Oyo Court Halts NBA 2026 Elections, Bars Electoral Committee from Functioning
The Oyo State High Court in Ibadan has issued an interim injunction halting all steps toward the conduct of the Nigerian Bar Association’s (NBA) 2026 National Officers’ Election.
Justice G. A. Opayinka, ruling on an ex parte application filed by four lawyers, restrained the NBA leadership and members of the Electoral Committee of the NBA (ECNBA) from parading themselves as officials or taking any action in furtherance of the election until the hearing of a motion for interlocutory injunction.
The suit, marked I/221/2026, was filed by Ibrahim Lawal, Raymond Oki, Omotan Olusola Ogunmodede, and Chief Gabriel Ojo Adekunle Ijalana. The defendants include NBA President Afam Osigwe (SAN), the Incorporated Trustees of the NBA, the Body of Benchers, the Attorney‑General of the Federation (as Chairman of the General Council of the Bar), and several senior lawyers.
Justice Opayinka’s order specifically restrains the NBA President and other defendants from composing, supervising, or interfering in any way with the ECNBA or the election process. The matter was adjourned to March 12, 2026 for hearing of the motion on notice.
This ruling is the second judicial intervention in the NBA’s electoral process within two weeks. On February 24, 2026, another judge of the same court granted an interim injunction in Suit No. I/205/2026 filed by the Incorporated Trustees of Egbe Amofin O’odua. That earlier order barred the NBA from recognising or processing nominations outside the Yoruba lawyers’ consensus candidate arrangement for the presidency.
Together, the two rulings have thrown the NBA’s 2026 election timetable into uncertainty, suspending both the nomination process and the activities of the electoral committee.
The litigation comes amid wider controversy within the Association. Allegations of undisclosed financial disbursements during an official engagement in Maiduguri, Borno State, have divided opinion among senior lawyers. Critics argue that the alleged acceptance and distribution of foreign‑denominated funds breach NBA ethical rules requiring disclosure and remittance of gifts, while supporters of the NBA President insist no wrongdoing has been proven.
The disputes have been further inflamed by remarks attributed to the NBA President on the integrity of the judiciary, which some senior lawyers described as sweeping and injudicious.
With hearings scheduled for March 10 (Egbe Amofin suit) and March 12 (ECNBA suit), the fate of the 2026 NBA elections remains in the balance.
