Ugochukwu Iwuchukwu
The Nigeria Bar Association, NBA, Port Harcourt Branch says it will participate in the 2020 NBA Conference despite threats by some chapters to pull out after the withdrawal of invitation of Governor of Kaduna State Nasir El-Rufai.
The NBA had last week withdrawn the invitation extended to El-Rufai to speak as a Guest at the 2020 NBA Conference
The Chairman of NBA Port Harcourt Branch, PRINCE NYEKWERE said they will stand by the decision of the National Executive of Committee NEC of NBA on the issue of withdrawal of El-Rufai’s invitation.
He told our correspondent that the NEC’s decision is final.
”NBA Port Harcourt will participate in the virtual conference, that decision of disinviting El Rufai was taken at the National Executive Council meeting of NBA and every Chairman, Secretary, and a NEC Representative of each of the branches of the NBA in Nigeria are members of NEC that took that decision. So as democrats, we are bound by the decision of NEC, irrespective of what our personal feelings are. So NBA Port Harcourt branch under my leadership will participate in the virtual conference” he said.
NYEKWERE also asked other branches of the bar association who are threatening to pull out of the conference to respect the decision of NBA NEC.
He said the decision is the will of the majority of NEC members who voted to withdraw El-Rufai’s invitation.
”What they are doing by our constitution is wrong because no branch is over and above the National Executive Committee. The National Executive Committee is actually the second to the last highest organ in our organization because after the NEC is the general meeting. So NEC has taken a decision and when NEC takes a decision, legally speaking, no branch of the NBA is supposed to disobey the decision of NEC. Because all of us are presumed to be part and parcel of that decision. Before we took that decision some spoke for and some spoke against and at the end of the day, the majority had their way. And we are bound by it”.
Our correspondent reports that the 2020 NBA Virtual Conference is billed for the 26th-30th of August.
