself up, you can win,” while noting that she now faced “an enormous challenge of how to address the flaws in our electoral machinery.”

Speaking after the announcement of the results, outgoing NBA President, Afam Osigwe, SAN, revealed that the election survived attempts to undermine the process, including a cyberattack that forced the electoral committee to rebuild and migrate its ICT infrastructure to a more secure server.

“Our colleagues planned to truncate the election, but we stood firm. Every effort to derail this process failed. This is a trying time for the Bar,” Osigwe said.

He urged the newly elected officers to be magnanimous in victory and appealed to unsuccessful candidates to support the incoming leadership.

“To those who won, be magnanimous in victory; for those who lost, there is always another day. The cyberattack shows that we must do more in data protection,” he said.

Osigwe added that the electoral committee would undertake a comprehensive review of the election to strengthen future polls and improve the association’s cybersecurity and electoral integrity.

Other officers elected during the exercise include Oghenero Okoro as First Vice-President, Afam Okeke as General Secretary, Aghogho Gladys as Assistant General Secretary and Chinelo Audrey Ofoegbunam as Welfare Secretary.