The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Ibadan branch, in Oyo State, has declared a boycott of all activities for the 2026/2027 New Legal Year, organised by the state's judiciary. This decision was made public by the branch's publicity secretary, Raheed Khan, in a statement released on Sunday night in Ibadan, the state capital. The boycott decision was reached during the branch's general meeting convened on Saturday.
According to the NBA Ibadan branch, the boycott decision follows recent administrative directives from the judiciary leadership, particularly the decision to prevent the Bar's chairman from addressing the event. The branch views the annual New Legal Year ceremony as an institution of accountability, reflection, and constructive discourse, not just a judicial pageant. It believes that its chairman's address serves as a medium for the Bar to present systemic observations and advocate for judicial efficiency.
The branch stated that the judiciary leadership's unilateral decision to exclude the Bar chairman's address is an existential affront to the Bar's collective dignity. Denying the Bar its historic voice during a state ceremony would relegate legal practitioners from equal partners to mere passive spectators. The branch believes that silence in the face of such structural marginalisation would set a perilous precedent for the profession's future.
In response, the NBA Ibadan branch will hold an independent New Legal Year ceremony to celebrate the event on its own terms. The alternative event is scheduled for Monday at 10:00 a.m. at the Aare Afe Babalola, SAN, Bar Centre, NTC Road, Ibadan. Participants will be fully robed in wig and gown. The branch's collective absence from the judiciary's ceremonies and resolute presence at the Bar Centre aims to send an unmistakable message.
The Oyo State judiciary had scheduled the 2026/2027 Legal Year Service to be held on Monday at two locations: the Cathedral of St. James, Oke-Bola, Ibadan, and the Oyo State Judiciary Mosque, High Court Premises, Ring Road, Ibadan. The branch's decision to boycott and hold a separate event has created a significant rift between the NBA Ibadan branch and the Oyo State judiciary.
The NBA Ibadan branch remains resolute in its decision, stating that history measures the Bar not by the ease of its compliance, but by the firmness of its convictions. The branch is determined to stand as one, unshaken, unbroken, dignified, and unapologetic, when the voice of the Bar was threatened with erasure.
The boycott and separate ceremony organised by the NBA Ibadan branch have significant implications for the relationship between the Bar and the judiciary in Oyo State. The development highlights the challenges and tensions that can arise between these two critical components of the justice system.
Key points
- The NBA Ibadan branch has boycotted the Oyo judiciary's New Legal Year ceremony due to a directive preventing its chairman from addressing the event.
- The branch will hold an independent New Legal Year ceremony at the Aare Afe Babalola, SAN, Bar Centre, NTC Road, Ibadan.
- The boycott decision has created a significant rift between the NBA Ibadan branch and the Oyo State judiciary.
