ENDORSEMENT OF LATEEF OMOYEMI AKANGBE, SAN, FOR THE OFFICE OF PRESIDENT OF THE NIGERIAN BAR ASSOCIATION

Having contested and having seen, from the inside, what the office requires - the clarity of thought, the discipline of execution, the independence of mind, and the sheer stamina to serve almost 200,000 lawyers across over 128 branches - I believe I am in a position to assess, with a candour that only experience permits, who among the current candidates possesses the capacity to lead this Association through its present challenges and into a stronger future.

That person, in my considered opinion, is Lateef Omoyemi Akangbe, SAN.

I have had the privilege of working closely with Yemi over the years. When I served as Chairman of the NBA Lagos Branch Continuing Legal Education and Mentorship Committee, Yemi was a member of the Committee and made invaluable contributions to its work. I also worked closely with him during his tenure as Chairman of the NBA Lagos Branch, serving as a co-opted member of his Executive Committee and as Chairman of the Branch's Continuing Professional Development Committee.

What distinguished Yemi's leadership was his clarity of vision, disciplined execution, and unwavering commitment to service. From the outset of his administration, he established clear timelines for achieving his objectives and remained focused on delivering measurable results. Despite the unprecedented challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the uncertainty that accompanied it, he ensured that the Branch remained active by introducing virtual meetings and other innovative engagement platforms. He also mobilised public-spirited members of the Branch to fund a palliative programme through which food supplies and financial assistance were provided to members who required support during that difficult period.

Within his first 100 days in office, Yemi had established an affordable health insurance scheme for members, forged strategic partnerships with several professional bodies to provide training and certification opportunities for lawyers, secured sponsorship for 100 members of the Branch to obtain Associateship of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb), and established the Branch's Remuneration Committee, among several other impactful initiatives.

That record matters because the presidency of the NBA is not a learning opportunity. It is a two-year mandate with no room for on-the-job training. The Association needs a president who has already demonstrated, at the institutional level, that he can build systems, deliver programmes, manage crises, and produce results within defined timelines. There are candidates in this election who speak compellingly about what they will do. Yemi is the candidate who has already done it. The difference between a vision and a track record is the difference between a promise and a receipt. Yemi Akangbe comes with receipts.

I have also studied Yemi's manifesto for the national presidency with care. His digital transformation agenda, anchored in the NBA One platform and the e-Remuneration system, reflects the same discipline and practicality that characterised his Branch administration. These are not abstract aspirations. They are phased, costed, and built on existing NBA infrastructure. His commitments on the living wage for young lawyers, the re-introduction of the access-to-finance scheme, the health insurance expansion, and the protection of lawyers' livelihoods against professional encroachment are drawn from the same philosophy that produced the Branch health insurance scheme and the CIArb sponsorships: that the welfare of members is not a talking point but a deliverable. I am satisfied that the manifesto is serious, implementable, and grounded in the real needs of Nigerian lawyers.

It is for these reasons - his demonstrable capacity, his visionary but practical leadership, his unblemished record of service, and the strength and seriousness of his programme for the national Association - that I wholeheartedly endorse Lateef Omoyemi Akangbe for the office of President of the Nigerian Bar Association in the 2026 elections.

I put my name behind his because I have seen what he builds when given responsibility. I trust him to build the Bar that every Nigerian lawyer deserves.

Tobenna Erojikwe