By Eight chairmen of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) branches in Rivers State have issued a scathing joint statement condemning a recent disciplinary query sent to the Port Harcourt NBA Chairperson, Cordelia Eke, by the State Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd).
The controversial query, dated April 25 and signed by Director of Administration at the Ministry of Justice, Ebiriemg Deresima, accused Eke of “serious misconduct.” It claimed she co-authored a communique that criticized Ibas for “brazen lawlessness,” dismantling democratic structures, and cracking down on peaceful protesters. The administrator alleged that Eke’s actions breached public service rules and were improper for a civil servant.
However, in a unified response on Tuesday, NBA chairmen across the state described the query as a blatant attempt to intimidate Eke and suppress free speech among legal professionals.
They emphasized that Eke issued the communique not as a government worker, but as an elected representative of the Port Harcourt NBA, acting within her constitutional role.
“The query to our brother Chairman is nothing but a ploy by which the Sole Administrator seeks to intimidate her into discontinuing her functions,” the statement read. “It is also an attempt to silence lawyers and citizens who dare to speak against executive impunity.”
The chairmen asserted that the communique reflected the consensus of all NBA branches in the state and echoed the stance of the NBA at the national level, as previously expressed by its President, Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN.
They demanded an immediate retraction of the query and warned against the use of state power to muzzle dissent. “The main objective of the Nigerian Bar Association is the promotion of the rule of law,” they said. “As watchdogs of society, we will not be intimidated into silence.”
The joint statement was signed by the chairmen of the NBA’s Ahoada, Isiokpo, Degema, Bori, and Okehi branches, among others.
Reaffirming their commitment to defending the rule of law, the NBA leaders vowed to resist any further harassment or persecution of legal practitioners and citizens in Rivers State.
