The Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) has addressed the issue that surrounded the appearance of well-known street performer Habeeb Okikiola, better known by his stage name Portable, at its concert on Thursday in Abuja.
Speaking on the subject, the National Publicity Secretary of the NBA, Akorede Lawal, said that neither the invitation of Portable nor the payment for his attendance at the event, which was held at the Velodrome of the MKO Abiola Stadium in Abuja, were the responsibility of the organisation.
However, Lawal, who claimed that NBA’s lead sponsor, Cubana Group, was responsible for bringing Portable, thanked them and added, “NBA didn’t pay a dime for the performance of Portable…we are appreciative.”
He said, “For the fact that they had made arrangements for Portable to come, we only wanted in the spirit of sportsmanship and brotherhood with our lead sponsor to allow him to perform and we are appreciative of that.”
According to him, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) conference is the world’s largest gathering of attorneys, making it difficult to prepare. Because the NBA is not a for-profit company, you will need to collaborate with some people.
Therefore, we (lawyers) utilise the conference as a means of relaxation due to the nature of the work we do and the mental pressure. We have a space we call the friendship centre at every conference where members may go to network, eat, and drink as the conference is going on.
The Friendship Centre is comparable to an entertainment market that the NBA does not control. The NBA collaborates with individuals or groups in the entertainment sector to manage the friendship centre.
The friendship centre was run by the same entertainment industry that ran this year’s convention. On the final day of the conference, which is August 30, they brought a performer who was signed to their label.
“Incidentally, the NBA arranged a closing celebration on their own named ‘Unbarred.’ The Friendship Centre is located inside the conference space, but the National Stadium’s Velodrome was intended to host the unrestricted event.
“We didn’t want a scenario where there would be two social activities happening at the same time, one at the velodrome and one at the friendship building. So, it was decided to shut down the fellowship centre.
“However, the top sponsors had approved the Portable’s performance before the order was given. We merely wanted to let Portable perform out of good sportsmanship and a sense of kinship with our primary sponsor, and we are grateful that they made the arrangements for him to attend.
“The sponsor of our friendship centre paid for the performance of Portable; we are grateful. The NBA did not contribute a single penny.
People attended the event and continued to hang out after Portable left. When the DJ announced a closure, the event was over at 3:30 in the morning.
“The footage that is going around of attorneys departing was taken from a marquee, not the velodrome. Our members fled the showcase session for a security agency because it made a statement they didn’t agree with. At the marquee, this occurred in the afternoon.
