The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has clarified why singer Habeeb Okikiola, better known as Portable, performed at their 2023 Annual General Conference held on Thursday dismissing the rumour making the rounds that the artiste was paid to perform.
Last night, many people on the internet criticized the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) for inviting singer Portable to perform at their annual conference. They argued that the NBA is an association of “learned” individuals and that inviting Portable, who is known for his controversial behavior, was a poor decision that damaged the NBA’s reputation.
Others argued that the show was a mockery and a disgrace to the legal profession, which is known for its conservative values.
The Nigerian Bar Association’s National Publicity Secretary, Akorede Lawal, said in an interview on Friday that Portable’s presence at the event was due to his partnership with entertainer Obi Cubana, who was the headline sponsor of the program.
He added that Cubana Group brought Portable because he is one of their brand ambassadors for Odogwu bitters and because being the headline sponsor of the NBA’s annual conference gave them the right to bring a guest artiste to perform at ‘Unbarred concert’, which is usually attended by lawyers of all levels.
Lawal said, “We did not pay a dime to Portable for the concert. It is the largest gathering of lawyers anywhere in the world and so to that extent, we always write to sponsors to finance every level of our events.”
“We have partners from America, Chile, and a host of other countries who pride in what we do and take it upon themselves to get the programme financed annually.”
Responding to the claim that some lawyers staged a walkout on Portable at the event, the publicity secretary said, “No, they did not. The Friendship Centre is the customary place where all lawyers go to unwind, network and do all other social activities.”
“So, the concert was meant to take place there but we later told the lawyers to move to the ‘Unbarred concert’ at the Velodrome of the National Stadium in Abuja because we don’t want two events at the same time given that that place (Friendship Centre) had been decorated already to promote their brands.”
“They were the headline sponsor of the centre and that’s where the DJs and every other social activities had been going on since the start of the event. So we closed the place down to have a unified event,” he added.
He expressed his gratitude to the Cubana Group for sponsoring the event.
The conference tagged “Getting it right” marked the 63rd and it started on Friday, August 25 to Wednesday, August 30, 2023, with several activities earmarked for the occasion.