The Code of Conduct Bureau recently filed a 13- count false declaration of assets charge against Senate President, Dr Olusola Saraki. Here is a timeline of the trial which has been adjourned till October 21st and deface by Saraki who did not honour the invitation of the tribunal until September 22nd.
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The Federal Ministry of Justice on Friday asked the Code of Conduct Tribunal to issue bench warrant for the arrest of the Senate President, Bukola Saraki.
Mr. M.S Hassan, a deputy director in the office of the Attorney General of the Federation, applied for the warrant of arrest, following the Senate President’s refusal to appear before the tribunal on Thursday.
The Code of Conduct Bureau has filed a 13- count corruption charge against Saraki for failing to properly declare his assets.
Saraki, who was expected in court on Friday, sent his team of lawyers to serve the tribunal with a copy of the ruling delivered by Justice Ahmed Mohammed of the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court, Thursday, which summoned the Ministry of Justice to appear on Monday to explain why the trial should be allowed to proceed.
Equally summoned by the court were the Chairman of the tribunal, Justice Danladi Umar, that of the Code of Conduct Bureau, Mr. Sam Saba and Mr. Hassan, who signed the charge against Saraki.
Senate President, Abubakar Bukola Saraki, on Wednesday described as frivolous the allegation of corrupt practices leveled against him by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB).
Saraki, in a statement issued by his media office, said the CCB is under external influence.
The CCB reportedly slammed a 13-count charge on corruption against the Senate President on Tuesday.
The report noted that in charge number ABT/01/15, dated September 11 and filed before the Code of Conduct Tribunal, Saraki was accused of offences ranging from non- declaration of assets to making false declaration of assets in forms he filed before the CCB while he was governor of Kwara State.
[ad id=”403656″]The Senate President was also accused of failing to declare some assets he acquired while in office as governor.
But Saraki wondered why the CCB had to wait for 12 years before coming up with the allegation that the asset declaration he submitted was fraught with inconsistency and fraud.
He noted that CCB, following its processes in which after a declaration is submitted to the bureau, ought to have carried out verification of the assets and ascertain the claims made and not wait till 12 years later to point out alleged inconsistencies in a document submitted to it in 2003.
He said that contrary to the procedure indicated in the law setting up the CCB, the bureau never wrote to him to complain of any inconsistency in his asset declaration forms.
President Muhammadu Buhari has assured that his declared assets and those of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will be released to the public after the completion of their verification by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) in fulfilment of one of their campaign promises.
The Senior Special Assistant, SSA (Media and Publicity), Mal. Garba Shehu who announced this in a statement on behalf of the President on Saturday , said “the duly completed forms by both the President and the Vice President were submitted to the CCB on March 28th, a clear day ahead of their inauguration.”
Shehu said the process will hopefully be completed before the expiry of the 100-day deadline within which they said they would do this.
He said the clarification was warranted by some suggestions that the President and the Vice-President may not, after all, declare their assets publicly.
“While such public display of concern is appreciated and valued, it must be said that it is a little precipitate.
“As required by law, the declaration and submission of documents to the CCB have been made, but there still remains the aspect of verification which the Bureau will have to conduct to authenticate the submissions made to it.
“In the circumstances, it is only after this verification exercise, and not before, that the declaration can be said to have been made and validated; and only after this, will the details be released to the public.
“There is no question at all that the President and the Vice President are committed to public declaration of their assets within the 100 days that they pledged during the presidential campaign.
“The President and the Vice President wish to thank Nigerians for their show of concern, and for the confidence they have shown in their leaders’ integrity, as evidenced by the high pedestal of uprightness and expectations on which they have placed them,” Shehu stated.
The Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) said yesterday it won’t take up issues with aggrieved persons over an alleged fraud.
In a statement by its Head of Press and Protocol Unit, Iyabo Akinwale, the Bureau said: “The Board and Management wish to state categorically that the Bureau does not wish to be involved in the matter of any aggrieved person.
“Anyone who is aggrieved should use the appropriate channel to express his or her grievances rather than engage in hate publication aimed at tarnishing the image of the Bureau.
“The Bureau refuses to be distracted at this point and solicit the support of all patriotic Nigerians and the Media in the fight against corruption as we are ready to work with the incoming administration in this regard”.
The Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) yesterday urged the ministers, who were sacked last Wednesday from President Goodluck Jonathan’s cabinet, to declare their assets.
A statement by Mrs Iyabo Akinwale, the Head of Press and Protocol Unit of CCB in Abuja, said the directive was in accordance with “Paragraph 11 of the 5th Schedule, Part One of the 1999 Constitution”.
The statement said the schedule provides that every public officer shall, within three months after coming into force of this bureau or immediately after taking office and at the end of every four years, submit to it a written declaration of all properties, assets and liabilities.
The Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) yesterday said it prosecuted 371 cases between 2011 and last year.
It said in a report made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja,that 10 convictions were secured while 293 of the cases were struck out.
The report said 68 of the cases were still pending before the Code of Conduct Tribunal, while 278 petitions were received and considered.
CCB added that investigations into 67 of the petitions were concluded while 30 petitions are being investigated.
ICPC chief rejects foreign account for public officers
EFCC not after President’s enemies, says Lamorde
House of Representatives Speaker Aminu Waziri Tambuwal condemned yesterday President Goodluck Jonathan’s attitude to the anti-corruption battle.
He faulted the President’s handling of the N255million bullet proof cars scandal, the pension scam and the “rot” in the Securities and Exchange Commission(SEC).
Tambuwal said the President’s body language was promoting corruption, adding that the administration has not addressed high-profile corruption cases exposed by the legislature.
Tambuwal was responding to questions after presenting a paper at a one-day roundtable to mark the International Anti-corruption Day by the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) in Abuja.
He spoke on the “Role of the legislature as the vanguard for anti-corruption crusade in Nigeria”.
Tambuwal said: “Take the subsidy probe, the pension, the SEC probe and recently the bullet proof car cases. After the House of Representatives did a diligent job by probing and exposing the cases, you now see something else when it comes to prosecution.
“In some cases, you have the government setting up new committees to duplicate the job already done by the parliament. Take the bullet proof cars case; the NSA, with all the security challenges confronting the country, should not be burdened with a job that can best be handled by the anti-corruption agencies.
“The government has no business setting up any administrative committee in a case that is clear to all Nigerians. What the President should have done was to explicitly direct the EFCC to probe the matter. With such directives coming from the President, I am sure we still have good people in EFCC who can do a good job.
“By setting up different committees for straightforward cases, the President’s body language doesn’t tend to support the fight against corruption.”
Earlier in his paper, Tambuwal identified corruption as the bane of Nigeria’s development.
He said: “For us in Nigeria, the reality that no greater challenge than corruption confronts us as a people is not in controversy. Indeed, if the roots of the overwhelming majority of our woes were traced, they are sure to terminate at the doorsteps of corruption.
“This is a commonplace fact known to all Nigerians and requiring no corroboration. Yet, for the avoidance of doubt, it is important to state that in its 2012 Global Corruption Perception Index (CPI) by the global corruption watchdog, Transparency International ranks Nigeria as the 36th most corrupt country globally! Nigeria placed 139th of the 176 countries assessed, scoring 27% in contrast with the least corrupt countries; Denmark, Finland and New Zealand, which scored 90%.
“A survey of the social media showed that 98% of Nigerians who commented not only agreed with the country’s corruption ranking but, in fact, felt Transparency International was too generous to Nigeria.
“A few of the comments read: ‘We don’t need a report to tell us what we already know”, another ‘Wow, I taught (sic) we were No.1. I wonder what country (sic) is before us. We all need prayers and serious fasting for our nation”. The other “to be fair, I always thought Nigeria is the most corrupt country in the world”, yet another, “Me too… 35th is actually being nice”.
“A list of manifestation of corruption, especially in the public sector of Nigeria, is legion, ranging from direct diversion of public funds to private pockets, contract over-pricing, bribery, impunity, nepotism, general financial recklessness, fraudulent borrowing and debt management, public assets stripping, electoral fraud, shielding of corrupt public officers; among others.
“It is a well established fact that corruption thrives well in any environment or society where there is community indifference or lack of enforcement policies. Societies with a culture of ritualised gift, giving where the line between acceptable and non-acceptable gifts is often hard to draw. Societies in which values have been overthrown by materialism, societies in which laws are observed more in the breach.
“It would appear that these environmental preconditions are all prevalent in the Nigerian society and no wonder, therefore, that corruption has found fertile soil to blossom.”
Tambuwal said the legislature had done its best to enact laws to fight corruption.
He said if the laws had been strictly applied, Nigeria would have gone a long way in reducing corruption.
He, however, confirmed moves by the National Assembly to make the anti-corruption agencies independent.
He said: “In the exercise of this mandate, the National Assembly has enacted the Code of Conduct Bureau and Code of Conduct Tribunal, The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act 2002 and The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission Act 2000′ for the purpose of investigating and prosecuting public officers and other persons suspected of involvement in corrupt practices.
“In both legislations, the Commissions are given extensive powers of investigation and prosecution to deal with all cases of corrupt practices and abuse of office that may arise.
With respect to the specific objective of injecting transparency and accountability in the management of the resources of the nation, the National Assembly enacted the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007 and the Public Procurement Act 2007. Both legislations make copious provisions aimed at engendering transparency and accountability in the public space.
“I make bold to say that if the provisions of these legislations and indeed others were diligently enforced, significant milestones would have been accomplished in the fight against corruption and corrupt practices in Nigeria. Sadly, however, these Legislations are observed more in the breach by the majority, including government and government agencies.
“I am pleased to report that the House of Representatives is currently working on some proposals for the reform of these laws, with a view to reinforcing the independence of the agencies administering these laws including their mode of constitution and disbandment. I wish, therefore, to call on members of the NBA and indeed all Nigerians to prepare to buy into these reforms by making their inputs now or when the time comes for public hearings.
Tambuwal condemned undue secrecy surrounding government activities.
He pleaded with Nigerians to take advantage of the Freedom of Information Act to check secrecy in government.
He added: “One other area, which has been of great concern, is the culture of undue secrecy that surrounds the operation of government. Whereas our Constitution enjoins in its Section 14 (2) (c) that ‘the participation of the people in their government shall be ensured in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution” government business tended to be run like secret societies to the exclusion of the citizenry.
“It was clear that this tended and was indeed intended to aid the concealment of corruption, such that even in times of suspicion, members of the public, including gentlemen of the fourth realm, could not access public information.
“The National Assembly has passed the Freedom of Information Act 2011 to enhance the right of access to public records and information about public institutions. This is one Legislation that attracted massive public interest and it is my expectation that Nigerians will make maximum use of the right created under this legislation in order to defeat the culture of undue secrecy in the running of government business.”
The Speaker took time to justify the oversight functions of the National Assembly.
He said: “The other function of the legislature is oversight of the other arms of government. Section 88 mandates the National Assembly to investigate the conduct of affairs of any person, authority, ministry or government department charged or intended to be charged with the duty of or responsibility for( i) Executing or administering laws enacted by the National Assembly or ( ii) Disbursing or administering moneys appropriated or to be appropriated by the National Assembly.
“The main object of investigation according to sub section 2 (a) and (b) of Section 88 is for law reform and to expose corruption, inefficiency or waste in the execution or administration of laws or administration or disbursement of public funds. Similar provision is made in Section 128 of the constitution for legislatures at the sub-national levels.
“Another critical role of the Legislature is the provision of adequate funding for Anti Corruption Agencies through appropriation. Unfortunately, efforts to exercise this function by the legislature is often misconstrued by the executive arm and even some members of the public. Yet without adequate funding, the anti-corruption agencies can not execute their functions satisfactorily. I wish to call on the other arms of government and indeed the general public to corroborate with us in the exercise of this mandate.
“It is in exercise of this mandate that the House of Representatives and indeed the National Assembly has been carrying out oversight of government agencies and series of investigations or probes over allegations of corruption and corrupt practices. As you are all aware, the legislature has over the years exposed several cases of corruption.
“It is important for me to stress once again at this stage that the mandate of the legislature is to expose corruption. It does not have further mandate to prosecute. That mandate of prosecution lies with the Executive and Judiciary. I have heard public comments to the effect that the public is tired of investigation by the legislature since the people indicted in their findings are never prosecuted and sanctioned.
“Let me reiterate that the Legislature will not abdicate its responsibilities on the account of inaction or negligence of another arm of government. If nothing else we will at least continue to name and shame. As noted earlier, the war against corruption is the responsibility of all and I call on the citizens of this great nation to rise in the exercise of their constitutional power to insist on the prosecution and sanctioning of persons indicted by the Legislature or by any agency whether public or private concerned in the fight against corruption.
“In the exercise of the mandate of oversight the legislature is able to audit both pre and post expenditure of agencies of government and to give appropriate direction on the administration and disbursement of funds and execution of programs and projects under the Appropriation Act. Indeed the Public Accounts Committee of both the House and Senate has the specific mandate to review the disbursement and administration of public funds by ministries, Departments and Agencies.
“As representatives of the people, Legislators will continue to be for all Nigerians their eyes to see, ears to hear and mouth to speak out against corruption anywhere and at anytime it rears its ugly head.
“The task may appear daunting but I wish to assure that wit will, zeal, passion and determination, we shall eventually overcome this hydra-headed dragon. Only let us be single minded that it’s a task that must be done in order to preserve the country for posterity.
The Chairman of the Code of Conduct Bureau(CCB), Mr. Sam Saba, rejected moves to legalise operation of foreign account by public officers.
He said such a policy would encourage money laundering.
His words: “Legalising the operation of foreign account for public officers will further encourage money laundering. In some African countries, refusal to accept asset declaration form attracts three years jail term. But in Nigeria, the fine is only about N5,000.
“ And sometimes, a governor can even pay for his aides. We need a stricter law, if we are serious about fighting corruption.”
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) Chairman Ibrahim Lamorde, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Mr. Kayode Oladele, said the agency was not going after those with differences against the President.
Lamorde said: “It is not true that EFCC go after those who are against the president. Presently, we are investigating some Permanent Secretaries and judges over corruption allegations.
“Some have even said the governor of Jigawa’s sons are being prosecuted because their father is part of the G-7 governors. They fail to ask if his sons actually committed the offence.”
“These are some of the issues we should face and not accuse the commission of investigating only those who are against the President.
“We have so many challenges as a commission because of our criminal justice system. We need very strong policies to fight corruption. Lawyers should see the fight against corruption as a challenge to all.”
The Chairman of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), Sam Saba, yesterday vowed to investigate the allegation of non-full disclosure of assets made against the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Elder Godsday Orubebe.
The anti-graft agency also threatened that the minister would be brought before the Tribunal, if the allegations against him are true.
Saba spoke when the Anti-Corruption Network, led by its Executive Secretary, Dino Melaye, submitted a petition against the minister in Abuja.
The chairman said: “I have not even read the petition and so cannot tell you what to expect.
“I can see the pictures in the petition and pictures do not lie.
“If what Melaye has given us is genuine, then we are going to work with it.
“Ours is to verify it and if we find out that he (Orubebe) has not declared his assets, we will find out why he did not declare it and we will also find out from the Registry why he has not done that.
“There are avenues to find out and when we find out, it will be taken to the Code of Conduct Tribunal, the last court of adjudication.
“Once, we finish, we will communicate.”
Saba lauded the Anti-Corruption Network for the courage to come up with facts to assist the agency in the discharge of its duties.
He bemoaned a situation where it had been difficult to fight corruption because of the failure of the people to avail the agency with necessary information.
“If you are asking what has been our constraints, it is the failure of Nigerians to come out and give us information.
“I’m commending Melaye for coming out with facts which we are now going to verify.
“If we have credible organisations like yours doing what we are doing, I think the fight against corruption is going to be active, virile and enforceable.”
In the petition to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission(ICPC), the group accused the minister of violation of Public Procurement Act in the awards of contracts.