The Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, on Monday, inaugurated the General Council of the Bar with a call on the leaders of the legal profession to unite towards changing the negative perception of the profession.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Council inaugurated comprised all the Attorneys General of the 36 states, 20 members of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and the Attorney-General of the Federation who shall be the President of the Council in line with section 1 (2)( a-c) of the Legal Practitioners Act 2004.
The bar council, a regulatory body in Nigeria’s legal profession, plays a key role in making and revising the rules of professional conduct for lawyers.
Mr Malami said the NBA served as a vehicle for social conscience and therefore should not seek to isolate its members in government who are positioned to drive its success.
“We must work collectively to build an enviable legal profession that will be beneficial to us all, rejig it to change the current negative perception of the profession.
“The council should strive to overcome its inherent limitation to reinvent and reassert itself in the legal architecture of the country.
“This inauguration is an opportunity for all the constitutional heads of the legal profession and members of the Bar to meet and deliberate on pertinent issues affecting the legal profession, especially in view of current challenges and public perception of the profession.”
He advised those inaugurated to continue to show commitment and dedication to the statutory duties of the Council, especially about making and reviewing rules of professional conduct under Section 12(4) of the LPA.
“Together we must work to restore the confidence which the public hitherto reposed in members of the legal profession.
“This will only be possible if we as members demonstrate uncommon commitment and dedication to make a difference through our various inputs and services to the Council.
