Omoyele Sowore, a former presidential candidate and activist, disrupted courtroom decorum in the Federal High Court in Abuja, according to the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA).
Afam Osigwe, the association’s president, signed a statement on Wednesday outlining the organization’s stance.
The response came after Sowore allegedly got into a fight with a Nigerian Senior Advocate on Tuesday at the Federal High Court in Abuja while trying to address reporters inside the courtroom.
The senior attorney confronted Sowore in a video that went viral online, arguing that the courtroom was not the right place for a press conference.
“You’re intimidating me and insulting my intelligence because you’re introducing yourself to me as a SAN,” Sowore retorted. I have my own SANs as well.
According to the NBA’s statement, courtrooms in constitutional democracies are open to the public to encourage transparency, but proceedings must be carried out with discipline and respect for judicial authority.
According to the statement, “the Nigerian Bar Association views the incident involving Mr. Omoyele Sowore with grave concern.”
According to the association, Sowore approached the courtroom with people holding recording devices and camera phones.
The NBA claims that Sowore and his teammates seemed to get ready for a press conference inside the courtroom.
He “proceeded to set up what appeared to be preparations for a press conference within the courtroom itself,” according to the statement.
According to the association, he was attended to “in a manner akin to a broadcast setting” by members of his team before moving into the inner bar, sitting at a table, and starting to discuss national concerns.
It stated that Sowore was not accompanied by a lawyer at the time and that his case was not scheduled for a hearing.
According to the NBA, the incident caused stress in the courtroom and led to a clash with Musibau Adetunbi, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, who protested to the occurrence and insisted on upholding judicial decorum.
The group declared that “any conduct that undermines the dignity of the court, intimidates legal practitioners, or disrupts proceedings constitutes a grave affront to the rule of law.”
The group also emphasized that publicity or advocacy efforts should not be conducted in courtrooms.
“It is unacceptable and inconsistent with the discipline required in judicial proceedings to use a courtroom as a venue for publicity, advocacy theatrics, or confrontation,” the statement continued.
The NBA acknowledged that Nigerians had the right to attend court hearings, but stated that this entitlement does not include using courtrooms for press conferences.
Adetunbi and other attorneys who insisted on upholding order throughout the incident received backing from the NBA as well.
The union added, “We also call on court authorities to ensure that courtrooms remain protected spaces for the orderly administration of justice and free from acts capable of intimidating legal practitioners.”
It further stated that it is still dedicated to upholding the sanctity of legal procedures and the dignity of the legal profession.
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