The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) executives are not chess players. Had they possessed the competence to anticipate an opponent’s moves, they would have been careful not to mess around with Rivers State, a state so lately pugnacious that everyone appears eager to enter into combat. Fools rush in where angels fear to tread, it is said. But it was precisely that combustive state that NBA rushed in to receive a N300m gift it claimed had no strings attached. Such benevolence. But who gives such amount to anyone without strings attached? Governor Siminalayi Fubara, it seemed. Yes, the same governor embroiled in internecine warfare with his party leaders and mentors.
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NBA is arguably the preeminent bar association in Africa. But, like many other professional associations in Nigeria, it is not averse to receiving poisoned chalices and drinking hemlock. The Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) does it; the Guild of Editors does it; and a number of others. Mendicant, beggarly, unprofessional, entitled, and unmoored, they easily betray their code of ethics and collect all kinds of Greek gifts, selling their consciences and mortgaging their souls. Since nearly every association collects gifts, the NBA, which is supposed to be the leading and guiding conscience of the nation, has also had a history of collecting things. Then they wax lyrical in favour of their benefactors, dissembling over grave national issues such as state of emergency, and behaving like hired guns.
In short, the NBA has no business receiving gifts from anyone. If they realise how important their role in nation-building is, if they recognise how weighty their voice should be, and if they consider the examples and principles they must set for future generations, they would not equivocate over bribes and hosting rights. They should simply return the ‘gift’ to Rivers State and save themselves from a long-drawn controversy and litigation they cannot hope to win. Their hands have been caught in the cookie jar; it is time to show remorse, apologise to the country for imbibing a lousy culture, and quickly pay penance. The controversy is unworthy of them. Now, who knows what they have done in Enugu where they have taken their annual general meeting? Whoring again?
