LOAN petitions NBA President over Kano Branch election dispute

The Law Officers Association of Nigeria (LOAN), Kano State Branch, has petitioned the National President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) over the recently concluded Kano Branch elections.

The association is protesting what it described as “deliberate disobedience” of a zonal appeal directive by the branch’s electoral umpire.

In a petition issued by LOAN officials and obtained on Tuesday, they accused the Kano Branch Election Committee (ELCOM) of allegedly disenfranchising its members during the polls, despite a clear directive from the NBA Branch Elections Appeals Committee (Northern Zone).

The dispute began prior to the elections when the Kano Branch ELCOM disqualified 15 LOAN members from voting. ELCOM justified its action on the grounds that some of the affected lawyers had failed to pay either their branch subscription dues, their branch welfare dues, or both, for the mandatory two-year period.

Dissatisfied with the disqualification, LOAN approached the Northern Zone Appeals Committee. On June 15, 2026, the appellate body, chaired by Abdul Atadoga Ibrahim, SAN, with Gloria Okoduwa serving as Secretary, ruled in favour of the law officers, stating: “The appellant cannot be disqualified to vote due to welfare dues.”

The Appeal Committee did not give reasons for its verdict, nor did it cite any authority in arriving at the decision. It was also silent on those who had not paid their branch subscription dues.

The appellate committee subsequently directed ELCOM to immediately update the voters’ register to include the omitted names.

According to the petition, signed by LOAN Kano Branch Chairman, Abdullah Aminu Shams, and Secretary, Safiya Yalwati Yahaya, ELCOM acknowledged receipt of the appellate judgment but allegedly chose to ignore it.

The petition stated that ELCOM “deliberately declined to implement the directive, refused to include our members on the voters’ register, denied them accreditation, and prevented them from voting.”

LOAN argued that ignoring the directive “amounts to a blatant disregard of the authority of a duly constituted appellate body established under the NBA electoral framework,” warning that such actions threaten the democratic foundations and integrity of the entire Bar Association.

LOAN is now calling on the NBA National President to intervene and restore order. The association’s demands include a formal investigation into the conduct of the Kano ELCOM; an official declaration that the exclusion of its members was unlawful; disciplinary action against the electoral officials; and a legal determination on whether the alleged disenfranchisement invalidates the outcome of the concluded election.

The petition has been copied to the Chairman of the NBA Branch Elections Appeals Committee (North) and the Chairman of the NBA Kano Branch, Justice Watch reported.

When reached for comment regarding the petition, the Secretary of the Kano ELCOM, Yusuf Abdulsalam, dismissed the outcry using a Latin legal maxim.

“Non cuilibet de vulgo respondemus,” Abdulsalam stated, which loosely translates to “We do not reply to just anyone from the crowd.”

He added: “We are lawyers here and we behave with decorum. This is an appeal, and we shall respond to it if we are officially served with it by the Appeal Committee. We have procedure for everything. It is a profession of organised people.”