Badejo-Okusanya assumes office, tours secretariat, holds prayer, meeting

Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya began her tenure as president of the Nigerian Bar Association with a handover tour of the association’s national secretariat alongside her predecessor, Afam Osigwe.

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Together with my predecessor, Afam Osigwe, SAN, the 32nd President of the NBA, I toured NBA House, where he took me through the National Secretariat and introduced me to members of staff.

During the tour of NBA House, Osigwe introduced her to staff and showed her through the secretariat. Badejo-Okusanya described the moment as a quiet realization that “the baton had truly changed hands.” She then returned to her office, where her team began the administration with prayer before starting official duties.

She also held an interactive meeting with National Secretariat staff as her administration began work on its vision for the association. Reflecting on her first day, she said leadership is defined not by receiving responsibility, but by what follows.

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Then came the farewell and the quiet realisation that the baton had truly changed hands.

“My first day in office reminded me of something I have always believed: Leadership is not the moment you receive the baton. It is what you do with it after you receive it,” she said.

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I returned to the office, and we began with prayer. Then, we got to work.

Badejo-Okusanya won the 2026 NBA national officers’ election against Lateef Akangbe and Olumuyiwa Akinboro. She received 12,317 votes, or 47.18% of the total, compared with 7,934 for Akangbe and 5,855 for Akinboro. The electronic election faced technical challenges and a cyberattack, forcing the electoral committee to rebuild its information and communications technology system before completing the process.

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Leadership is not the moment you receive the baton. It is what you do with it after you receive it.