Adama Pindar
Designation
Company Secretary
Company
Galaxy Backbone Limited
Can you share a brief overview of your legal journey and what inspired you to become a lawyer? Also a pivotal moment or experience that inspired you to pursue a career in law?
​
My inspiration to study law started from my secondary school days because of my ability to talk. I was the lead debater, so that ability to speak out in public and speak on issues promptly, before you know it they started calling me lawyer and I think I liked that, so that is where the inspiration comes from.Again, I loved literature so I used to write a lot and read a lot of literature texts so my literature teacher started pushing me to the debating and drama society, she starting motivating and pushing me and told me she knew I will make a good lawyer. Also, I wasn’t good in Maths (laughs).When I finished secondary school, I was offered Architecture, but I insisted I wanted law , so I have always loved Law. I think that is where my inspiration to study law came from. I liked law, because it identified with the literary skills I had.
How can legal organizations, professional associations, and government bodies collaborate to create a more inclusive environment for women in the legal profession, both in terms of representation and career advancement?
​
The collaboration can start with what Hamu Legal is providing - to hear women speak out. This starts with creating events, talk shows for women to come out and speak and inspire the younger women. Women themselves should create initiatives and platforms, be dogged in joining political associations, be heard within govt circles.
Initiate creating platforms for inclusion where our voices can be heard. Again, there are a lot of events that are happening, forums, and platforms. When we have more women going in, even if the opportunity doesn’t create a window we can create a door, come in have those conversations , then the government can come and support. We have a responsibility to play our roles, while doing that govt will also look and bring us on board. Govt is currently doing well, but they can do better.
Reflecting on your career, what legacy do you hope to leave for future generations of women in the legal profession in Nigeria, and what aspirations do you have for the future of inclusivity in the legal system?
​
I will say resilience, patience, to be dogged, and acquire more knowledge. The world is evolving, there are new trends, IT is developing, the law itself is being polished every time there is a new case, of course the old is repealed or modified, so we have to say in tune with current realities and happenings. When I started work here I would say with all sense of modesty that if salaries were anything to go by I would not be here and that is what I always tell people. I understand that it is difficult because people need money. When I joined the bank and my salary here was less than 50,000 and the bank was paying over a 100 people.
However, the decision to move was determined by a number of reasons, for one, I was a nursing mother and the bank did not give me the flexibility I wanted - sometimes women make these sacrifices for a bigger goal. When I resumed it was a new organisation and we did not even have a salary account yet for staff, the first time I was paid my salary, I was issued a cheque to cash over the counter, ideally I wouldn’t take it, but look at where we are now. Have faith. This new role gave me a balance, the challenges were healthier and the professionalism and work ethics have gained here has made up for those other years. I do a lot of induction and I tell the young minds that while the money is good, sometimes self-development will help you in future, staying focus on the money may make you lose opportunities, at some point, you have to ask what you really want. So for me it has paid off. I inspire younger people to see the value they can get here. Galaxy is as professional as you get and you can get values that help you in future. While it is good to make money, it is better to develop yourself.
Women in the legal profession often face unique challenges. Can you share personal experiences where you overcame gender-related obstacles in your career, and how did these experiences shape your approach to inclusivity?
​
On the challenges, this goes without saying and I don’t want to sound feminist but it is the reality. Women are always looked-down, there is this stereotype against women that women cannot make it on the bench or rise in the legal profession. It’s a struggle really to rise to the top.
If I can share personal experiences , when I had the opportunity to become company secretary I faced many challenges because when I came in, I came in as an officer so naturally, when I came in I wasn’t qualified to be they needed someone with experience, the requite years at the bar and so on.
At the time when the opportunity came it was a challenge, they had the impression that I didn’t have the experience and I could npot fit in the role of parenting and wifely roles to that of being a company secretary. It was quite challenging. I was in acting capacity for four years while they kept looking for my replacement. For years I was working effectively so it became a huge jke that the wanted to find my replacement. However, I kept faith and I was alone, the only support I had was a national youth corp member. The bulk of the company secretarial work was on me and yet they were looking for a man to replace me. They would call me a one-man army back then and I agreed. It was challenging , interesting and eye-opening. It taught me a huge lesson - resilience and focus and keeping faith will actually have things work for you.
A total stranger raised a question on why they did not want to confirm me, because I was going to train whoever they brought- I remember the saying that a prophet is not being honoured in his own town. Without them saying it was a gender-related issue, I knew it was. Again, if you look at the ICT industry, there are few women, and so I can now comfortably say I am an IT woman, we are not many women in this industry and we are there. The government is also working so see how we can bring more there and I am glad to be a part of this process.
Balancing professional responsibilities with personal commitments can be challenging. How do you manage this balance, and do you think flexible work policies can contribute to greater inclusivity for women in the legal profession?
​
Sure. As you can see my daughter is here from school instead of going home. She's here and those are some balances we have. There are challenges where you have health challenges in the family, you have children, and school pickups, social events, graduation and all.
There's that challenge that comes. However you need to have a balance, work here provides you with an opportunities to have a balance, like going on leave and giving room to attend these engagements. Flexibility comes in and it is important that we don't take these opportunities for granted. The challenges exist, sometimes work also does not allow me visit my mum for weeks even though we’re both in Abuja. However, growth comes with a price. We try and balance it, we make time to ensure that family doesn’t suffer. We understand that if you are not happy at home work suffers and vice versa.
Closing Statement
​
IWD is about celebrating women and how they are able to keep up with the challenges of parenting, job res etc. It is interesting. The fact that globally there is a day that seeks to celebrate women, it means that the world acknowledges how important women are . Women bring value. It also means women make sacrifices. It is also good that back home and the people within the legal space are doing this. I am Hamu Legal and I am glad you found me worthy to share my story to add value. I hope you continue these innovative projects and come up with more ides on how we can have these inclusive conversations. It’s not so bad out there. I celebrate all the women out there. The groundnut seller out there,. The woman selling water is passionate and every woman contributes in her way and is passionate in her space.
Finally, I encourage women to embrace financial independence, there is so much freedom that comes with owning your own money.