A former chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, Chidi Odinkalu, has resigned from the Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association.
The ECNBA is responsible for conducting elections in key offices of the NBA.
This committee delivered the NBA’s leadership elections on 16 July 2022.
In a letter addressed to the president of the association titled “Notice of resignation from the ECNBA” and dated July 10, 2023, Odinkalu said his decision to resign was because the possibility for the NBA to hold a credible election in 2024 is being threatened by “deficits that cannot be bridged by hope or prayer.”
In the light of this painful conclusion, I have reconsidered my membership of the ECNBA and hereby tender my resignation from the Committee with effect from 10 July 2023.”
He said since the introduction of digital voting in the Association in 2016, elections into offices in the NBA have become dependent on data and its governance.
Among other reasons for his decision to resign, Odinkalu disclosed that for the 2022 elections, the ECNBA contracted the voting service provision for the sum of N 18 million approved by the organs of the NBA as part of the budget for the election.
However, he said for no clear reason the service provider has yet to receive the balance of about N5 million even as the integrity of the elections depends significantly on the voting platform.
The letter reads in part, “For the 2022 elections, ECNBA contracted the voting service provision for the sum of N18 million. The organs of the NBA approved this sum as part of the budget for the election.”
“As I write, N 12.6 million of this sum has so far been paid. One year after the elections took place, we still owe the provider N5.4 million, representing 30% of the agreed sum.
The Association has not complained about service standards by the provider nor has it declared a contractual dispute. It is not the case that the NBA is insolvent. Yet, despite the best and repeated efforts of the ECNBA, our Association has chosen to not honour this lawful obligation.
“Following the failure of any breakthrough in efforts to address this matter with you, my colleague(s) in the ECNBA brought this matter to your attention at the last (virtual) NEC meeting on or about 26 June.
“But rather than address it in the spirit in which it was raised, you shut it down, complaining that you regretted giving my colleague(s) the floor. That was hardly a vote of confidence on the Committee.
