Inibehe Effiong is a human rights and public interest lawyer, activist and social crusader. He has written extensively on important legal issues and the myriad of problems besetting Nigeria. His articles and opinions are regularly published in major newspapers and online mediums in Nigeria. He is also a regular guests on national televisions where he discusses legal, political and human rights issues. He obtained an LL.B in 2014 from the Prestigious Faculty of Law, University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State. While in the university, he was actively involved in student unionism.
Inibehe attended the Nigerian Law School, Lagos Campus, April 2014 Set, where he was elected as the President (Chairperson) of the Student Representatives Council (SRC) and was called to the Nigerian Bar as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria on October 20, 2015.
Inibehe went into private legal practice after completing his mandatory one year National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme as a Legal Officer in the Ondo State Ministry of Justice. He is the Principal Counsel at Inibehe Effiong Chambers with the head office in Ikeja, Lagos State and a branch office in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
As a public interest lawyer, Inibehe has instituted and participated in several landmark public interest cases in Nigeria. He has sued the President of Nigeria, the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, the National Assembly, the Attorney General of the Federation and others on different occasions over actions which he perceived to be unconstitutional and illegal.
He has also filed several fundamental rights enforcement cases on behalf of oppressed Nigerians in different courts across the country. He has successfully defended many activists, protesters and student unionists who were prosecuted on trump-up charges.
Some of his notable cases in the area of human rights and public interest are:
As lawyer to Mr Charles Oputa alias Charly Boy, he won a N50 million lawsuit against the Nigeria Police Force at the Federal High Court in Abuja in October 2018 over the attack on Charly Boy and others during the resume or resign protest at the Unity Fountain when President Buhari was away from Nigeria for over 100 days. The judgment has been reaffirmed by the Court of Appeal.
He defended the Next-of-Kin of the late primary school teachers in Akwa Ibom State who were arrested and prosecuted for protesting in front of the Government House over the non-payment of their entitlements. The court dismissed the charges in February, 2018.
He also mobilized Nigerians in defence of Mr. Chinakwe, the Ogun State man who arrested and prosecuted by the Nigeria Police for naming his dog Buhari. The case filed by the police was dismissed in July 2017.
He defended four protesters in Ogun State who were arrested and charged to court for taking part in the RevolutionNow protest on the 5th of August, 2019. The court dismissed the charges in October, 2019.
In 2018, he sued the Governor of Akwa Ibom State for failing to release the report of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the tragic collapse of the Reigners Bible Church. The governor released the report afterwards.
He dragged President Buhari to court for failing to handover over power to Vice President Osinbajo when he embarked on a “private visit” to London in April 2019 and also challenged the legality of the appointment of the current DG of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).
Inibehe also challenged the imposition of fines on radio and television stations in the country for alleged hate speech by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) and the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed at the Federal High Court in Lagos.
Inibehe also sued the Nigerian Government over the ban on Twitter on the country.
He has successfully defended many journalists, bloggers and broadcasters in Nigeria who have been sued for libel or arrested for alleged criminal defamation or cybercrime on account of their work, including Kufre Carter.
He was one of the lawyers who represented victims of Lekki Toll Gate shooting at the Lagos State Judicial Panel of Inquiry.
Apart from his human rights and public interest cases and advocacies, Inibehe is a consummate private legal practitioner and a prominent face in the legal community in Nigeria. As a young lawyer, he has distinguished himself in legal practice.
He currently serves as the National Legal Adviser of the African Action Congress (AAC), and successfully led the legal battle in different courts to recover the party from the grip of sponsored usurpers who had hijacked the party in 2019.
Inibehe, who describes himself as “the enemy of oppressors”, has received several awards and recognitions for his contributions to the cause of human rights, social justice and democracy in Nigeria, including the 2022 Gani Fawehinmi Outstanding Impact Award. His favourite dictum is that “History will vindicate the just.”
