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By Lawrence Agbo
Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, has emerged as the 33rd President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), defeating fellow senior lawyers Lateef Akangbe, SAN, and Olumuyiwa Akinboro, SAN, in the association’s 2026 national election.
The outcome of the poll was announced on Sunday at the NBA National Secretariat in Abuja by the Chairman of the Electoral Committee of the NBA (ECNBA), Aham Ejelam, SAN, following an election that was delayed by technical issues and an attempted cyberattack.
Badejo-Okusanya secured 12,317 votes, representing 47.18 per cent of the total ballots cast, ahead of Akangbe, who received 7,934 votes (30.39 per cent), while Akinboro polled 5,855 votes (22.43 per cent). A total of 26,106 lawyers participated in the election.
Her victory makes her only the second woman to lead the NBA, more than three decades after Priscilla Kuye became the association’s first female president in 1991. Badejo-Okusanya will serve a two-year tenure from 2026 to 2028.
Other officials elected into the NBA National Executive Committee 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.
Although the president-elect was absent during the declaration of results due to a delayed flight, a member of her campaign team, Aminu Gadanya, SAN, said she remained committed to fostering unity within the legal profession.
According to him, Badejo-Okusanya intends to extend a “handshake of friendship” to all contestants and work with every member of the Bar regardless of the outcome of the election.
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Reacting to the successful conclusion of the poll, outgoing NBA President Afam Osigwe, SAN, disclosed that the electoral process survived deliberate attempts to sabotage it through a cyberattack.
“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 revealed that the Electoral Committee had to rebuild and migrate its ICT infrastructure to a more secure server before the election could be concluded.
Calling for reconciliation, Osigwe urged both winners and unsuccessful candidates to put the contest behind them and work together for the advancement of the legal profession.
“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.
“The unity of the Bar cannot and should never be negotiated. Winners should extend the hand of fellowship to those who lost and have a united front to move the Bar forward,” he added.
Osigwe further disclosed that the Electoral Committee would undertake a comprehensive review of the election, particularly the technical challenges encountered, with a view to strengthening the association’s electoral process and cybersecurity ahead of future polls.
