Akangbe, SAN: Development Impossible Without Meaningful Inclusion Of Women Based On Merit

*Receives Emerita Award at Joint FIDA Law Week

Lateef Omoyemi Akangbe, SAN, former Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association Lagos Branch, has stated that development is impossible without the meaningful inclusion of women in leadership and governance, emphasizing that such inclusion must be based on capacity, competence, and proven ability rather than tokenism or emotional grounds.

Akangbe made the statement while speaking as a panelist at the Joint FIDA Law Week, where he addressed the theme “Transforming Rhetoric to Reality.”

His message was clear and consistent that development is impossible without the meaningful inclusion of women—not as a favour, not as tokenism, and certainly not on emotional ground, but on capacity, competence, and proven ability.

He reaffirmed his long-standing commitment to advocating for women’s inclusion in leadership, governance, and decision-making spaces, emphasizing that qualified and capable women deserve equal opportunities to lead and contribute to national development.

“When inclusion is driven by merit and fairness, everyone wins and society moves forward,” Akangbe stated.

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— The Nigeria Lawyer (@Nigerialawyers) December 23, 2025

During his presentation, Akangbe emphasized that leadership should be determined by capability rather than gender.

“There are good men, there are good women. The fact that a woman does it means that you do well as a leader. You must look at capacity, competence,” he said.

The senior advocate cautioned against opportunistic support for women’s causes.

“Somebody has never identified with FIDA before but because we give feedback now, we then come forward. There’s something off about it,” he noted.

Akangbe provided a balanced perspective on leadership performance across genders.

“I don’t give example of two women, one that does very well. I’m saying that men have muted before, women have muted before. That’s the point I’m making. There’s no just a man thing. Man can do, woman can do. It’s about your capacity, your competence, your ability to do these things,” he stated.

At the event, Akangbe was presented with an Emerita Award in recognition of his role as panelist and his long-standing support for FIDA Nigeria.

The award was presented by a senior advocate identified as “Sir Kanungbe, SAL.”

In presenting the award, FIDA officials praised Akangbe for his support during their leadership training and his contributions to the association.

“You have been very, very wonderful during my leadership training. That was the first time we were able to collect 500 [likely referring to membership or funds] from Lagos NBA branch. And it was under his leadership. So he has always been very supportive to us,” a FIDA official stated.

The Emerita Award was presented in recognition of Akangbe’s role as panelist at the Law Week, which was organized and put together by FIDA Nigeria Lagos City branch in a joint Law Week involving Lagos, Badagry, Epe, and Ikorodu branches.

Lateef Omoyemi Akangbe, SAN, is a former Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association Lagos Branch, one of the largest and most influential branches of the NBA.

As a senior advocate, he has been consistently vocal on issues of governance, democracy, and professional development within the legal profession.

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