Olumuyiwa Akinboro, SAN, former General Secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association and presidential candidate in the recently concluded NBA National Officers’ Election, has called on the DSS, EFCC, and other relevant agencies to investigate the conduct of the election.
In a 41‑page statement, Akinboro described the exercise as a “sham,” insisting that the process violated the NBA Constitution. He declined to petition the NBA Appeals Committee, arguing that “there has to first be an election known to the NBA Constitution before a petition can arise.”
He alleged irregularities including migration between voting portals, failure to conduct integrity tests, and possible breaches of the Cybercrime Act and Data Protection Act.
“Immediately the election was migrated to a different portal, it became a different election altogether that would require strict compliance with the step-by-step requirements as provided in our constitution including sending the trial messages at least 21 days to the election to confirm its functionality and subjecting same to necessary integrity test as required by the NBA Constitution.
“I therefore do not deem it necessary to legitimize the Appeal Committee whose jurisdiction has not crystalized.”
Aside from calling for “immediate independent forensic audit of the entire electoral process,” Akinboro also called for “A comprehensive investigation by the appropriate security and law enforcement agencies into possible violation of the provisions of the Cyber Crime Act, the Data Protection Act and all other relevant laws in the conduct of the election.”
He therefore demanded:
MY CALL TO THE BAR
It is in the light of all the issues raised above that I call for the following:
Immediate independent forensic audit of the entire electoral process from beginning to end to be conducted by a reputable audit firm, such as KPMG, Deloitte or PWC with the mandate to determine inter alia:
a. The veracity of the alleged cyberattack on the e-voting platform.
b. Compliance with guidelines issued for the conduct of the election.
c. The circumstances surrounding the use of multiple links during the election.
d. Whether persons not qualified to vote participated in the elections.
e. The number of eligible voters that requested for but did not receive OTP.
f. Reason for the intermittent migration from one portal to another.
g. Whether votes recorded represent actual votes received.
h. The identity, qualification and engagements of all service providers.
i. Whether other persons such as the ICT Department of the NBA had administrative access to the portal.
j. The reason for relocating the election monitoring venue from the ECNBA office to the NBA National Secretariat.
A comprehensive investigation by the appropriate security and law enforcement agencies into possible violation of the provisions of the Cyber Crime Act, the Data Protection Act and all other relevant laws in the conduct of the election.
It is on record that the NBA President confirmed that the election will be monitored by observers including the European Union (EU), United States of America, United Kingdom, Yiaga Africa, DSS, INEC, EFCC and others. I therefore call on the NBA leadership to immediately make public, Observers reports, Interim Reports or otherwise.
Immediate reconstitution of the ECNBA to conduct a fresh National Officers’ Election in accordance with the provisions of the NBA Constitution.
An urgent meeting of all the stakeholders including the Body of Benchers, the General Council of the Bar, Past Presidents of the Nigerian Bar Association and Past General Secretaries of the Nigerian Bar Association to resolve all the issues that have arisen in relation to the purported election in view of the deepening discontent within the NBA over the capture and manipulation of the Association’s electoral process and machinery by few individuals who have constituted themselves into a cabal.
Concluding, he wrote: “It is my utmost hope that the foregoing calls will receive your urgent and positive attention and that appropriate redress will be provided by your esteemed bodies and offices. Failing this, I shall be constrained to explore other legal recourse as may be available to me.”
In a post on his “X” handle, Akinboro wrote:
Today, I formally requested an independent forensic audit of the 2026 NBA National Officers’ Election and urged the relevant institutions to address the serious constitutional, procedural and technological concerns raised in my petition.
This is bigger than any individual or election. It is about protecting the credibility of our Association and strengthening confidence in our democratic processes.
I encourage colleagues to read the report and engage with its contents objectively.
The integrity of the Bar must always come first.
Akinboro had told newsmen in an interview yesterday that he may challenge the outcome of the election in court.
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