Social media activist Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, has hit back at critics of his appearance at the Nigerian Bar Association’s 66th Annual General Conference.
VeryDarkMan was invited as a panelist at the NBA conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, where he participated in a session on insecurity and shared his experiences concerning communities affected by killings and other security challenges.
His appearance at the lawyers’ gathering, however, triggered controversy, with some members of the legal profession questioning the decision by the NBA to feature him at the event.
Among those who criticised the invitation was renowned human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), who argued that discussions on national security at an NBA conference should feature individuals with established expertise or demonstrable contributions to Nigeria’s security architecture.
Reacting to the criticism in a video posted on social media on Friday, VeryDarkMan said his presence at the conference was intended to give voice to Nigerians who he claimed were often excluded from elite discussions.
“I spoke on behalf of the poor people. I spoke on behalf of the people that don’t have a voice,” he said.
He questioned why his appearance among lawyers had generated such strong reactions, adding, “Because a son of nobody was seen in your midst.”
VeryDarkMan then took aim at the legal profession, rejecting the argument that law should automatically be regarded as a noble profession.
“This bunch of clowns are telling me that law is a noble profession,” he said.
“Well, lately, law has not been a noble profession. I’m sorry to say. I’m not even sorry to say. It is what it is.”
The activist claimed that a significant number of lawyers were either unemployed, underemployed or not actively practising, describing law as one of the country’s poorest professions.
“But even you, some of you who are not even practising. Mind you, law is one of the most broke professions we have in the country,” he said.
“One of the poorest professions in this country is law.”
He further challenged lawyers to consider the number of practitioners who actually secure jobs or appear regularly in court.
“How many lawyers are there? How many lawyers have jobs? How many lawyers actually go to court? Ask yourself that,” he said.
VeryDarkMan also questioned the employment opportunities available to newly qualified lawyers, arguing that thousands of people continue to graduate from law school despite what he described as inadequate opportunities in the profession.
“And every year, they say they have people graduating from law school. Four thousand have graduated from law school, only to end up selling bedsheets,” he added.
His remarks followed criticism of his participation in the NBA’s 66th Annual General Conference, where he featured in a panel session titled “Known Gunmen or Unknown Gunmen.”
Speaking on Channels Television’s programme, Falana had questioned the NBA’s decision to invite the social media personality to speak on national security.
Falana said the association historically invited individuals who had established expertise and had “paid their dues” to engage lawyers on intellectual and professional 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, and so none of our conferences was a circus show in the past,” Falana said
According to him, anyone invited to discuss the country’s security situation should have made a meaningful contribution to Nigeria’s security architecture, whether in the public or private sector.
“So, if you are bringing in an expert to discuss the security of the country, either from the private or public sector, such an individual must have contributed to the security architecture of the country,” he said.
“But when you bring people who have nothing to do with the security of the country, there are problems.”
