I may be wrong but I have the right to be wrong and seek wisdom from you, who would think I am wrong.
If it is professional misconduct not to pay your Bar Practicing Fee (BPF), I think it is also misconduct to pay BPF for others and ask for their teller. You may choose to assist an indigent junior but making public show of it, should worry us all.
Furthermore, that there are juniors not able to pay their BPF, calls for serious soul searching about the welfare of lawyers. What are the job opportunities out there for lawyers. What can NBA do, to increase the earning capacity of a lawyer and expand fields of earning for lawyers.
CAC has opened its doors to everybody. Apart from the court room, all sphere of legal practice are open to quacks, infiltrators. House rent agents, draft legal documents between Donor and Donee. Seniors, should teach juniors how to fish and not giving them rotting fish.
Why can’t NBA supervise a minimum wage scheme for juniors?
These adverts soliciting juniors to pay BPF for, is fraud, corruption and aimed at manipulating the 2018 NBA Election.
You need not be a soothsayer to know that juniors, make above 60% voting block in NBA and such number, is a deciding factor. Any candidate that can command block vote from this sector, has 40% chances of winning.
If this lobbying to pay BPF for juniors continues unabated, this years NBA election will be the most expensive in the history of NBA.
One of the reasons for abolition of delegate conference to elect NBA officers, was to make money a non factor in the election. Back then, candidates book up all available hotel spaces, dishes them out to loyal branches and at the rate of 10 delegates per branch, candidates could map out money to buy delegates.
Unfortunately, e-voting or universal right of all lawyers to vote, has not solved this money interference in NBA. Many believe that it has even made the election more expensive than during delegate conference style.
NBA should find means of curbing this spreading advert soliciting to pay BPF for juniors.
It is already in public domain as a non lawyer, drew my attention to such post in their Old School mates WhatsApp group.
The ball, is squarely on NBA’s court. The leadership of NBA should find a solution to this monetization of election in NBA.
We want to see manifesto on how to improve the welfare of lawyers, particularly young lawyers; we want to assess candidates based on antecedents and ability to deliver tangibles and not bogus promises.
A peaceful, professionally acceptable means of leadership succession should be worked out.
NBA, is not akin to APC or PDP and our election should not be like a political party bazaar.
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