People are motivated and driven in many ways to pursue a career in law but rarely does the desire to cover one’s baldness somewhat become a motivation.
For Joseph Sefah Duah, who many may know also as Bomba, it may be a lesser driving factor but the thought of covering his baldness in any which way possible is always an alluring one. “I procured a wig to cover my baldness,” he said in a jest in reference to the white wigs that lawyers wear on top of stark black robes as a symbol of authority.
Bomba’s attempt to introduce a note of levity to the pride in wearing the Barrister’s wig is an indication of his personality; affable, confident, and self-driven.
But then, when he suddenly leaned back and reclined his seat with his eyes brightened, he revealed his deeper thoughts and inner most desire and lust for the legal profession. “Many people are suffering from various ill-treatments especially employees and they have nowhere to go or who to turn to. So for me, my desire is to help these people and be the voice for the voiceless in any which way I possibly can.”
Bomba was among a cohort of 1,092 newly qualified Barrister’s and Solicitors of the Supreme Court of Ghana recently called to the Bar.
Prior to joining the prestigious Bar, he had cut his teeth in the insurance industry, working and holding senior management positions in various insurance companies from Quality Insurance Company to KEK Insurance Brokers to Prudential Life Insurance. His last engagement as an insurer was with GLICO Life Assurance where he was the Chief Sales Officer, (General Manager).
These positions followed Bomba’s previous endeavours as a Graduate Teaching Assistant at the University of Cape Coast and a brief stint as a soldier in the British Army. While he seemed accomplished in the insurance space, he felt inadequate at the same time and when he found the law, it dawned on him what he had been yearning for all the while. And it was not difficult to know why the Bar is a profession involving duties and privileges.
“The privilege is a right of audience in the courts of Ghana and, in a more general way, of representing someone in court and being their voice,” he said. The duty “is nothing less than the duty to promote and uphold the rule of law. Though I have good academic qualifications and rich working experience, reading Law is the best decision I made.
But the decision to read law came with a price tag Bomba had to pay: physiologically, spiritually and emotionally.
“I have been drained spiritually, emotionally, financially, lost relationships, friends and opportunities. I broke down so many times but nobody would believe me and a lot of people were looking up to me so I had no option than to keep moving.
“Disappointments along the way but I had very good friends who believed in me and supported and encouraged me. I slept on floors in people offices for months just to read. I slept on tables in my office and the security guards were my friends and kept checking up on me in the nights. I am so grateful to my family for understanding me and giving the time and the needed support to read Law.”
While the task of completing a professional law degree has been fulfilled, the bigger test lies ahead where he will be required to courageously represent and advance his client’s case in a courteous manner that falls within the bounds of the rules of ethics and the duty to the court.
And that is what Bomba is eagerly awaiting to do as he completes his pupilage.
For now, he just wants to help people with the keen mind and dedication. With a combined Masters in Population Studies from the University of Ghana and Master in Business Administration (marketing option) from the University of Ghana Business School, in addition to Bachelor of Honors Degree in Social Sciences (Economics and Sociology) from the University of Cape Coast, Bachelor of Honors Degree in Law, as well as a Diploma in Insurance (CII-UK) and also from the Ghana Insurance College, Bomba hopes to draw from his experience and education to be an invaluable asset not only to any firm he finds himself, but to advancing Ghana’s reputation as a leader in the legal sphere.
