Gbenga Oyebode is Chairman 2019 NBA Conference Planning Committee

Mr. Gbenga Oyebode, MFR, the Founder and Chairman of Aluko and Oyebode Law Firm has been appointed Chairman of the 42 member Planning Committee (the TCCP) of the 2019 Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Annual General Conference.

The NBA President Mr. Paul Usoro SAN disclosed this in a publication dated 18th January, 2019.  Mr. Usoro noted that  the Committee was constituted sequel to the mandate given by the NBA National Executive Committee (“NEC”) at its meeting held on 06 December 2018.

According to the President;

1. Sequel to the mandate given to me by the NBA National Executive Committee (“NEC”) at its meeting held on 06 December 2018, I am pleased to constitute the Technical Committee for Conference Planning (“TCCP” or “Committee”) for our 2019 Annual General Conference (“AGC”). The TCCP is made up of 42 eminent members of our Association and is chaired by Gbenga Oyebode, MFR, the Chairman of the Management Board of Aluko & Oyebode, one of Nigeria’s leading law firms, and a past Chairman of our Section on Business Law (“SBL”). The list of the members has been published as an adjunct to this Statement.

2. I thank all 42 members for accepting to serve on the Committee despite their individual busy schedules. In particular, knowing first-hand how extremely challenging Mr Oyebode’s schedule ordinarily is, I thank him specially for answering this call to duty and for his unwavering and consistent commitment to our Association. I know that he and his team will bring to bear on this AGC planning assignment, their extensive and individual experiences in planning and hosting previous conferences, including but not limited to AGC and SBL conferences.

3. With the publication of the TCCP membership composition, I have agreed with Mr Oyebode that the Committee will commence its work immediately without any ado; I expect him to summon the Committee’s inaugural meeting as soon as possible and proceed therefrom. The Terms of Reference of the Committee, in broad terms, is to organize the 2019 AGC and to carry out all such ancillary functions and duties as may be assigned to or required of them for the successful hosting of the Conference. The Committee would report directly to me and would, as required obtain specific approvals from NEC for its assignments.

4. In my discussions with the Committee, I have impressed on them the expectations of our members for the best and most memorable Conference in 2019, both in terms of content and in being pocket-friendly vis-à-vis the conferees and the Conference output. I have in that wise extracted the commitment of the Committee, through its Chairman, that the 2019 AGC will live up to those billings. As National Officers, we are mindful of the promises that we made to our members in my Inaugural Address and we shall strive to keep and live by those promises in the planning and hosting of the 2019 AGC.

5. The composition of this year’s AGC TCCP comes with some innovations and exciting bonuses. First is the selflessness of all the Committee members. I spoke with each of the 42 members and they all committed to serve on the Committee at minimal, if any, cost to the National NBA purse as it relates in particular to their transport and accommodation for Committee meetings. That is exemplary, and I cannot thank them enough for this commitment and sacrifice.

6. Second, we have included a number of ex-officio members in the TCCP for inclusiveness and information flow to branch members. Three Branch Chairmen from each of the NBA Zones, totaling nine Branch Chairmen serve as ex-officio members of the TCCP. We expect the Chairmen to assist in explaining the mechanics of the AGC planning and the underlying considerations for decisions of the Committee to all our colleagues in their various Zones.

7. The Chairmen of our three Sections – SBL, SLP and SPIDEL – are ex-officio members of the TCCP as well and so is our own Anthony Atata, the IBA African Forum Chairman. The President of the Law Officers Association of Nigeria, Yusuf Abdullahi Abdulkadir, has been appointed to the Committee as an ex-officio member and as will the YLF President as soon as the Council of the Young Lawyers’ Forum (“YLF”) is constituted. It remains to mention that we would be updating members with the activities of the TCCP as we begin the countdown to the NBA 2019 AGC.

Paul Usoro, SAN President

Below is the list of the members of the committee