Prof. Itse Sagay, chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee on Anti-corruption, has blamed lack of integrity among legal practitioners for the high-profile corruption cases in the country. Sagay, who was a guest speaker at the Institute of Directors Nigeria (IoD) Members’ Evening in Lagos, said there was need for a special anti-corruption court in Nigeria for effective handling of corruption cases.
He disclosed that the anti-corruption committee is currently working hard on a comprehensive master plan that would introduce a preventive approach to curb corruption in the country. According to him, the committee is identifying and selecting judges of the highest integrity across the federation, who have a passion for justice and can never be compromised by financial blandishments, to form the core of judges who will handle corruption cases.
Stating that the Presidency was not selective in the fight against corruption, Sagay said: “The issue of integrity is one which arises at every stage of activity in the administration of criminal justice in Nigeria.”
He stressed: “For example, the suspect under investigation can buy off the investigators assigned to his case. This has occurred on numerous occasions. In such a case, no charge is ever filed. The suspect goes home with his loot and the investigation officer/officers go home with their own share from it.”
Sagay said that the prospect of integrity in the process of prosecution must be improved by prosecuting any person who has compromised the process, be it a judge, a prosecutor or an investigator.
He added that lawyers who compromise judges with money or endeavour to delay and frustrate the prosecution of their clients must as well be inflicted with painful sanctions.
“There is in fact now a group of Senior Advocates whose major source of income is from the defence of election riggers, particularly Presidents and Governors. There is another type of specialist in this area. They are called ‘Consultants’. These are mainly retired judges at all levels.
All of them, Senior Advocates and consultants need to be charged, prosecuted and imprisoned if found guilty,” the Senior Advocate said.
