Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee Dismisses Petitioner’s Complaint, says Kalu Clean

By Praise Chinecherem

The Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) has dismissed a complaint filed against Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, saying no prima facie case was established against him.

The ruling, certified true copy reference BB/LPDC/1954/2026 signed by Umeh Kalu, SAN, a senior member of the LPDC panel, delivered a decisive verdict in favour of the respondent, effectively closing the matter without requiring him to respond to the allegations.

Readers would recall that the complaint was brought by one John Aikpokpo Martins Esq., who alleged that Hon. Kalu formerly known as Benjamin Okezie Osisiogu before a legal name change had simultaneously participated in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme while attending the Nigerian Law School, in alleged violation of the NYSC Act.

The applicant further alleged that this dual participation amounted to false declarations, which he claimed formed the basis of the respondent’s call to Bar on September 6, 2011, and subsequent enrollment on the Roll of Legal Practitioners at the Supreme Court of Nigeria on October 5, 2011.

However, the LPDC panel, in a thorough and unambiguous opinion, found the complaint fundamentally flawed both procedurally and substantively.

On procedure, the panel noted that the Statement of Facts was erroneously addressed to the Chairman of the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee rather than the Chairman of the LPDC, as required under Rule 4 of the LPDC Rules, 2020. While the panel chose to overlook this error, it could not rescue the complaint on merit.

More critically, the panel held that the allegations touching on NYSC participation, Nigerian Law School training, and enrollment at the Supreme Court fall entirely outside the LPDC’s jurisdiction.

The LPDC, it stressed, is established solely to regulate the professional conduct of enrolled legal practitioners in the discharge of their duties to the public, as provided under Section 10 of the Legal Practitioners Act.

“The LPDC cannot interrogate the operations of the Nigerian Law School, the Council of Legal Education, the NYSC and the Body of Benchers,” the ruling stated.

The panel further noted that the alleged infractions, even if true, occurred before the respondent was called to the Bar placing them squarely beyond the LPDC’s inquisitorial reach.

“No prima facie case is established,” the ruling concluded — fully exonerating Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu.

Efforts to get Kalu’s response to the ruling was not available as calls and text messages sent to his phone were not replied to.