The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has published the 2019 Q3 Management Account. This has remained consistent since the inauguration of the Paul Usoro’s led administration.
The Q3 Management Account is herewith attached
The President, Mr. Paul Usoro SAN’s note to the report
- In keeping with our commitment to promote and entrench transparency and accountability in the management of the NBA’s finances, we are delighted to publish hereby and with this Statement the NBA 2019 Quarter 3 Management Account (“MA”, “Management Report” or “MR”) covering the period August and September 2019. For those who may be confused by the numbering of this Account as 2019 Q3 Accounts, please recall that one of the welcome resolutions from our 2019 Annual General Meeting (“2019 AGM” or “AGM”) that was held on 29 August 2019 was the change of the NBA Financial Year to align with the traditional calendar year of January to December instead of August to July of the succeeding year. In that context, our 2019 Quarter 3 covers July to September 2019. However, the 2018/2019 Audited Account that was presented and passed at the 2019 AGM covered the period August 2018 to July 2019 and that is why the present 2019 Q3 MR covers only the residue of the 2019 Q3 i.e. August and September 2019.
- The Q3 MA was tabled before the NBA National Executive Committee (“NEC”) at its meeting that was held on 05 December 2019 and was adopted and duly approved by NEC. Similar to what we did in respect of the previous Management Reports, perhaps I need to highlight a few areas in the 2019 Q3 MR for the benefit of our Members, viz:
- The FS shows Cash and Cash equivalent position of N820,884,486.00 as at 30 September 2019 (see page 4 of the MR), the breakdown of which is provided in Note 5 to the MR at page 8 thereof. [“Cash equivalent” refers to instruments and holdings such as stocks and similar investment instruments that could easily be converted into cash. NBA as at 30 September 2019 however had no such cash equivalent as Note 5 to the FS bears out; what we had were only cash balances in Bank accounts.] Note 5 shows that a large chunk of the Cash – N450,000,000.00 drawn from the Bar Practicing Fee Account – was in fixed deposit investment. The NBA NEC had earlier approved the investment, the interest amount of which is paid by the Bank, on a monthly basis, into the NBA Admin Account which, as at 30 September 2019 (Q3 ending), had a credit balance of N13,442,650.00 while the Bar Practicing Fee Account had a credit balance of N40,334,944.00. Noteworthy is the fact that the AGC account as at the said Q3 ending had N196,799,783.00. The remainder of the large sums in the NBA Accounts were in dedicated accounts – N23,418,653.00 in the Stamp and Seal Account, N24,935,661.00 in the NEC Account and N64,993,684.00 in MacArthur Foundation Account – and not accessible to NBA for administrative and/or operational activities. The interest income from the afore-stated fixed deposit investment as at 30 September 2019 was N8,568,493.00 – see Note 7 and also Item (i) in the Appendix.
- On the liabilities side, the Total Current Liabilities, as at 30 September 2019, according to the MR (see page 4 thereof), was N282,404,018.00. In contemplating this amount, we must draw Members attention to the Caveat that is entered at page 1 of the MR whereat PwC expressly forewarns the NBA of the possibility of a restatement or adjustment of this figure based on fresh information and data which may be unearthed sequel to the preparation of this Management Report. In my discussions with PwC, any such Restatement or Adjustment would be reflected in the Q4 2019 Management Report which would cover the period October to December 2019. The details of the Current Liabilities are set out in Note 6 of the MR at page 9 thereof. Suffice to state that most of the liabilities were incurred prior to the inauguration of the current administration and arose mostly from the 2018 AGC-related expenses. The good news is, we have paid down the inherited liabilities very considerably from where it stood at the beginning of this administration.
- The Statement of Comprehensive Income (at page 5 of the MR) which is a component of the MR shows that the NBA had a total income of N919,810,963.00 as at Q3 ending. Notes 7 and 8 to the MR at pages 10 to 11 thereof provide the breakdown of this income and show that 98% of the unrestricted income – N894,363,628.00 – came from the 2019 AGC revenue streams and donations – see also the Narrative in the Appendix to the MR at pages 16-17 thereof.
- The Statement of Comprehensive Income (see page 5 of the MR) also shows that the NBA’s Total Expenditure for Q3 2019 was N882,419,574.00. The details of the expenditure are set out in Notes 9 and 10 of the MR at pages 12 to 15 thereof. Deducting this Total Expenditure (N882,419,574.00) from the NBA’s Gross Income for the Quarter (i.e. N919,810,963.00), leaves the NBA with a Surplus of N37,391,389.00 as at the end of Q3, as shown in the Comprehensive Income Statement. The bulk of the expenses – N771,168,348.00 – were AGC expenses. The point to note is that, even with our having settled most of the AGC expenses, the Association still had a cash and cash equivalent position as at the end of the Quarter of N820,884,486.00 – an unprecedented and unheard of feat. Again, I must highlight the earlier caveat by PwC to the effect that fresh information and data may result in the restatement and/or adjustment of the expenditure figure in our Q3 2019 MR. I must also draw members’ attention to the Appendix to the MA which provides further clarity on the expenditure for the Quarter.
- With the preparation and publication of this Q3 Management Account, we have taken one more step towards institutionalizing the basic principles of governance, transparency and accountability in the NBA body politic thereby promoting efficiency and transparent conduct in our affairs and also earning the respect and admiration, not only of our Members but of our global audience. As we mentioned in our Release on the 31 August 2018 MA, “it is our hope that the consistent 2-year practice of what we have just begun – and by God’s Grace, will maintain – would inculcate these practices into the NBA DNA and make them irreversible by succeeding NBA administrations”.