JUST IN: Badejo-Okusanya wins NBA presidential election

Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, a senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN) has been elected as the 33rd President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), emerging victorious in the association’s 2026 national officers’ election.

The results were announced on Sunday at the NBA National Secretariat in Abuja by the Chairman of the Electoral Committee of the NBA (ECNBA), Mr. Aham Ejelam, SAN, following the conclusion of the election, which experienced delays due to technical challenges and a cyberattack.

According to Ejelam, Badejo-Okusanya secured 12,317 votes, representing 47.18 per cent of the total votes cast, defeating her closest rival, Mr. Lateef Akangbe, SAN, who garnered 7,934 votes (30.39 per cent). The third candidate, Mr. Olumuyiwa Akinboro, SAN, polled 5,855 votes (22.43 per cent).

A total of 26,106 votes were recorded in the election.

With this victory, Badejo-Okusanya will serve a two-year term from 2026 to 2028. She also makes history as the second female president of the association, following Mrs. Priscilla Kuye, who led the NBA between 1991 and 1992.

Other national officers elected include Mr. Oghenero Okoro as First Vice-President with 11,024 votes; Mr. Afam Okeke as General Secretary with 8,478 votes; Mrs. Aghogho Gladys as Assistant General Secretary with 14,312 votes; and Mrs. Chinelo Audrey Ofoegbunam as Welfare Secretary with 14,911 votes.

Badejo-Okusanya was not present at the announcement of the results. A member of her campaign team, Mr. Aminu Gadanya, SAN, attributed her absence to a flight delay, noting that the president-elect remains committed to fostering unity within the association.

He said she is prepared to extend a “handshake of friendship” to her opponents in the interest of cohesion and collective progress.

Speaking after the announcement, the outgoing NBA President, Mr. Afam Osigwe, SAN, revealed that the election faced significant challenges, including a cyberattack that forced the electoral committee to rebuild and migrate its ICT system to a more secure server.

“Our colleagues planned to truncate the election, but we stood firm. Every effort to derail the process failed,” he said, describing the period as a trying time for the association.

Osigwe urged the newly elected leadership to be magnanimous in victory and called on those who were unsuccessful to support the new administration.

“To those who won, be magnanimous in victory; to those who lost, there is always another day. The unity of the Bar cannot be negotiated,” he stated.

He further disclosed that the Electoral Committee would undertake a comprehensive review of the election process, particularly the technical challenges encountered, in order to strengthen future elections and enhance the association’s cybersecurity framework.