Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana, has criticised the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) for inviting social media influencer Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), to its 2026 Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
When asked about the divide among lawyers over whether VDM ought to have been invited, and what his thoughts were on that, Falana said professional conferences organised by the NBA should provide intellectual engagement by bringing together individuals with established expertise and practical experience in the subjects under discussion, rather than personalities invited primarily for entertainment.
The senior lawyer made the remarks while appearing on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily, where he discussed the controversy surrounding VDM’s appearance at the conference and his controversial statement accusing Nigeria Police Force of aiding kidnapping in the country.
According to Falana, the NBA had historically invited individuals who had “paid their dues” in their respective fields and could intellectually engage lawyers on important national issues.
“In those days, the NBA brought individuals who had paid their dues… who were coming to engage lawyers intellectually. We wanted to learn from them,” Falana said.
