The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has directed the immediate withdrawal of the Patron appointment conferred on former chairman of the defunct Pension Reform Task Team, Abdulrasheed Maina, by the NBA Garki Branch in Abuja.
The decision follows Mr Maina’s conviction for money laundering involving over N2 billion in pension funds.
The directive was announced in a statement on Friday by NBA President Afam Osigwe.
The NBA said the appointment of Maina as “Grand Patron” of the Garki Branch undermines the legal profession and the anti-corruption fight.
The NBA leadership also warned that disciplinary action would be taken against officials involved in the appointment, stating that the association will not lend its credibility to individuals convicted of criminal offences.
Mr Osigwe said, “Purportedly appointing a person convicted of stealing and money laundering or corrupt practices as Patron of any Branch of the NBA makes a mockery of the legal profession and the fight against corruption. Equally reprehensible was the decision of the Chairman to make comments about Abdulrasheed Maina’s appeal, currently pending at the Supreme Court. While the NBA respects Mr. Maina’s right to exhaust his appeal, the Bar will not comment on such an appeal or be seen to sway public opinion in his favour.”
He added that the appointment portrays the chairman of the NBA Garki Branch and those who endorsed it as condoning corrupt practices.
The controversy followed reports that Maina was honoured at an event on Thursday, receiving the “Rule of Law and Courage Award” and appearing at the ceremony wearing a muffler inscribed “Patron, NBA Garki Branch.”
At the event, he called for renewed investigations into former Attorney-General Abubakar Malami, claiming that funds linked to him were only a fraction of what could be recovered.
Maina was convicted by the Federal High Court in Abuja for money laundering and ordered to prison.
Justice Okon Abang held that the prosecution, led by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), proved that Maina laundered funds, induced bank officials to open accounts without due diligence and diverted pension funds under his supervision.
Abdulrasheed Maina was first arraigned by the EFCC on October 25, 2019, alongside his firm, Common Input Property and Investment Ltd.
He jumped bail in 2020 and was later arrested in the Republic of Niger, extradited to Nigeria in December 2020, and continued his trial.
In November 2021, he was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment.
His conviction was upheld on appeal and in 2024, 23 properties linked to him were forfeited to the federal government.
His son, Faisal Maina, was also convicted for money laundering involving N58.1 million and the Court of Appeal affirmed a 14-year jail term in November 2022.
At the NBA Garki Branch event, Maina denied wrongdoing, claiming that officials of previous administrations targeted him.
He alleged that senior government officials, including former President Muhammadu Buhari and others, met him in Abu Dhabi in 2017 under a whistleblower arrangement to recover public funds, an agreement he said was not honoured.
The NBA has now instructed the Garki Branch to withdraw the title, reiterating that the appointment of individuals with criminal convictions is unacceptable and contrary to the principles of the legal profession.
