Former General Secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Aare Olumuyiwa Akinboro, SAN, has strongly criticised the newly introduced policy mandating Department of State Services (DSS) screening for all Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) designates. He described the directive as an unnecessary and unwarranted intrusion into the independence of the legal profession.
In a statement issued on Monday, Akinboro stressed that the SAN rank is not a political appointment or executive favour, but a professional honour regulated exclusively by the Legal Practitioners Act and conferred through the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC). He argued that the LPPC’s rigorous selection process already guarantees the integrity of the award.
According to him, imposing an extra layer of security vetting after the LPPC’s exhaustive scrutiny undermines due process and weakens the sanctity of the Bar. He warned that allowing external agencies to interfere in the legal profession’s internal processes could establish a dangerous precedent, with the potential to erode not only the SAN rank but also judicial independence, judicial appointments, and impartial justice delivery.
Akinboro urged the NBA, the LPPC, and the Body of Benchers to reject the DSS screening requirement outright, warning that silence from the Bar would be tantamount to tacit endorsement. He emphasised that the profession must protect its autonomy against any attempt to weaken it.
Akinboro’s position, others expressed doubt, suggesting that if he were to assume the office of NBA President, he might not hold the same view and could even defend the DSS involvement. This divergence of opinion underscores the ongoing debate within the Bar over the balance between security considerations and professional independence.
