Professor Foluke Dada’s recent statement is one that should be read carefully, not for its politics, but for its principle.
In a climate where public actors often feel compelled to maintain earlier positions at all costs, she chose a more difficult path: reflection, reassessment, and correction. That choice, quiet as it may appear, is not common. It is also not easy.
Her decision to step away from a previously announced alignment and to publicly explain her reasons was not driven by emotion or expediency.
It was grounded in conscience. She articulated, with clarity and restraint, why a form of unity that continually sidelines competent female leadership had become untenable for her.
What makes this intervention particularly notable is not the conclusion she reached, but the awareness with which she reached it.
Professor Dada is clearly not unaware of how such a position would be received. She understands the culture of the Bar. She understands the consequences of dissent. And yet, she chose candour over comfort.
That is a form of service that is often overlooked. It takes little courage to remain within the safety of consensus.
It takes considerably more to acknowledge that a previous position, however well-intentioned, no longer aligns with one’s deepest convictions.
The willingness to absorb criticism in order to remain faithful to principle is, in itself, a mark of integrity.
There is also something instructive in her restraint. She does not grandstand. She does not malign those who may disagree. She simply explains her reasoning and accepts the implications.
In doing so, she reminds us that leadership is not only about ambition or achievement, but about the courage to act rightly even when it is inconvenient.
In professions that speak often about ethics, moments like this matter. They show that integrity is not merely declared; it is demonstrated, sometimes at personal cost.
Whatever views one may hold about the broader contest, Professor Foluke Dada’s action stands as an example of principled independence.
And in times like these, that may well be one of the highest forms of contribution to the Bar.
Patience Nkeony
Asaba
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