It was Dwight Eisenhower who said: “The qualities of a great man are ‘vision, integrity, courage, understanding, the power of articulation, and profundity of character.’ As Linda Rose Bala seeks the position of 1st Vice President in the forthcoming national elections of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), electing her into that office will further raise the bar for the NBA particularly as she epitomises the words of that statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States.
Mrs. Linda Rose Bala known for her dexterity, and well-remembered for her unimpeachable handling of the bar’s finances as a former Treasurer, was born on 5th December 1958. She hails from Kagoro in Kaura Local Government Area of Kaduna state.
Bala attended the College of Advanced Studies, Zaria, and became the Vice President of the Students’ Union under the Presidency of Hon. Justice Ishaq Bello (Rtd), who went on to become the Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory. Linda Rose Bala holds a Diploma in Accounting from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and was also a University parliamentarian. In 1992, she obtained her LL. B (Hons) from ABU, Zaria and was called to the bar on the 15th day of December 1993. At the law school, she was appointed as one of the Group leaders by the Director of the NLS Lagos who at the time was Mr. Emmanuel Babatunde Abiodun Ibironke, SAN (of blessed memory), and was saddled with the responsibilities of distributing the synopsis and dissemination of information among others.
Upon admission to the Bar, she registered as an active member of the Bauchi branch of the NBA. Her passion for the Bar got her co-opted into the Committee of Chairmen & secretaries who were saddled with the responsibility of traveling around Nigeria to ensure that the lingering issues arising from the 1992 NBA crisis were resolved and the NBA national election was successfully held in 1998. As a member of this Committee, she was a tireless and committed worker and with other members of the team, worked zealously to convince members of the Bar on all divides to come back to the table, reunite and revive the NBA. For her commitment, while the Committee worked, Mrs. Linda Bala was nicknamed the “Bridge builder”. The Committee’s work was successful as all aggrieved parties agreed to put all differences aside to organize elections for the Bar.
In 1997 Mrs. Linda Bala relocated to Zaria and timeously sensitized the Branch on the activities of the committee of Chairmen & secretaries and the resolve of members to hold elections. Indeed, elections were organized in 1998 and new national executives emerged to lead the revived NBA. NBA Zaria Branch effectively participated in the 1998 elections. In 1998, Mrs. Bala was elected the Vice Chairman of the NBA, Zaria Branch.
In 2002, she filed her nomination forms preparatory to contesting for the office of the National Treasurer and was to run against her senior, Richard Ogbeche Esq., but was impressed upon to step aside for him and as a consummate Barman, she gladly did. Immediately after Senior Richard Ogbeche served out his term as Treasurer, in 2004, she was returned unopposed as National Treasurer, an office she held from 2004-2006. She has been a member of the National Executive Committee (now Council) of the NBA from 2000 to date. She was a Council of Legal Education member from 2008 to 2010. She also served as a member of the Disciplinary Committee of the NBA (North West) from 2010 to 2012. Mrs. Bala was a council member of the NBA Women Forum (NBAWF) from 2010 to 2012. She has been a member of the NBA election working group and has served as a prosecutor with the Disciplinary Committee by making several positive inputs. She was the ELCOM Chairperson for the FIDA Elections in her branch Zaria in December 2021.
A full-time Legal Practitioner, Mrs. Bala is the Principal Partner of Linda R. Bala & Co., situated at No.7 Park Road, Zaria. She once had a branch office in Jos but had to close it down because of the incessant crises and for the safety of her staff. She has several judgements to her credit. She is a member of the Int’l Bar Association (IBA) and has attended several conferences in Nigeria & abroad.
A woman full of energy and verve, Mrs. Bala who has concluded many pro bono human rights cases is passionate about Human Rights Protection. From her antecedents, promoting the human rights of members of the bar and Nigerian citizens is her priority.
She is happily married to Prof. E. J. Bala and blessed with three children.
