Tag: Sagay

Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC) Chairman Itse Sagay (SAN) yesterday came hard on those condemning the arrest of two Supreme Court justices and other judges by the Department of State Services (DSS), saying such critics ignore the implications of judicial corruption.

According to him, it is as if a corrupt judge is committing a crime against humanity because he holds the power of life and death and is expected by the society to be above board.

Prof. Sagay said where a society loses confidence in the judiciary, it would resort to self-help.

He spoke in Abuja at a news conference by PACAC to review its activities since it was established last August by President Muhammadu Buhari.

There have been some criticisms of the arrests. Some said the rights of the judges were trampled, others said it was an attack on the judiciary.

Sagay thinks many Nigerians do not appreciate the sincerity of the Federal Government’s anti-corruption battle, saying it was as if many preferred the old order, which he said would have made Nigeria worse than Zimbabwe

He said: “I think that those who have criticised the DSS and the manner the search was conducted or even criticised the whole idea of a search being conducted seem not to have looked at the implications of judicial corruption.

“At the end of the day when there is corruption anywhere, who do you take the matter to? It is to the judge. The judge is the ultimate and, in fact, the buck stops at his court. So, if that judge is complicit in the corruption then that is the end of the fight against corruption. That is the awful implication!

“So, any judge who is corrupt is committing a crime – in fact, one can even say it’s a crime against humanity because it just destroys our confidence in a system which should sustain the state in law and order. It encourages people to resort to self-help because there is no hope in taking a matter to court.”

Sagay said the judiciary became so corrupt that it endorsed violent elections in which thousands died.

“Today, just to give an example, we have some sitting governors who we all knew that they did not win an election. Because they killed their way into office, people are still dying in those states, for them to sustain themselves in that office.

“Yet some courts at the highest level gave approval to the process that brought those people to what I would call their bloody seats on which they are sitting. These are some of the things we are talking about. If the judiciary is corrupt, the only body, the only arm of government that has the power of life and death over Nigerians, if they are corrupt, then it is frightening,” he said.

Sagay believes many commentators ignored the monies allegedly found on the judges, saying: “The other thing that surprises me is that a lot of people have made commentaries criticising what has been happening and have ignored the outcome of these searches completely.

“Isn’t it enough that billions of naira was found in private residences? Don’t you associate these billions of Naira with the fact that your roads are in a state of disrepair, that your hospitals are under-equipped or ill-equipped, and that schools are dilapidated and that it affects your daily life? What of those in the public service today who cannot get salaries paid because all these monies came from the public purse?

“The point I am making is that we seem to want to eat an omelet without breaking eggs; that is what Nigerians want. There are Nigerians who say, ‘Ooh, we are suffering a lot of hardship since the Buhari government came and that we are better off under corruption’.

“Isn’t that the most terrible thing for anybody to mouth, without considering what would have happened if Buhari had not come? If that had been the case, I don’t think that there would have been a country today; I think that Zimbabwe would have been better because this is a government that is operating on little or no budget because by the time they came in, what was existing had been squandered completely and shared among those now being defended with cries of ‘human rights’.

“What I am saying is that it is very discouraging because if you are struggling for the masses of this country, for the welfare of Nigerians, for improvement of the standard of living and then you are not encouraged, the tendency is for you to give up. For people to prefer corruption to the integrity that we are seeing in government today is very shocking. And I can tell you that if I were in government, I would have been extremely discouraged.

“We cannot have it both ways. We need the judiciary but we need an upright judiciary; without that, one arm of government would collapse; democracy would collapse. Let us think of the implication of what is going on. If we don’t put the judiciary right and we don’t have a judiciary in which we have confidence, a judiciary with integrity and honour, a judiciary with moral authority, then we have no government and we have no democracy.”

Sagay said it would have been unthinkable for the DSS to raid the homes of judges even under military rule when courts gave several verdicts against the government, all because of the high level of integrity the judges had.

“You people remember the era of Justices Eso, Oputa, Aniagolu, Nnamani, Idigbe, Mohammed Bello and Obaseki? Which DSS would have dared to even question any of those people? Nobody! No agency of government would have dared it. They gave a lot of their judgments against the military government. I can cite over 20 judgments which they gave against military government.

“They gave a judgment against Buhari’s military government, saying he had no power to retire some people; the Manager of the Fire Service in Lagos, Garba. It was held that his retirement (by the military regime) was illegal.

“I can cite so many. There was also Ojukwu’s case and everybody knows that. It (Supreme Court) held that the powers that be, the military government, could not engage in self-help by preventing Ojukwu from living in his father’s house. Ojukwu got judgment and instead of appealing, they went and threw him out.

“Then, the Supreme Court held that for throwing him out and preventing him from accessing his father’s house, rather than appealing that judgment, they (military) are deprived of the right to come to this court.

“That moral authority has crashed and, therefore, having crashed, like a tree that has fallen, ants, lizards and all sorts of things can climb over it. You bring yourself down and then, whatever happens after that is your own fault.

“The ordinary man like you and I could be guilty of corruption but a judge should never be guilty of corruption. Once a judge does that, he brings himself to our level and so cannot complain if he is treated the same way that you and I are treated. That is what has happened. Let us be objective and be fair to this country with our commentary and not be narrow-minded,” Sagay said.

PACAC Executive Secretary Prof Bolaji Owasanoye said the arrested judges should be suspended while their trial lasts and until they clear their names.

He noted that a member of the committee had to step down when serious allegations were made against him.

Owasanoye said: “The National Judicial Council (NJC) did not suggest in their response that they’re suspending the judges. But what should be the proper thing? The proper thing, of course, is for the judges to be suspended. The reason is because all over the world, if a judge is going to be appearing before a court on criminal charges, you ask yourself, is it appropriate for the judge to continue to sit in another respect?”

“I’m talking about best practices here. After all when other people are being tried, we argue that they should step down. We’re not talking of an administrative issue here; we’re talking about a crime. I think that the proper thing to do is actually for the judges to be given that charge to defend themselves.

“In other climes, when a policy that somebody initiates does not even work well, they resign. David Cameron resigned simply because Britain voted to leave the European Union (Brexit). He didn’t do anything wrong.  Clearly, the honourable thing is for the NJC to give those judges an opportunity to go and defend themselves and then if they’re cleared they can take back their jobs, strengthened.

“Again, there are situations in which NJC has been investigating the judges behind the scene and technically has not allowed them to preside over cases, even though those allegations may not be criminal in nature. So is this not even much more sensitive and a more compelling reason to suspend them?”

A PACAC member, Prof Femi Odekunle, said those faulting the judges’ arrest missed the point.

“There are those who are making arguments that amount to shenanigans, to shield people. Corruption in the judiciary is not the same as corruption in the marketplace; the judiciary is the soul of our nation. Therefore, anything that could be done with it should be done.”

 

The Federal Government is set to create special courts to speedily try corruption cases.

The bill to this effect will soon be passed to the National Assembly by the Executive.

Eminent lawyer Itse Sagay (SAN), a professor of law, stated this yesterday

The Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC) also faulted those comparing the current administration with the immediate past one and seeking a return to the lawless past because of the prevailing economic challenges.

He spoke in Abuja yesterday at an Anti-Corruption Summit organised by the Federal Ministry of Justice in conjunction with a group, Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) and ONE Africa.

The summit was organized to propose and harmonise anti-corruption positions to be tabled by the Nigerian delegation, to be led by President Muhammadu Buhari, to the 2016 International Anti-Corruption Conference slated for London next Thursday.

The PACAC chair, who said the government was laying a solid foundation and building solid structures to combat corruption, hinted of plans to establish a special court to try special offences, including corruption, kidnapping, among others.

Sagay said his committee had completed a draft of a Bill for the establishment of special court. He said the draft, which is being taken through the required legal processes, will aid the establishment of the special court to deal with the special cases speedily.

The London conference, expected to be witnessed by some world leaders, is to be hosted by British Prime Minister David Cameron.

 “Also we have completed a draft on special crimes court. It is very comprehensive. These courts, when finally the draft goes through all the legal processes, will have jurisdiction over economic and financial crimes, corruption cases, narcotic drug cases, money laundering cases and cybercrime cases.

“That is the proposal. There will be special courts and they will have advantage of speed in dealing with cases.

“So all together, as a committee, our aim, target and objective is to create institutions in which all corruption cases will see effective investigation, effective prosecution, speedy adjudication and effective sanctions and we hope that at the end of our work long after we have left the scene result of what we have done will be permanent and will be positive in the whole administration of criminal justice system,” Sagay said.

On corruption and impunity under the Jonathan Government, Sagay noted that “the unrestrained level of looting and brigandage” witnessed under the immediate past administration,  and the “sharp drop in petroleum prices from $140 at one stage to $30 per barrel as it is now it is no surprise that the Nigerian economy lies completely prostrate.

“In in fact, I heard some people declaring their preference for corruption, because under corruption, life was easier and more pleasant for them. To me, this is the ultimate demonstration of perverse mentality, immaturity and ignorance.

“If the former government had been returned to power in 2015, by now, Nigeria would have become a completely failed state.

“We could have gone the way of Zimbabwe, where they had an inflation rate of over a billion per cent, and where you needed a trillion in Zimbabwean currency to have $300. Their currency was in fact suspended and they are now using American dollars.

“We would have done that or probably we would have our little belongings in ‘Ghana-Must-Go’ bags and distributed ourselves along the ECOWAS coast looking for work and other means of survival if that government had been re-elected. “Definitely Nigeria would have suffered disintegration or some form of ferocious economic disaster if this government had not emerged.

“So, all the works that are going on now are to stem the disaster that was facing this country to enable the government to now move forward.

“Therefore those who want corruption, indiscipline, irresponsibility and cluelessness to return should be grateful to God that their wishes had not come to pass.

“It would have been a terrible nightmare that would have seen this country go through an experience that nobody had ever had been to,” Sagay said.

Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami (SAN) assured that the administration was committed to the fight against corruption.

The minister, who attributed the  progress so far made in anti-corruption war to justice sector reforms, assured  that lots more are needed to be done to block ways corruption undermine the nation’s justice system.

Malami said Nigeria would support “the establishment of a public, accessible ‘Beneficial Ownership’ Register” during the London summit “because this will help us in identifying several individuals that are hidden behind corporate vehicles, while laundering public funds in offshore territories”.

The Head of the Department of International Development (DFID) in Nigeria,  Ben Mellor urged Nigerians to “have high ambition” at the conference, adding that the United Kingdom was already making efforts to ensure that it no longer served as safe havens for looters.

Mellor, who represented the British government at the event, noted that “Just recently a coalition of Nigerian civil society organisations have written to our Prime Minister, calling on us to take serious action to make the UK less attractive  for looters.

“My government does not take this challenge lightly. It gives extra motivation to continue to put our own house in order.

“The UK will lead the summit. We will commit to further improve our domestic anti-corruption efforts to ensure that the UK is not a safe haven for looters,” he said.

On what Nigeria stands to benefit from the planned London conference, Mellor said the summit will provide the opportunity for Nigeria to send a strong signal to the world on its anti-corruption commitments.

Mellor added that the conference will enhance the UK’s strong technical and political partnerships with those countries worst afflicted by corruption including Nigeria.

The Executive Director, ONE Africa, Mr. Nwambu Wanendeya noted that flaws in the global financial system had enabled corrupt individuals to hide details of their financial affairs under the noses of governments and law enforcement agencies.

  “It takes two to tango, and the corrupt often rely on enablers – lawyers, bankers, accountants – to help them move and hide their stolen goods and money”, he said.

 Wanendeya decried that at least, one trillion dollars is siphoned out of developing countries each year through shady deals, money laundering, and corruption.

•Slams Supreme Court Judgement

Eminent jurist, Professor Itse Sagay (SAN), assailed the recent verdict of the Supreme Court on the 2015 Rivers State governorship election afresh yesterday, branding it a farewell to election petitions in the country.

The ruling, Sagay said in a in a 52 page review of the apex court’s decision, was shocking, catastrophic and uncalled for.

He said not a few Nigerians have lost faith in the Supreme Court on account of the judgement which upheld the election of Mr. Nyesom Wike of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the duly elected governor of the state.

“In the Richter scale of earthquakes, it must have measured up to 15: enough to induce a miscarriage, even in a man,” he said of the disappointment of those he called innocent Nigerians by the ruling.

He could  not understand how the verdict was arrived at despite  “the murder, mayhem, chaos and devastation almost amounting to a catastrophe, displayed on television, reported in all newspapers in all its gory details; after the damning reports of International and Local Observers who barely survived their mission.

“It was the worst shock ever created by a Supreme Court decision since I was knowledgeable enough to follow and understand Court judgments.”

Citing the judgement of Nweze, JSC in in Okereke v. Umahi S.C. 1004/2015 where the Supreme Court, said that the use of the Card Reader would ‘dethrone’ and ‘depose’ the Voters’ Register, Sagay said: “How does the Card Reader ‘depose’, or ‘dethrone’ the voter’s Register.  After verification by the Card Reader, the voter’s name still has to be identified in the voters’ Register and ticked before he can vote.

“It must be noted that both the Tribunal and Court of Appeal emphasized that the Card Reader was intended to and did strengthen the application and efficacy of the Electoral Act, by ensuring a credible election for the benefit of Nigerians.

“The Election Tribunal stated expressly that “the usage of the Card Reader was complementary to the usage of the voters’ register.  In other words, the two work hand in hand towards ensuring credible elections.  The voters’ Registers properly come to play where a prospective voter has been screened by the Card Reader.  The sum total of the role of the Card Reader is that it is complementary to the usage of the Voters’ Register.”

“So where in all this did Nweze, JSC, discover the ‘deposition’, and ‘dethronement’, of the Voters’ Register by the Card Reader?  Absolutely nowhere.  What Nweze had simply done was to give the Card Reader a bad name in order to subject it to judicial execution. Has the Card Reader eliminated the voters’ Register? No! Has it brought integrity and transparency to the voters’ Register and the whole electoral process? Yes!

“All the Card Reader does is to act as a gate man for the voters’ Register.  There was no dethronement and deposition here.  There was only a step forward towards free, fair and credible elections – a procedure for sanitizing our elections and for eliminating fraud, dishonesty and rigging from our electoral process.  Should any Supreme Court anywhere in the world resist and reject such a beneficial development in the electoral process? No!

“The law as stated in Section 49 has not in any way been altered by the Card Reader.

“So, all this talk of superseding and dethroning has no bearing whatsoever on Section 49 of the Electoral Act 2010.  There is no provision of the Electoral Act banning or prohibiting the use of Card Readers.  It is wrong of any one to assert that the use of Card Readers is electronic voting.  It shows that such a person cannot distinguish between accreditation and voting.”

The jurist said the Supreme Court ought to have considered the following questions on the Card Reader before arriving at its decision:

* Was the voters’ Register instituted in the Electoral Act to promote and ensure free, fair and credible elections?

*If this is so (and it necessarily must have been so) did the introduction of the Card Reader enhance the capacity of the Voters’ Register to produce clean, fair and credible elections?

He added: “As all the Courts, even the Supreme Court, have admitted, the Card Reader has sanitized and brought transparency and integrity to the election accreditation process.  The sum total of the usage of the Card Reader therefore is that it is complementary to the work of the Voters’ register.  “The two work hand in hand to ensure a credible election” – (The Tribunal)

“It follows that if all the Card Reader does is to enhance, improve and promote the capacity of the Voters’ the Card Reader could NOT in any sense have ‘deposed’, ‘dethroned’ the Voters’ Register as Nweze wrongly asserted in Okereke v. Umahi. Helping and enhancing the Voters’ Register’s capacity and efficiency cannot be classified as ‘dethroning’ or ‘deposing’ it.  It is still there as the ultimate source after the cleanup of the process by the Card Reader.”

Sagay  also faulted the Supreme Court’s position that  “in order for an election to be nullified, the Petitioner  (Dr. Dakuku Peterside) has to establish that not only was there a substantial non-compliance with the Electoral Act, but additionally the Petitioner must show that the substantial non-compliance affected the result of the election.”

Relying on  Section 139(1) of the Electoral Act, 2010 which stipulates that  “An election shall not be liable to be invalidated by reason of non-compliance with this Act if it appears to the Electoral Tribunal or Court that the election (i) was conducted substantially in accordance with the principles of this Act and (ii) that the non-compliance did not affect substantially the result of the election,”

Sagay said:”In other words, any election has to clear two hurdles in order to be valid; (i) it must comply substantially with the provisions of the Act; (ii) where there was any non-compliance, no matter how insignificant, it must not have substantial effect on the result.

“Therefore a petitioner will succeed if he can establish either of the following: Substantial non-compliance with the Act, only or substantial effect on the result by any degree of non-compliance, no matter how trivial. I repeat, the petitioner need only establish one of these two situations in order for the election to be invalid, namely, Substantial non compliance with the electoral Act including the schedules and regulations or Substantial effect on the election result of any infraction of the Electoral Act, schedules, regulations etc no matter how trivial the infraction.”

“Therefore, Kekere-Ekun, JSC, was absolutely wrong when she stated at page 67 of her judgment that in addition to establishing substantial non-compliance, the Petitioners were also obliged to also establish that the non-compliance also affected the result of the election. This is an error that some Justices of the Supreme Court have been repeating again and again in spite of corrections that have been offered several times.”

 

 

 

THE Federal Government is soon to unveil an anti-corruption plan to improve inter-agency cooperation to promote ethical re-orientation, Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption Prof. Itse Sagay has said.

Sagay, who was the guest speaker at the Island Club Public Interest Symposium, at Onikan, Lagos, noted that the plan would encourage citizens to believe that integrity pays as well as demonstrate the benefits of a corrupt-free society.

He noted that there were challenges in the fight against corruption.

“Some of the challenges arise from the poor standard of investigation and prosecution. Bringing a charge before assembling evidence and witnesses or the right evidence and witnesses is sure to result in failure of that case. There have even been cases in which investigators and prosecutors have been suspected of being compromised to lose a case.”

He noted that aside President Muhammadu Buhari’s integrity and intolerance to corruption, the anti-graft agencies, which had gone to sleep, have roared to life.

According to him, they were galvanised by the leadership and unshakable determination of the President.

“We are witnessing the dynamism of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) under new leadership and that of the Code of Conduct Bureau. The Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) is also manifesting a resurgence, by the seizure of property acquired by public servants, who could not explain how they came about them,” Sagay said.

He said Buhari’s administration marked a turning-point in the fight against corruption, noting that the previous administration seemed to be nodding and winking at corruption.

The constitutional lawyer noted that the major challenge to the anti-corruption war comes from senior defence lawyers, who use their knowledge and experience to frustrate prosecution of clients, by unethical methods.

He said senior advocates, consultants and judges, who compromise trials, should be charged, prosecuted and imprisoned, if found guilty.

“A few cases of imprisonment of this category is necessary for honour and integrity to return to the judicial process,” he said.

He assured Nigerians that in the next three to four years, there would be a decline in corruption, adding: “Nigeria will rise again.”