SPIDEL Election Dispute Deepens as Former SPIDEL Chair presents Constitutional Provisions Disproving NBA Press Release

SPIDEL Election Dispute Deepens as Former SPIDEL Chair presents Constitutional Provisions Disproving NBA Press Release

The controversy surrounding the 2025 elections of the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Public Interest and Development Law, SPIDEL, has escalated following the release of two opposing publications by the NBA leadership and a former Chairman of the Section, John Aikpokpo-Martins.

The first publication, issued under the name of the 1st Vice President of the NBA, Mr. Sabastine Anyia, was presented as a response to growing criticisms and public statements questioning the handling of the SPIDEL elections at the Uyo conference. The NBA leadership stated that its intervention was aimed at averting an impending crisis within SPIDEL and preserving institutional stability.

In the publication, the NBA asserted that at the National Executive Council meeting held in Ilorin on 15 May 2025, Prof. Paul Ananaba SAN was appointed to lead an interim leadership or electoral body to conduct SPIDEL elections. The statement alleged that this interim body acted contrary to the NBA Constitution by setting up a separate Electoral Committee chaired by Kunle Edun SAN.

The NBA leadership further claimed that the said Electoral Committee failed to comply with multiple provisions of the Uniform Bye Laws for NBA Sections, including the publication of election dates, eligibility criteria, voters’ lists, disqualification notices, and the mode of election. It also alleged that the Committee cleared Mr. John Aikpokpo-Martins to run for SPIDEL Chairman despite being constitutionally barred from seeking a second term, and that it drew up what it described as hand picked nominees to be returned unopposed as officers of the Section.

According to the NBA, these developments prompted the President, Mazi Afam Osigwe SAN, to request an emergency meeting of SPIDEL stakeholders to avert a crisis. The outcome of that meeting, the NBA said, was an agreement on a harmonised leadership list presented to the SPIDEL Annual General Meeting for ratification. The publication maintained that any errors made were in good faith and solely to restore peace to the Section.

However, these assertions were strongly challenged in a rejoinder issued on 17 December 2025 by Mr. John Aikpokpo-Martins, former Chairman of SPIDEL and one of the central figures mentioned in the NBA publication.

In his response seen here, Mr. Aikpokpo-Martins described several claims in the NBA statement as factually incorrect, misleading, and damaging to his professional reputation. He rejected the allegation that he was constitutionally barred from contesting the SPIDEL chairmanship, citing Article 11(b)(ii) of the NBA Constitution.

The said Article 11(b)(ii) of the NBA Constitution provides as follows:

"An elected or nominated member (of the executive committee) holds office from the conclusion of the biennial conference of the Association at which he or she is elected/sworn in until the conclusion of the 2nd biennial conference of the Association next following the 1st biennial conference AND he or she shall be eligible for re-election until the conclusion of the next biennial conference. Elected or nominated members who have served for 2 years shall not be eligible for re-election."

Based on the above, Mr. Aikpokpo-Martins argued that the Constitution expressly allows re election until the conclusion of the next biennial conference, and that he never completed a first constitutional term having served as Chairman for only eight months and not for a full two year term as required to trigger ineligibility for re election. On that basis, he maintained that the Electoral Committee led by Kunle Edun SAN acted within the law in clearing him to contest.

In his words:

"It is a fact that I did not hold office nor did I serve for 2 years as the chairman of SPIDEL…..I served for only 8 months. It is misleading therefore to state that I was clearly constitutionally barred from running for the same office for a 2nd term. There was indeed no 1st term, having not served from one biennial conference to another as constitutionally provided. The said article 11(b) ii further provides that:

“…..AND he or she shall be eligible for re-election until the conclusion of the next biennial conference.”

Mr. Aikpokpo-Martins also strongly denied the allegations contained in paragraph 5 of the NBA Press release where it was alleged that the Kunle Edun led Electoral Committee produced a list of hand picked nominees loyal to him. He described that claim as speculative, defamatory, and an unwarranted attack on the integrity of the Committee and the intelligence of SPIDEL members. According to him, the nomination process was transparent and open to all eligible members.

He stated thus: "The SPIDEL Electoral Committee led by Kunle Edun, Esq., was therefore on firm ground when it cleared me as qualified to contest for the chairmanship of SPIDEL contrary to the unpalatable aspersions deliberately contrived to besmirch the integrity of Kunle Edun SAN, members of his electoral committee and my humble self for no justifiable reason."

He confirmed that at the stakeholders’ meeting held on 2 December 2025 in Uyo, convened by Prof. Paul Ananaba SAN, he voluntarily stepped down from the chairmanship race in order to de escalate tensions and avoid being the focal point of controversy. However, he stated that he firmly objected to the process adopted at that meeting and placed his objections on record.

Mr. Aikpokpo-Martins explained that he had initially chosen to remain silent on the SPIDEL controversy out of respect for senior members of the Bar, but felt compelled to respond following what he described as ill advised and inaccurate references to his person in the NBA publication.

The exchange of statements has further highlighted deep divisions within SPIDEL over due process, constitutional interpretation, and the role of the NBA leadership in internal section elections. Observers note the irony that the dispute has unfolded against the backdrop of SPIDEL’s 2025 conference theme, A Banner Without Stain, a slogan intended to symbolise integrity, transparency, and adherence to the rule of law.

As reactions continue within the legal community, many members have called for a transparent, fact based resolution that aligns the conduct of the Section with the public interest values it professes to uphold.