A group of lawyers operating under the banner of Lawyers Network Against Corruption Ltd/Gte has written the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) requesting to know the status and modalities for distribution of Covid-19 palliatives funds for young and vulnerable legal practitioners.TheNigeriaLawyer reports

This is contained in a letter signed by Raphael Sedemogun, addressed to the President of NBA and made available to TheNigeriaLawyer (TNL)

The Group recalled that a welfare Committee was constituted in April 2020 to raise funds for distribution to vulnerable and disadvantaged lawyers as palliatives to cushion the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic

The Group further recalled that “the Welfare Committee by a Notice dated 24th April requested that Young Lawyers who need assistance should contact the Committee via their Branches” after which it was announced that the sum of Eighty-Four Million Two Hundred and Twenty-Three Thousand Naira (N84, 223, 000) was realized as at the 30th of May, 2020

Citing section 3(12)-(13) of the NBA constitution, the Group maintains that it is a mandate of the Association to cater for the welfare of its vulnerable and young members “especially in the face of a global pandemic.”

They expressed dismay, however, that since the statement in May, no feedback has been received from the Welfare Committee or any information regarding the disbursement of the funds to identified beneficiaries

“Consequently, in the spirit of transparency and accountability, we request a report on the current status of the funds and modalities for disbursement of same within the 7 (seven) days of your receipt of this letter (inclusive of the date of service).” the group requests

TheNigerialawyer(TNL) in a telephone conversation with the NBA President Paul Usoro, SAN, last month informed TNL said the Committee is working our modality on how the Palliatives will be distributed to the young lawyers.

However, he noted that the palliatives will not be given to all the young lawyers as certain factors will be put into consideration while distributing the palliatives.