IN RE: NBA REMUNERATION COMMITTEE’S DIRECTIVES TO BANKS ON IMPLEMENTATION OF THE LEGAL PRACTITIONERS RENUMERATION ORDER, 2023, A WASTE OF TIME; NBA SHOULD DO FIRST THINGS FIRST.
By Kaine Ananwune, Esq.
Today the 14th of March, 2025, I was disheartened to read the criticisms of Mr. Sylvester Udemezue with reference to the foregoing subject. I beg to completely disagree with Mr. Sylvester Udemezue on his unguarded criticisms of the noble efforts of the NBA Remuneration Committee.
Barely one month ago, precisely on the 4th of February, 2025, the NBA Remuneration Committee was inaugurated by the NBA President- Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN whereby with Chief Emeka Obegolu, SAN, was named as the Chairman of the Remuneration Committee.
Apparently, the crux of the mandate of the NBA Remuneration Committee is to ensure full compliance with the letters and spirit of the Legal practitioners Remuneration Order, (LPRO) 2023. Upon inauguration, the Remuneration Committee immediately hit the ground running.
The Committee pragmatically launched a barrage of publicity drive all aimed at sensitizing the critical stakeholders on the legal implications of the LPRO, 2023. Nigerian Lawyers were also not left out in the sensitization drive; on daily basis advisories are being issued by the Remuneration Committee and circulated on the various news and social media, educating lawyers on the contents of LPRO 2023.
One would have expected Mr. Sylvester Udemezue to commend and appreciate the Remuneration Committee for the tremendous efforts which the Committee exerts on a daily basis towards the actualization of the principles of LPRO 2023. Unfortunately, this was not to be as Mr. Udemezue wantonly described these noble efforts as “a waste of time”.
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Certainly, the Banking industry in Nigeria is a critical stakeholder that must be carried along if the contents of the LPRO, 2023 must be effectively actualized. Generally speaking, publicizing and sensitizing the public on the purports of existing laws and policies of Government is one of the factors that ensure compliance with the laws.
This is the reason why the Federal Government of Nigeria established the National Orientation Agency. It is therefore not out of place for the NBA Remuneration Committee to write the Nigerian Banks to draw their attention to the contents and ideals of the LPRO, 2023.
In his article, Mr. Udemezue suggested that NBA should “think outside the box towards amending the Order to include impregnable and self executing provisions that would make it impossible for anyone in Nigeria to disobey it with impunity”.
In my humble opinion, this suggestion is simply bland. I have searched his article in a bid to discover the “impregnable and self executing” clauses that would have magically made the LPRO to command instant and automatic obedience throughout Nigeria, but unfortunately, I found none.
Again, I vividly recall that during the administration of Olumide Akpata as the NBA President; as a pre-cursor to the enactment of the extant LPRO, 2023, extensive consultation was carried out in the legal community throughout Nigeria.
NBA Branches were invited to make inputs; questionnaires were circulated to every interested Nigerian Lawyer to enable lawyers suggest the best contents for the LPRO. I therefore ask the question: what “impregnable and self executing” suggestions were made by Mr. Sylvester Udemezue as at the time these questionnaires were being sampled and collated?
I would urge the NBA Remuneration Committee not to be dismayed by the criticisms of Mr. Sylvester Udemezue. Rather the Committee and indeed the entire Nigerian Bar should take pride in the successes recorded as a result of the vigorous efforts of the NBA Remuneration Committee.
For instance in Anambra State, I am aware that the Anambra State Inland Revenue Service- (AIRS) just issued a directive to the effect that before any title document/instrument can processed for stamp duty, there must be prima facie evidence that the requisite legal fee under the LPRO, 2023 was paid to the lawyer who franked the instrument; this evidence of payment must be verified by the NBA Chairman concerned.
Finally, I commend the Remuneration Committee for their noble efforts as we hope that all the ideals of the LPRO, 2023 would be actualized.
KAINE ANANWUNE, Esq. is a Nigerian Lawyer and served as Chairman NBA, Anaocha Branch between 2020 and 2022. Can be reached at: fidesattorneys@gmail.com
