Managing Director and Chief Executive of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Barr. Oluwaseun Falaye, has said building public confidence starts with strong, trustworthy institutions.
Speaking at the 2026 Law Week of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Gwagwalada Branch in Abuja on Monday, Barr. Falaye said governance in Nigeria doesn’t just depend on passing laws, but on institutions actually delivering for the people.
“For those of us entrusted with public responsibility, service must mean more than occupying office. It must mean using institutions to protect the vulnerable, to uphold fairness, and to leave systems better than we met them,” he said.
He explained that for the Bar, this means defending the integrity of the law and keeping justice accessible. For institutions like NSITF, it means treating social protection not as charity but as a legal and necessary part of national development.
“For the nation, sustainable progress is impossible where labour is unprotected, where institutions are weak, and where trust is lost,” he added.
Barr. Falaye said one of Nigeria’s biggest challenges is making sure people’s rights match what they actually experience every day.
“Our laws must work for the worker. Our institutions must work for the citizen. And our governance culture must work for the public good,” he said.
He pointed out that public confidence is one of the hardest parts of governance.
Citizens want to know that laws don’t just sit on paper. Workers want protections that actually work. Employers want clarity and fairness. Institutions earn trust by acting fairly and reliably.
Falaye said gatherings like Law Week remind leaders that institutions don’t grow strong just because they exist.
“They become strong when they are led with purpose, run with integrity, and trusted by the people they are meant to serve,” he said.
He highlighted NSITF’s mission, saying its work through the Employees’ Compensation Scheme is guided by one principle: no worker who suffers injury, disease, disability, or death at work should face that alone.
“That principle is legal and moral. It is legal because it is established under the Employees’ Compensation Act. It is moral because it speaks to the kind of society we must build, one where work is not separated from dignity, and productivity is not detached from protection,” he said.
Falaye stressed that trust is built claim by claim, process by process, and decision by decision.
He said discussions often celebrate enterprise and growth without giving attention to the workers who make them possible.
“But behind every factory, office, construction site, transport system, public institution, and service economy are workers who take risks, make sacrifices, and keep the nation moving,” he said.
He said the law is more than just a framework for disputes. “In labour relations, social insurance, compensation systems, and accountability, the law stands between vulnerability and being left alone,” he said.
Falaye noted that everyone—from lawyers to judges to government agencies—has a role in making sure people can trust the system. In the end, people see justice when institutions respond fairly and on time.
In his welcome address, NBA Gwagwalada Branch Chairman, Clever Owhor, said restoring public trust in Nigeria’s legal system is a shared responsibility.
“This year, we are united under a theme that is both timely and urgent: ‘Rebuilding Public Trust in the Nigerian Legal System’,” he said.
Owhor added that many Nigerians are losing confidence in the legal system because of delays, lack of transparency, ethical issues, and barriers to access. He said rebuilding trust is not the job of one institution alone.
“The Bench must continue to uphold independence, integrity, and courage. The Bar must recommit to ethics, professionalism, and fearless advocacy. Government institutions and regulators must embrace transparency and accountability.
Civil society and the media must hold institutions accountable while promoting civic awareness. Young lawyers must rise as a new generation of ethical leaders committed to reform,” he said.
He concluded, “Trust is not demanded—it is earned. And it is earned through consistent, visible, and measurable actions.”