The Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN) has warned the Federal
Government and its agencies to ensure that its anti-corruption battle is
fought within the ambit of the rule of law devoid of abuse of the
fundamental rights of Nigerians.
Rising from its meeting at the Nigerian Law School in Lagos, the body,
which is the umbrella organization for all lawyers admitted to the Inner
Bar, emphasized its abhorrence to corruption but cautioned that efforts to
combat the malaise must not be corrupted by violation of human rights.
It is recalled that anti-corruption agencies – especially the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) – have been engaged in a cat-and-mouse
game with lawyers and their umbrella body, the Nigerian Bar Association
(NBA) over concerns that the anti-corruption battle is being derailed
through abuse of human rights and lack of due process.
In a communiqué jointly signed by Mr. Ebun Sofunde (SAN) and Mr. Seyi
Sowemimo (SAN), BOSAN said: “The Body condemns all forms of corruption and
money laundering by anyone, lawyers inclusive, and wholeheartedly supports
appropriate efforts of the Government aimed at curbing the menace of
corruption through thorough investigation and prosecution of offenders in
a fair trial that complies with due process of the law and ensures equal
access to justice by the prosecutor and the accused, while guaranteeing
the fundamental rights of all persons as enshrined in the Constitution of
the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).”
It stated that while it “welcomes the investigation of any lawyer, no
matter how highly placed,” due process must be followed to ensure that
rights of suspects are guaranteed, even as the body stated that its
members have “a duty and a responsibility to hold ourselves to the highest
professional and moral standards and are determined to continue to ensure
that those standards are maintained.”
The elite group of lawyers condemned “all acts of disrespect by any person
or agency of government, of valid orders of courts of competent
jurisdiction,” warning that disrespect or disregard of court orders “is a
step towards anarchy, which does not and cannot augur well for a
democratic society such as Nigeria.”
Turning to the assault on the judiciary and the integrity of judges, BOSAN
expressed concern on the “spate of disparaging remarks and attacks on the
Judiciary and judicial officers, often made in a generalized manner and
perhaps calculated to intimidate and infuse fear in Judges, who are sworn
to dispense justice without fear or favour,” adding: “It is the Body’s
view that it is unfair to the many honest and hard-working judges in our
country to be painted with the same brush as the few who have been found
wanting for misconduct or those who bring the office into disrepute and
violate their sacred oaths of office.” It also warned lawyers to desist
from joining the bandwagon of issuing “generalized statements of a
disparaging nature” against judges, describing such conduct as
“unprofessional.”
BOSAN also condemned what it called the “evolving practice of delays and
non-payment of judges and judicial workers their salaries and allowances,”
stating that this practice “severely undermines” the much cherished
independence of the judiciary.
Dwelling on the right of accused persons to counsel of their choice and
the duty of lawyers to defend their clients without fear or
discrimination, the Senior Advocates reiterated their “belief that the
harassment and intimidation of lawyers in any form in the course of their
legitimate work is unlawful and counter-productive in a democratic
society. Such actions are not only unlawful but antithetical to the rule
of law.
“Nothing is further from the truth that once a lawyer undertakes the
defence of an accused person, particularly a professional colleague, then
he must be in active support of the alleged crime or be working against
the anti-corruption crusade. The Nigerian Constitution, for good reason,
presumes a person innocent until proven guilty before a court of competent
jurisdiction following a fair hearing, with an opportunity to conduct his
defence by a counsel of his choice.”
BOSAN enjoined lawyers to continue to represent their clients “to the best
of their abilities, within the ambit of the law, and in compliance with
the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners 2007.”
It noted that the body “continues to endorse” the core values of
professional excellence, integrity, industry, professional ethics, and
leadership by example as its overarching principles, adding that it “has
taken appropriate measures to ensure that the rank is not brought to
disrepute as a whole by the actions of those adjudged of wrong-doing.”
The body also reiterated the position of the NBA’s National Executive
Committee (NEC) on NBA’s anti-corruption and anti-money laundering stance
as well as its stand on the rule of law as contained in the NBA Communiqué
issued at the end of its recent NEC meeting at Jos, Plateau State.