The Chairman of Nigeria’s Body of Benchers (BoB), Asiwaju A.S. Awomolo, SAN has asked Mr. Augustine Alegeh, a fellow Bencher and an ex-President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to explain why he forcefully barged into the committee room and disrupted the Benchers Appointment Committee meeting.
In a 24th May, 2024 letter addressed to Alegeh, Awomolo alleged “you forcefully barged into the meeting room, and occupied the chair meant for Yusuf Ali, SAN, the Chairman, who was on zoom. The Chairman was forced out of the meeting by your conduct and the rowdy atmosphere of the meeting venue.”
Read the full text of of the letter.
BODY-OF-BENCHERS-NIGERIA-10.pdf2_It would be recalled that on 27 May, 2024, a Federal High Court in Lagos made an interim order of restraining the Chairman, Body of Benchers (BoB) Asiwaju A.S. Awomolo, SAN from removing Mr. Augustine Alegheh , SAN, a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) or interferring with his duties as Chairman of the Body of Benchers appointment Committee.
The Court which held that nothing must be done to alter this appointment during his tenure from 28 March 2024 to 27 March 2027 pending the determination of the motion on notice for interlocutory injunction however refrained from the prayer that Awomolo be restrained from acting as “Chairman of the Body of Benchers pending the hearing and determination of the Motion on Notice for Interlocutory injunction.”
Listed as defendants in the suit are: Chief Adeboyega Solomon Awomolo, SAN, 1st Defendant and Body of Benchers, 2nd Defendant.
Alegeh who in the Origination Summons asked the court to determine “Whether having regards to the Body of Benchers Regulations, 2024, the 1st Defendant can unilaterally and in breach of the Regulations, alter and rename the Standing Committees of the 2nd Defendant listed and set out in Regulation I I (3) of the Body of Benchers Regulations 2024′, also made the following allegations:
“The 1st Defendant had stated severally that he is not bound by the Regulations of the 2nd Defendant and will neither respect and/or implement the aforesaid Regulations as the Chairman of the Body of
Benchers;
“The 1st Defendant has been accused of forgery, criminal misrepresentation, impersonation and fraud by the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria [BOSAN], which said allegations have ridiculed, brought dishonor, disrepute and odium to the revered Office of Chairman of the Body of Benchers and may likely lead to disciplinary measures against the 1st Defendant….
” On 29th April, 2024, an email was forwarded to all Benchers by the 2nd Defendant’s Secretary on the instructions of the 1st Defendant notifying all Benchers of the 1st Defendant’s unilateral and unlawful reconstitution of the membership of the 2nd Defendant’s Standing Committees and the shortening and/or reduction of the tenure of office of the Committee Members from three (3) years to two (2) years
in flagrant breach and violation of the Benchers Regulation. A copy of the aforesaid email dated 29th April, 2024 issued on the instructions of the 1st Defendant is pleaded and herewith exhibited as EXHIBIT P3.
“In the aforesaid email under reference, the 1st Defendant unilaterally and maliciously purported to remove me as Chairman of the Appointment Committee of the 2nd Defendant before the expiration of the term of three [3] years that I was appointed to serve.
” I wrote to the Secretary of the 2nd Defendant via email, drawing his attention to the obvious illegality of the 1st Defendant’s actions and the apparent breach of the Benchers Regulations. A copy of my Letter dated 2nd May, 2024 is pleaded and herewith attached as EXHIBIT P4.
” When I did not receive any response from the 2nd Defendant’s Secretary regarding my email, I forwarded the aforesaid email directly to the 1st Defendant for his attention and immediate action.
“When I still did not receive any response from the 1st Defendant to my email, on I 0th day of May, 2024, I sent a copy of my letter in reply to all the Benchers copied in the 2nd Defendant’s email of 29th April, 2024.
“Following my email of I 0th May, 2024, the 1st Defendant sent a private response to me via email stating that he just read my email and was unaware of my appointment as Chairman of the Appointment Committee of the 2nd Defendant, but rather sought my understanding and acceptance of his unilateral, unlawful and illegal decision on the matter. A copy of the 1st Defendant’s email to me dated I 0th May,
2024 is pleaded and herewith attached as EXHIBIT PS.
“The 1st Defendant, in his aforesaid email response to me, also stated that he had unilaterally and unlawfully created an ‘Executive Committee for the Body of Benchers’ which he claimed had approved all the projects and programs of his administration.
“That I replied the 1st Defendant’s email drawing his attention to his apparent breach of the Benchers Regulations, with particular emphasis on the creation of an ‘Executive Committee’ for the Body outside the contemplation of the Benchers Regulation. A copy of my email to the 1st Defendant dated I 3th May, 2024 is pleaded and herewith exhibited as EXHIBIT P6.
“On Wednesday I 5th May, 2024, the 1st Defendant sent me a text message inviting me for a meeting to discuss the matter. I responded via WhatsApp and we agreed to meet at his office at 10am on Thursday, 16th May, 2024. I visited the 1st Defendant’s Office for the meeting, in the company of my Learned Brother Silk and Life Bencher, Joe Agi SAN and left at about I I am after the 1st Defendant failed to
turn up for the meeting he fixed in his own office. The 1st Defendant was well aware that I moved my flight from 8.40 am to I pm to enable me meet with him to resolve the matter.
“Surprisingly, shortly after I left the 1st Defendant’s Office, I received a call from the 1st Defendant who said that he was now in his Office and that he would discuss the matter with me over the phone.
“That Immediately the 1st Defendant called me I activated my speakerphone so that Joe Agi, SAN who was with me in the same vehicle would be fully aware of all our discussions. The 1st Defendant informed me over the phone to the hearing of Joe Agi, SAN as follows:
a) That Honourable Justice Mary Odili DSC Rtd.] did not inform him that I had been appointed the Chairman of the 2nd Defendant’s Appointment Committee and consequently my appointment was not binding on him.
b) That as Vice Chairman to Honourable Justice Mary Odili DSC Rtd.], he was informed of all appointments made by the latter. Hence, my appointment made during the tenure of Honourable Justice Mary Odili DSC Rtd.] without his knowledge, was null and void as he was the center of power at the material time.
c) That he had personally interviewed all the people who he appointed as Chairmen of the various Committees and selected them on the basis of their commitment to help him achieve his projects and programs during his one [I] year tenure and had assigned them to the Committees they had
indicated an interest in.
d) That he is not bound by the Benchers Regulations and that it is his decisions as Chairman that is important, not the Benchers Regulations.
e) That in his thirty [32] years as a member of the 2nd Defendant, no member of the 2nd Defendant had challenged any decision or action of a Chairman of the 2nd Defendant and I should do whatever I wanted but his decision cannot be challenged.
“That my suggestion to the 1st Defendant that he is bound by the Benchers Regulations and the rule of law infuriated the 1st Defendant and he got very angry on the phone.
“GENESIS OF 15t DEFENDANT’S MALICE TOWARDS THE PLAINTIFF
“That I met the 1st Defendant in the course of conducting campaigns for election as President of the Nigerian Bar Association.
“That I told the 1st Defendant that I was a son of a Policeman who served the Force meritoriously for 35 years and retired in 1985.
“That the 1st Defendant told me that he was a former Policeman but did not tell me how long he served in the Police Force and/or the circumstances that led to his exit from the Police Force.
“That when I became the President of the NBA in 2014, the 1st Defendant approached me and requested me to recognize him as a Past President of the NBA on the basis of his claim that during the period of interregnum of the Bar in 1991, he was the Chairman of the Committee of Chairmen that presided over the affairs of the Bar during the period of Interregnum.
“I informed the 1st Defendant that I would consult with Past Presidents and Bar Leaders over the issue and that if his claim was correct, I would present the issue before the NBA National Executive Committee [NEC] for its decision on the matter.
” Upon consultation with Past Presidents and Bar Leaders, I discovered that the 1st Defendant was not a Chairman of any branch of the NBA at the time. That the Bar could not have had a Past President during the period of Interregnum occasioned by a dispute over elections.
“I informed the 1st Defendant of the result of my findings and he was clearly displeased with the outcome as he told me it his life ambition to be recognized as a Past President of the NBA
“In the heat of campaigns for the NBA Presidency in 2020, I was yet again approached by the 1st Defendant who informed me that he would deliver a political masterstroke which will guarantee Olumide Akpata’s victory at the Polls.
“That I dismissed his statement at the material time as I considered him to be an elder of the “Egbe Amofin” group of the NBA which had already endorsed Dele Adesina, SAN as their preferred candidate in the elections.
“That I told the 1st Defendant of Dele Adesina SAN’s endorsement by Egbe Amofin but he dismissed it as he stated that he was not in support of Dele Adesina, SAN’s candidacy as Dele Adesina, SAN was Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN’s stooge and would be unable to perform creditably in Office.
“That a few weeks to the conduct of the NBA elections, the 1st Defendant authored a letter in which he claimed that the Presidency of the NBA be ceded and reserved exclusively for Senior Advocates of Nigeria. A copy of the 1st Defendant’s aforesaid letter is pleaded and herewith exhibited as EXHIBIT P7.
“That following Olumide Akpata’s emergence as the President of the NBA, the 1st Defendant once again approached me to convince Olumide Akpata to recognize him as a Past President of the NBA He stated that his letter according to him, was the master stroke that gave Olumide Akpata victory at the Polls and that I should put pressure on Olumide Akpata to grant his request. He stated that he believed Olu Akpata would accede to my request as he was very close to me.
“That I immediately told the 1st Defendant that I could not raise such a request with Mr. Olu Akpata for the same reasons I declined to accede to his request during my tenure of office as NBA President between 2014 and 2016. The 1st Defendant was visibly displeased and unhappy with my position and stated that I had betrayed him a second time.
“I firmly believe that the above-mentioned facts collectively constitute the basis for the malice and bad faith being exhibited by the 1st Defendant against me and which has led to 1st Defendant’s unlawful and illegal move to remove me as Chairman of the 2nd Defendant’s Appointment Committee…”
Click here to download the originating summons, motion and all.
