Badejo-Okusanya defeats two SANs to win NBA Presidency

● Becomes second woman to lead the Nigerian Bar Association

Mrs. Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya (SAN) has been elected the 33rd President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), defeating two other Senior Advocates of Nigeria in the association’s 2026 national officers’ election.

Chairman of the Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (ECNBA), Aham Ejelam (SAN), announced the results on Sunday at the association’s National Secretariat in Abuja after the conclusion of the election, which was delayed by technical challenges and a cyberattack.

According to Ejelam, Badejo-Okusanya polled 12,317 votes, representing 47.18 per cent of the total votes cast, to defeat her closest rival, Lateef Akangbe (SAN), who secured 7,934 votes (30.39 per cent).

The third candidate, Olumuyiwa Akinboro (SAN), received 5,855 votes, representing 22.43 per cent of the votes cast.
Ejelam said a total of 26,106 votes were recorded in the election.

With her victory, Badejo-Okusanya will serve a two-year term as NBA President from 2026 to 2028.

She also becomes only the second woman to lead the association, after Mrs. Priscilla Kuye, who served as NBA President from 1991 to 1992.

Other national officers elected include Oghenero Okoro as First Vice-President with 11,024 votes; Afam Okeke as General Secretary with 8,478 votes; Aghogho Gladys as Assistant General Secretary with 14,312 votes; and Chinelo Audrey Ofoegbunam as Welfare Secretary with 14,911 votes.

Badejo-Okusanya was absent when the results were announced.

Explaining her absence, a member of her campaign team, Aminu Gadanya (SAN), said her flight was delayed. He added that the president-elect was committed to reaching out to her opponents in the interest of unity within the association.

Speaking after the declaration of the results, outgoing NBA President, Afam Osigwe (SAN), said the election survived attempts to derail the process, including a cyberattack that forced the Electoral Committee to rebuild and migrate its information technology infrastructure to a more secure server.

According to Osigwe, despite the challenges, the electoral process was successfully concluded.

He urged the newly elected officers to be magnanimous in victory and appealed to unsuccessful candidates to support the new leadership in the interest of the association.
Osigwe also stressed the need to strengthen the NBA’s cybersecurity and electoral systems, saying the cyberattack underscored the importance of improving data protection and safeguarding future elections.

He disclosed that the Electoral Committee would undertake a comprehensive review of the electoral process and the challenges encountered to improve the integrity and credibility of future NBA elections.