Dr. Ali Ahmad, Rt. Hon. Speaker, KWHA

The Administration of Criminal Justice Act is a federal law of procedure, consisting of a set of rules that govern proceedings of a court in criminal lawsuits. It comprises formal steps to be taken by parties before a court in a criminal trial. For several decades, various attempts were unsuccessfully made at reforming our criminal procedure laws, which had failed to address several debilitating factors working against the criminal justice system.

In Nigeria, we used to have two different sets of criminal procedure laws as bequeathed by the colonialists: one for the North referred to as the Criminal Procedure Code and the other for the South, dubbed the Criminal Procedure Act. With ACJA, we have one unified procedural law for the entire country. The journey for this Act formally began in 2005 when the then Hon. Attorney-General of the Federation presented a draft bill that was produced by a myriad of stakeholders who had worked on it for several years.

But since 2005 when the document was submitted to the legislature in various versions, it failed to pass until January 2013 when this speaker took up the challenge and the Bill was signed into law on May 13, 2015, the very day it was transmitted to Mr. President by the Clerk of the National Assembly. The Act is comprised of 494 sections of 160 pages and covers a number of issues, all related to addressing delay in whatever manner and form from arrest to post-conviction, the cradle to grave of a criminal trial.

Having failed to see the light of the day during the Fifth and Sixth Assemblies, the magic this time was that the Legislature worked very closely with the Judiciary and the Executive on the bill. And that made the difference. From 2013 when the bill was first tabled before the House of Representatives, stakeholders at the highest levels in the three arms of government became mobilized towards its successful passage. From the erstwhile Chief Justice of Nigeria, Alooma Mukhtar, to then Attorney-General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke, SAN who promised that the President would sign it into law the very day it is transmitted by the National Assembly, it was clear that the Act was destined to become a law that it is today.

IMPORTANCE OF ACJA
As mentioned above, ACJA came in to cure several problems bedeviling our criminal justice sector, especially causes of delay. Before now, the life cycle of an average criminal trial is about 12 years. In the celebrated cases of Hamza Almustapha and Mohammed Abacha, the trials took over 12 years. And so many ongoing cases such as Akingbola’s and Dariye’s. In FRN V Dariye for example, where the EFCC filed corruption-related charges against the former Governor of Plateau State in 2007, his objection over jurisdiction took 8 years to reach the Supreme Court in February this year and the Court asked him to go back and face trial at the lower court. Eight years for charges to be read and today we are still counting.  When fully implemented and operational, ACJA should have effect of reducing trial period to no more than 6 months. No doubt, the former Chief Justice of Nigeria dubbed it a revolutionary law.

In order that we all are apprised of ACJA, permit me to share with you some of its salient features:
It addresses the issue of delay through the following mechanisms

1. Restrictions on stay of proceedings (i.e. where there is appeal on an issue, stay of proceedings will no longer be granted)
2. Day-to-day trial after arraignment
3. Restriction on number and interval of adjournments (only 5 adjournments and 14 days in between)
4. Inapplicability of trial de novo where the matter has been partly heard
5. Duty to electronically record confessional statements
6. Clear procedures for regulating plea bargaining and measures to prevent abuse 
7.  

The Act also addresses other pre-trial causes of delay arising in prison congestion through the following measures:

1. Proper documentation and establishment of a Central Criminal Records Registry as the States and Federal levels
2. Accountability mechanisms for Awaiting Trial Persons
3. Mandatory monthly prison visit by Chief Magistrates
4. Alternatives to imprisonment such as community service, parole etc

So ACJA is the law Nigeria needs now not only to fight corruption but also to show to the world that our criminal justice system is at par with the global standard and thereby generate system-wide confidence that is necessary to attract foreign investment.
You may want to ask why does this discussion of ours place emphasis on implementation of the Act? The simple answer is that the Act is not totally a self-operating law, someone or some authorities must deliberately take certain actions to achieve its objectives. That person is the Hon. Attorney-General of the Federation. And as the maiden Attorney-General since the enactment of the law, Mr. Abubakar Malami SAN has enormous responsibilities on whether the Act achieves its potential early enough or not.

Although the Act generally applies to all criminal trials in federal courts, its effect today is more promising on the war on corruption, where our laws have always fell flat for a long time.  How do we deploy ACJA to fight corruption?  One, by ensuring the probability of conviction in a short time and secondly, by ensuring sanctity of permanent criminal record against the convict. Studies have shown that these two have had  phenomenal effect on the rate of crime, and this includes corruption and financial crimes. Thus, I am so positive that the rate of corruption in Nigeria will reduce drastically if   average corruption trials are concluded in a maximum of 6 months and if all convicts have their biometrics in a national central database in Abuja. Politicians and top civil servants who supposedly have their names to protect will be less likely to be involved in embezzlement if they know that once apprehended, their fate is sealed within six months and they will have permanent criminal record.

By issuing practice directions to ensure that corruption cases are accorded expedited treatment by all courts and judges, the judiciary (through various heads of courts) has shown its readiness to fight corruption. And by enacting the ACJA, the legislature has done its bit. In the war against corruption Nigerians, are now waiting for the Executive to animate its political will to fight corruption with action by the Honourable Attorney-General of the Federation to do the needful as contained in ACJA. Speeches and case-by-case intervention as we are now witnessing will not do. To leave no one in doubt, he must now take actions to complement the resolve of the Legislature and the Judiciary. These actions, provided by ACJA, include inauguration of the Administration of Criminal Justice Monitoring Committee, establishment of Central Criminal Records Registry, provision of funding for witnesses fees, and various issues relaating to alternative to custodial sentences.

ROLE OF MEDIA
Recently due to the controversy generated by ACJA, and as the sponsor of the Act, I was denunciated for contributing to the facilitation of the trial of some politically exposed persons through the use of ACJA. If the law was not sponsored, there would have been valid appeals and there would not be any controversy about staying the proceedings at lower courts. The political environment in which we live, the argument goes, is not given to fair and unbiased operation of the law by Nigerian operators. They cited many corruption cases that have lasted several years in the same court or by the same prosecutors and that similar enthusiasm is not being equally shown in those cases. I told those accusing me that our country will never progress if we let the thought of abusers and bad operators dissuade us from doing our own part. I told them that rather than back down, the proper thing to do was to forge ahead to ensure that state-level jurisdictions across the country also pass the law like their federal counterpart. And that is exactly what this speaker did.

Thus, last week almost all 36 State Houses of Assembly Speakers converged in Ilorin and adopted a model Administration of Criminal Justice Bill to be considered and passed by each State within the next 6 months. So let us do our part and leave those who abuse the system to their conscience.  And that is where the media, the fourth estate of the realm, comes in. I think I am not naïve in my thought that the media is equal to the task of exposing bias and malice coming from operators of our laws.

No one but an observant media can curb abuse in the system. If a prosecutor choses to drive a corruption case with the speed of light and then proceeds at snail’s speed with another corruption matter, who but members of the mass media can validly raise questions and draw public attention or condemnation of such bias. If a prosecutor or an agency like the EFCC or ICPC screams to high heavens in one court or about one particular defendant regarding quick trial as enshrined in ACJA and the same prosecutor or agency is apathetic and easy-going in another court or with respect to some other defendants, then we expect the media to raise the alarm. That is our expectation, that is what operates in developed systems worldwide, and that is the important role that the media has to play in ensuring implementation of the ACJA.

NOT LOSING THE CORRUPTION WAR
This now raises the issue of the success outlook of the war on corruption of the current Buhari Administration. This war on corruption, as presently being fought, may not be won, am afraid to say. Am raising the alarm so that we all ponder to reconsider the current strategy. I remember raising similar alarm on August 16th about the absence then of an Honourable Attorney-General of the Federation and the implication on the declared war on corruption. It was widely reported in the media and a few days later our friend, Mr. Segun Adeniyi, wrote a powerful article along the same line.

I reasoned then that even if other ministers could wait, the Attorney-General is the only constitutionally mentioned Minister in S. 150 of the Constitution and that he alone could have been appointed while others waited. I might be proven right by the Supreme Court since at least two cases will end up there soon. The first of course is FRN V Saraki where it is being contended that no one may prefer charges at the Tribunal where there is no sitting attorney-General of the Federation. The Second is the decision of Justice Mohammed Yunusa of the Federal High Court being appealed by NDLEA where the judge held that the Agency lacked the power to freeze millions in the account of an alleged drug baron when there was no sitting Attorney-General.  

Unless am not properly informed, the current strategy of fighting corruption seems to centre on prosecution in law courts. I hope am wrong. But if I am not, a lot of people may wonder what is wrong with that strategy.

I believe five things are wrong with the current strategy of focusing the fight against corruption mainly in law courts; the President can do nothing with the first three but he may quickly intervene in the last two. These are: 1. powerful nature of these defendants and their lawyers, 2. the true nature of courts as a formal, deliberative process where facts must be proved beyond all reasonable doubts, 3. pervasiveness of corruption in Nigeria, 4. doubtful constitutionality of S. 306 of ACJA,prohibiting stay of proceedings, and 5. detachment of the Executive from the National Assembly.  

You want to solely rely on adjudication to fight endemic corruption, afterall you know that politically exposed persons are no ordinary defendants when it comes to hiring the services of defence attorneys who have clouts in and outside of the courtroom. You want to rely on adjudication knowing fully well that by their nature, our courts are accusatory, too formal, too inflexible, requiring too high a standard of proof from the prosecution (beyond reasonable doubt), and overall tilting the balance so much on the side of the accused or defendant. Nigeria is not matured yet but hopefully in the next few decades we should begin to consider constitutional amendment to the effect that if the allegation borders on corruption, you are presumed guilty until you prove your innocence. And adjudication would still  have been a good strategy where corruption was not pervasive. Sadly, in Nigeria it is the norm.
 I do not wish to be misunderstood as saying that courts are irrelevant in the war against corruption. What I am saying is that Nigerian courts are presently not suited to perform the function of a primary platform of fighting widespread corruption. Even under a fully implemented ACJA regime, how many cases can our courts handle from trial courts to the Supreme Court in four years?  Well, if adjudication is the choice of the Administration, certainly the Code of Conduct Tribunal cannot be the choice forum. A government has already lost the war on corruption if its new-found strategy is to use a three-man Code of Conduct Tribunal to checkmate 469 federal legislators, 36 governors and 36 ministers and a host number of state officials and civil servants. No doubt, the Tribunal cannot but be selective in choosing the cases it adjudicates upon as we are presently witnessing. But in being selective, we have compromised and tainted the very essence of      the fight against corruption.

Even if you want to solely rely on adjudication by extending it to regular courts, you will still be missing the point if the ACJA that ensures fast-tracked resolution remains unimplemented as enunciated above and its doubtful constitutional veracity still looms large. This is where action by Mr. President is required. It was an opportunity missed when Mr. President could not sign that provision on constitutional amendment that would have surely saved ACJA. I urge the National Assembly to re-enact the constitutional amendment of S. 241 passed by the 7th Assembly in order to make delay in criminal trials a thing of teh past. Otherwise, S.306 of ACJA on stay of proceedings will remain unconstitutional.   Other corruption-related laws passed by the 7th Assembly but that remains unsigned is Whistle-blower Protection Bill, Nigerian International Financial Centre Establishment Bill, civil Forfeiture Bill and Federal Audit Service Commission Bill.

In contrast, the House of Representatives during the Jonathan years carried out investigations and approved a total of 560 Resolutions, a quarter of that was related to corruption. That was about 140 Resolutions agreed to by majority of the 360 members. To me, an undisputable platform of fighting corruption in a democracy such as ours should be the National Assembly, at least that is what the Constitution provides. The National Assembly it is that is empowered in S. 88 of the Constitution to direct or cause to be directed investigantion of any person or authority with the aim of exposing corruption. Thus, it is the constitutional duty of each chamber of the National Assembly to expose corruption. You could accuse the National Assembly of anything but certainly not that it is failing in this specific duty. The missing link during the Jonathan years was lack of political will. Currently, the political will to fight corruption is quite visible. On its part, the National Assembly is always willing. But what is missing now, unlike in the Jonathan years, is perceived lack of amity between the Executive and the Legislature.

How do you win the war on corruption despite abundant political will if the Legislature, which is constitutionally empowered to expose corruption, believes it is kept at arm’s length?  I think a robust strategy for an administration that has only four years and that seeks to attack corruption frontally will be to support the legislature in exposing corruption, support the media in monitoring the process and mobilizing the citizens accordingly. The Executive will then implement the legislative recommendation as it deems fit, and then the few that so deserve are now turned over for adjudication. This is my thesis on the current fight against corruption and how ACJA can be a formidable tool in that regard.

I salute you all as your choice of theme and presence here today is a testimony to the concern that you have of freeing our country from the tight grip of corrupt officials as well as from the tight grip of false crusaders of the war on corruption. Thank you for listening.