Mrs. Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, has emerged as president after completion of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) 2026 national officers’ election.
Chairman of the Electoral Committee of the NBA, Chief Aham Ejelam, SAN, on Sunday announced her as the winner of the presidential seat, despite internal wranglings and an initial technical glitch,
Ejelam, SAN, declared that Mrs. Badejo-Okusanya polled a total of 12,317 votes, representing 47.18 percent, to defeat her closest challenger, Lateef Akangbe, SAN, who garnered 7,934 votes, representing 30.39 percent of the total votes cast.
The third candidate for the presidential election, Aare Olumuyiwa Akinboro, SAN, polled 5,855 votes, representing 22.43 percent, to emerge third in the contest.
The Electoral Committee Chairman disclosed that a total of 26,106 votes were recorded for the highly disputed presidential election.
With her victory, Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, will become the 33rd President of the legal association, successfully re-enacting a 34-year-old history as the second female to lead the NBA since its formation in 1933.
Meanwhile, Mr. Afam Okeke was elected General Secretary of the legal body, having polled a total of 8,478 votes to defeat his opponents.
All the elected officials will be in office for a two-year period spanning 2026 to 2028.
Although the President-elect, Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, was absent when the results of the election were announced at the NBA headquarters in Abuja, a member of her campaign team, Mr. Aminu Gadanya, SAN, who revealed that she had a flight delay, declared her resolve to extend a “handshake of friendship” to all the aggrieved candidates.
In his remarks after the results were announced, the outgoing President of the NBA, Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN, noted that the election faced several challenges, including a cyberattack that almost derailed the electoral process.
(Ripples)