Social media activist Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, has fired back at lawyers who criticised his invitation to the Nigerian Bar Association’s 66th Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt.
He claimed that the legal profession can no longer claim the status of a noble profession in Nigeria.
VeryDarkMan, who was invited to speak at the conference on the country’s worsening insecurity, made the remarks while reacting to the criticism that greeted his appearance among legal practitioners.
In a video shared on social media on Friday, the activist said his participation was justified because he used the platform to speak for poor Nigerians and others who, according to him, had no voice in the country.
“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 presence at the lawyers’ gathering had generated such a strong reaction, suggesting that some lawyers were uncomfortable because someone outside the legal profession had been given a platform at their conference.
“Because a son of nobody was seen in your midst,” he said.
Turning his attention to the legal profession, VeryDarkMan rejected the argument that law remained a noble profession, saying the economic realities confronting many lawyers did not support such a description.
“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.”
He further described law as one of the poorest professions in the country, arguing that many trained lawyers were either unemployed or no longer practising.
“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.”
The activist challenged lawyers to examine the employment situation within their profession, particularly the number of qualified practitioners who have jobs or regularly appear 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 wisdom of continuing to graduate thousands of lawyers every year when many struggle to find opportunities within 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 comments came days after his appearance at the NBA conference triggered debate among lawyers and members of the public, with some questioning why a social media activist was invited to address a gathering of legal professionals.
VeryDarkMan had participated in a panel session on insecurity, where he spoke about security challenges affecting Nigerians and shared his views on the role of public institutions in tackling the problem.
Despite the criticism, he has defended his participation, maintaining that issues such as insecurity affect all Nigerians and should not be left exclusively to lawyers, politicians or other professionals to discuss.
