The Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) has distanced itself from reports that the list of successful candidates for the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) this year has been released.
The LPPC, in a statement on Wednesday by the Director (Press and Information), Supreme Court of Nigeria, Dr. Festus Akande said the process for the final selection was still on.
Akande said the LPPC would make public the final list through media advertisement, as it has always done.
The LPPC warned those peddling falsehood about its activities to desist, threatening to go after those behind the false information and subject them to the full weight of the law.
The statement reads: “Our attention has been drawn to a story by an online medium that goes by the name, ‘loyalnigerianlawyer.com,’ with the above caption which is currently in circulation with a purported list of ‘successful candidates’ that emerged after the second filtration exercise by the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC).
“We wish to state clearly that the above information is fake, unofficial and untrue. It’s a mere figment of the imagination of the authors who may ostensibly be on a mission to impugn and malign the reputation and integrity of the LPPC with a view to causing confusion and skepticism in the public space.
“The information should be discountenanced by whosoever might have come across it.
“For the umpteenth time, we wish to let the public know that any information, especially issues regarding the above topic can only emanate from the office of the LPPC Secretary/Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
“Anything outside this official source should be disregarded. As has been the practice, all information concerning the LPPC, especially those bordering on the announcement of successful applicants for the award of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria, are published in reputable national dailies and this year’s own will not be an exception.
“The perpetrators of such illegal act would be apprehended and given appropriate sanctions to serve as deterrent to others that might be waiting in the queue to do same in the future.
“The Committee may be forced to refer the conduct of such bloggers who are legal practitioners to the appropriate disciplinary committee of Body of Benchers. A word is enough for the wise.
“On this note, we wish to inform and assure our esteemed legal community and the general public that the authentic official list of the successful applicants that emerged from the second filtration exercise by the LPPC will be made public through advertorials in the national dailies in due course.”
