The Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association Security Agencies Relations Committee (NBA-SARC), Chukwuka Ikwuazom SAN, while chairing a session at the recently held Law Week of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Gwagwalada Branch addressed issues relating to the relationship between security agencies and lawyers.
The session whose topic was “Balancing Powers and Promoting Standards: Civil Liberties, Civility and Collaborations Between Active Stakeholders in Nigeria’s Criminal Justice System” was the product of collaboration between the NBA-SARC and the NBA, Gwagwalada Branch and had amiable speakers such as Mr Paul Igboche, a lawyer with the Department of Security Services (DSS), CSP Hamza Sadiq, Anthony U. Enahoro, a retired magistrate, and Adama Mohammed as panellists.
All panellists, in their individual contributions, examined the root and remote causes of altercations between security agencies and lawyers, and suggested practical steps that should be taken to address these causes with a view to curtailing or completely eliminating the occurrence of these altercations.
In his contribution as Chairman of the session, Mr Ikwuazom SAN noted that one of the core mandates of the NBA-SARC is to ensure that no legal professional is prevented from rendering professional services to a client by reason of the unprofessional conduct of a security agent.
Mr. Ikwuazom explained that the terms of reference given to the NBA-SARC by the President of the NBA, Mr Yakubu Maikyau, OON, SAN, make it clear that the work of the NBA-SARC should not be merely reactive and triggered by an assault on a lawyer. The Committee should and is taking proactive steps to engage with security agencies and educate them on the need to carry out their duties with professionalism and courtesy.
Mr Ikwuazom, SAN further noted that most of the issues between law enforcement officers and lawyers are triggered by a total failure by some law enforcement agents to understand that lawyers are critical partners in the criminal justice sector. He noted that many of these altercations involve junior officers and called on the leaders of these security agencies to provide training on professionalism, the rule of law, and respect for fundamental rights to their officers.
