Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President Mr. Augustine Alegeh (SAN) has expressed concern over the lingering crisis in the Rivers State judiciary, vowing to find a lasting solution to it.
He said lawyers and litigants have suffered so much in the past six months, with court activities at a standstill.
The state and the National Judicial Council (NJC) are at loggerheads over the appointment of the Chief Judge.
Speaking after his inauguration as the 27th NBA President during the association’s annual general conference in Owerri, Imo State capital, Alegeh said he would ensure the crisis is resolved sooner than later.
Alegeh said: “I will personally intervene in Rivers State to ensure that the courts are open for lawyers to do their legitimate business.
“I want to make the NBA a responsible organisation, to cater essentially for the welfare of its members, to serve the nation better, to get involved much more deeply in election matters, to get involved in consumer protection, because I believe that the role of the NBA as a defender of human rights must also include the defence of economic rights and that is what I believe that the NBA must stand for.
”So, I must make an impact not just for our members and their welfare, but also for the society at large. I want every Nigerian to know that there is an association of lawyers in Nigeria, that they can benefit positively from and that can do something for them even though they are not members of the association.”
On the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) at the National Assembly, Alegeh said it should be passed into law for the country’s benefit.
“I don’t understand why people who have taken an oath of office to legislate would keep a bill through several legislative sessions. It is unconscionable. We will meet with the leadership of the National Assembly and whatever the problems are, we will make them known to Nigerians.
“Petroleum is our major source of revenue and the Petroleum Industry Bill is to protect that source of revenue for all of us. So, anybody that is toying with such a bill is toying with our collective destiny and we cannot sit down idly and be watch that happen.”
On what he intends to with the committees he set up, he said: “Well, when you set up a committee to guide you on something, you cannot jump the gun.”
He also spoke on the need for a reform of association’s electoral process.
“Electronic voting has the capability of offering suffrage. The committee will reach out to all stakeholders. It is not what I want that matters because I may want universal suffrage but what do all lawyers want? It is not going to be the decision of Mr. President alone. It is going to involve a constitutional amendment. We may have an emergency general meeting and all members who are entitled will vote on it and the result will be announced there and then,” he said.
Alegeh urged lawyers to show more commitment to NBA.
“I want every lawyer in the association to be responsible to the association. I want them to know that it is not going to be business as usual as it has been for sometime now.
“I expect all lawyers to work in their communities for the defence of the rule of law, for the promotion of human and economic rights of all Nigerians.
“I hold the strong view that fighting for human rights alone without economic rights is a failure on our part. We must fight for both of them, because a man who has not eaten food is more deprived of human rights,” he added.
