Resilience Triumphs: Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya Shatters Glass Ceiling As 33rd NBA President Amid Cyber-Siege
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In a historic demonstration of professional resilience, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mrs. Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, has been elected the 33rd President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA). Her victory not only marks a pivotal shift for the legal profession but also serves as a defiant response to a sophisticated cyber-assault that nearly crippled the nation’s most prestigious legal body.
Sweeping to victory with 12,317 votes, representing 47.18 per cent of the total votes cast, Badejo-Okusanya becomes only the second woman in the association’s sixty-year history to ascend to the presidency, following in the footsteps of the legendary Priscilla Kuye who served from 1991 to 1992. Her decisive win over fellow Senior Advocates Lateef Akangbe, who secured 7,934 votes, and Olumuyiwa Akinboro, who polled 5,855 votes, signals a strong mandate for change, despite a grueling electoral process marred by technical sabotage.
The path to the presidency was anything but conventional. Outgoing NBA President, Afam Osigwe, SAN, revealed that the election was the target of a malicious cyberattack aimed at truncating the democratic process. The electoral committee, led by Chairman Aham Ejelam, SAN, was forced to orchestrate a frantic migration of their ICT infrastructure to a more secure server to salvage the integrity of the vote. Osigwe stated that while many went to great lengths to rubbish the association, the team stood firm, ensuring that every effort to derail the process failed.
Though absent for the announcement due to a flight delay, Badejo-Okusanya’s message was delivered by her team with unwavering clarity: the Bar is stronger than its divisions. Her campaign representative, Aminu Gadanya, SAN, confirmed that she is determined to extend a handshake of friendship to all aggrieved candidates because the task ahead requires a united Bar.
The 2026–2028 administration now faces the urgent task of fortifying the NBA’s digital sovereignty and restoring confidence in the electoral system. The newly elected executive includes First Vice-President Oghenero Okoro, General Secretary Afam Okeke, Assistant General Secretary Aghogho Gladys, and Welfare Secretary Chinelo Audrey Ofoegbunam. As the dust settles on this intense election, the message from Abuja is clear: the NBA has survived the fire. Under the leadership of Badejo-Okusanya, the association is now poised to enter a new era of unity, technological resilience, and renewed advocacy for the rule of law.
