Self-acclaimed activist, Mr. Martins Vincent Otse, aka, VeryDarkMan, has described law as one of the poorest professions in Nigeria while launching scathing attack at lawyers who criticised his invitation to the Nigerian Bar Association’s 66th Annual General Conference.
VDM was invited to participate in a panel session on insecurity at the NBA conference in Port Harcourt, where he spoke about the security challenges confronting Nigerians and shared his experiences as a social activist.
His appearance at the conference, however, triggered sharp criticism from some members of the legal profession, with questions raised over why the NBA invited him to address lawyers.
While reacting in a video shared on his official Facebook page on Friday, VeryDarkMan said he attended the conference to represent Nigerians who, he claimed, often lacked the platform to express their concerns.
“I spoke on behalf of the poor people. I spoke on behalf of the people that don’t have a voice,” he said.
He added: “Because a son of nobody was seen in your midst.”
The activist then challenged the perception of law as a noble profession, taking particular aim at lawyers who criticised his presence at the conference.
“This bunch of clowns are telling me that law is a noble profession,” he said.
He added, “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.”
VeryDarkMan argued that many lawyers struggle to secure employment or establish sustainable legal practices, 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.
“Because we never talk about it. Law is one of the most broke professions. One of the poorest professions in this country is law.”
He further questioned the number of qualified lawyers who have jobs and regularly practise in court.
“How many lawyers are there? How many lawyers have jobs? How many lawyers actually go to court? Ask yourself that,” he said.
The activist also questioned the number of graduates produced by the Nigerian Law School each year in relation to available 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.
