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| Prof. Itse Sagay (SAN) |
The Chairman of the Presidential
Advisory Committee against Corruption, Prof. Itse Sagay (SAN), and human
rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), have condemned the move by the
Senate to amend the law setting up the Code of Conduct Bureau and the
Code of Conduct Tribunal, with a view to whittling down the agencies’
powers.
The Senior Advocates of Nigeria said the
commencement of the amendment of the Act, establishing the CCB and CCT
by the Senate, had exposed the intention of the country’s legislators to
encourage corrupt practices and shield corrupt leaders from
prosecution.
The Senate, on Thursday, passed for
second reading, a bill for to amend the CCB and Tribunal Act barely 48
hours after its presentation by the sponsor, Senator Peter Nwaoboshi,
(Peoples Democratic Party, Delta North), on the floor of the upper
chamber.
It has also set Tuesday next week to
begin deliberation on another bill meant to amend the Administration of
Criminal Justice Act that will remove the powers of the CCT to try
criminal cases.
Both bills were presented on the floor of the upper chamber and read for the first time on Tuesday.
Some observers wondered if the rush to
pass the bill to amend the CCB Act was not a ploy by the red chamber to
frustrate the current trial of the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, at
the CCT.
The Senate President is facing criminal
prosecution for alleged false and anticipatory asset declaration during
his tenure as the Kwara State governor between 2003 and 2011.
Saraki had instituted serial suits at
the Federal High Court in Abuja, where he had challenged the
constitution of the CCT to try his case.
He also instituted a suit challenging the jurisdiction of the CCT to try him.
The Senate President pursued the suits to the Supreme Court but lost.
Another of his suits seeks to stop his trial before the CCT on the basis that the trial violated his fundamental human rights.
The court has fixed Friday (today) to deliver judgment on the case.
But Sagay said the move by the senators
had exposed the level of lack of moral integrity on the part of the
members of the red chamber.
Sagay stated, “It’s a surprise to me,
because I really don’t know that our mentality has degenerated to such a
level of self-service that the people, who were sent to the National
Assembly to make laws for the benefit of all Nigerians, have started a
process that will allow a complete crisis; an Act that corruption cannot
be prosecuted.
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| Femi Falana |
“To me, this is the highest level of
shameless misconduct by the generality of the members of the red
chamber. Obviously, there is no limit to the level of disgusting things
they can do.”
Falana, in his reaction on Thursday,
described the proposed amendment of the CCB/T Act and the ACJ Act as an
ill wind that would blow no good to those behind it.
Speaking with one of our correspondents
on the telephone, Falana said the proposed amendment amounted to a
conflict of interest because it was being proposed because of one man.
He, however, pointed out that even if
the amendment succeeded, by virtue of the provisions of the
constitution, it would not have a retroactive effect, adding that it
would not have any effect on cases already pending in court.
Falana said, “Any amendment of the law
under the constitution cannot and will not have retrospective effect.
The amendment will not have any effect on pending cases in court.
“The excuse being advanced for the
devilish agenda is jejune because the CCT, whose members are screened
for appointment by the Senate, cannot be said to be under the office of
the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
“The proposed amendment also amounts to a
conflict of interest because you cannot, because of one man, amend the
law of the land. It will amount to an exercise in futility.”
Another SAN, Mr. Kunle Ogunba, believed
it was doubtful that the Senate would want to take such a step,
especially in view of the public outcry against corruption in the
country.
Ogunba, who said having not seen the
provisions of the said bill, he could not give a detailed response,
doubted whether any amendment to the CCT Act could affect a trial that
was already ongoing before the CCT.
Ogunba said, “Well, I have not seen the
provisions (of the bill) and I don’t know if it will have a retroactive
effect to the extent that it will affect a case that is already
instituted and ongoing.
“For me, it is still a subject of
speculation. And I don’t think that the Senate, in view of the outcry
that has attended the ongoing trial of the Senate President, will do
anything that will further enmesh that august institution in further
controversy by passing a law to undermine or terminate the proceedings.
“But if it is true, it is very condemnable.”
In his lead debate, Nwaoboshi said the
Act, promulgated in 1989, came into operation in 1991 based on the
provisions of the 1979 Constitution.
He explained that the Act captured in
the 1999 Constitution had two schedules, dealing extensively with the
Code of Conduct for Public Officers.
The Bureau, he said, was vested with
power to receive declarations by public officers made under paragraph 12
of Part 1 of the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution and examine the
declarations in accordance with the requirements of the code of conduct
or any law.
He stated that the CCB was empowered to
retain custody of such declarations and make them available for
inspection by citizens of Nigeria on such terms and conditions as the
National Assembly might prescribe.
Nwaoboshi added that the bureau was
meant to ensure compliance with, and where appropriate, enforce the
provisions of the Code of Conduct of any law relating to it and receive
complaints about non-compliance with or breach of the provisions of the
CCB.
He, however, said he was proposing an
amendment to Section three of the CCB and Tribunal Act to give every
public officer appearing before the Bureau fair hearing as provided for
under Section 36 (2)(a) of the CFRN 1999.
The section, he said, “provides for an
opportunity for the person whose rights and obligations may be affected
to make representations to the administering authority before that
authority makes the decision affecting that person”.
Nwaoboshi said, “In my proposed
amendment, the section now looks like this; “The functions of the Bureau
shall be to – (a) receive asset declarations by officers in accordance
with the provisions of this Act; and (b) take and retain custody of such
asset declarations.
“It shall examine the asset declarations
and ensure that they comply with the requirements of this Act and of
any law for the time being in force if otherwise the Bureau shall invite
the public officer concerned and take down his statement in writing.
“It shall receive complaints about
non-compliance with or breach of this Act and where the Bureau, having
regard to any statement taken or to be taken after such subsequent
complaint is made, considers it necessary to do so.
“It shall investigate the complaint and
where appropriate, refer such complaints to the Code of Conduct Tribunal
established by Section 20 of this Act and the constitution in
accordance with the provisions of sections 20 to 25 of this Act.
“From the above, it is clear that
sub-section 3(a) has been retained while sub-section 3(c) now becomes
sub-section 3(b) and sub-sections 3(c) and (3d) have been altered to
give fair hearing, equity and justice to every public officer that is
invited to appear before the Bureau in line with the constitutional
provision as enumerated above.
“Paragraph 17 of the Third Schedule to the Principal Act is amended by completely deleting same.
“This is because if you look at the
caption of the Act, after Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act, it
reads, “An Act to provide for the establishment of the Code of Conduct
Bureau and Tribunal to deal with complaints of Corruption by Public
Servants for breach of its provisions.
“It is clear that the Act does not
contemplate criminal trial so the usage of Criminal Procedure Act and
the Criminal Procedure Code should not be used as a procedural template
in the Tribunal.”
The senator pledged to present to the
Senate, in due course, a comprehensive amendment of the Third Schedule
to the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Rules of procedure which
should be the Distinct Rules for proceedings in the CCT.
Senators Dino Melaye, Barau Jubrin,
Samuel Anyanwu, Biodun Olujimi, Buka Abba Ibrahim and Ibrahim Gobir, who
contributed to the debate, described it as a welcome development,
saying the bill deserved the support of all senators.
But the Senator representing Kebbi
North, Yahaya Abdullahi, cautioned his colleagues against the passage of
the bill at the time when Saraki was facing trial before the CCT.
Abdullahi said, “I just rise to raise a
point of caution. I have read and gone through the areas where the
amendments are sought and I am not against it, but what I have against
is the timing. “We must be ready on the issue of public perception about the position of the Senate in this regard.
“Perception can be reality, the Nigerian
people can easily interprete the action we are taking today to mean
that for all these years, a decree, which became law since 1991, is not
being challenged until today because our principal officer is standing
trial before the same tribunal.
“I think for the credibility of this
Senate, I think we should re-examine whether the timing is right for
this bill to go through the second reading or not.”
But the Deputy Senate President, Ike
Ekweremadu, who presided over the plenary, ruled out the observation of
Abdullahi, arguing that the bill was not meant to frustrate Saraki’s
trial at the CCT.
Ekweremadu said, “Let me just say that
this bill absolutely has nothing to do with the proceedings going on at
the Code of Conduct Tribunal in which the Senate President is involved
because his trial has commenced as you are aware.
“If you look at the commencement of the
bill of the last paragraph, of course, on the bill which says ‘this bill
may be sighted as a code of conduct bureau tribunal Act amendment bill,
2016’.
“That means that the bill is not being
made retrospective as to affect the proceedings at the code of conduct
tribunal; certainly it has nothing to do with it. We are only doing our
work as parliamentarians.”
The senators voted in support of the
passage of the bill for the second reading and Ekweremadu referred the
bill to the committees on Public Petitions and Judiciary and asked them
to report back in two weeks.
Investigations by our correspondent
revealed that the bill would eventually be passed in the next two weeks
and transmitted to President Muhammadu Buhari for assent.
The Senate is also set to begin
deliberation on the bill to amend the Administration of Criminal Justice
Act 2015, with a provision to strip the CCT and courts martial and
other tribunals in the country.
The bill, sponsored by Senator Isa
Misau, and read for the first time on Tuesday, had been slated for
deliberation next week Tuesday.
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