Senate Holds Lead Debate On Mutual Assistance In Criminal Matters Bill – By Comrade Salihu Othman Isah

The Senate has slated next Tuesday (March 8, 2016) to entertain lead debate on the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Bill, 2016 to ensure provision between Nigeria and other foreign nations; expected to deal with criminal cases and other related matters.

 Loading ...

To recall, the bill was forwarded to President Muhammadu Buhari by the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN; in January, this year; who subsequently transmitted same to the National Assembly for consent. The AGF thereafter appeared before the Senate leadership February 29^th to present it.

Comrade Salihu Othman Isah, Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the AGF and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN; hinted in a statement that the Upper Legislative Chamber will undertake the lead debate on the bill having scaled through its first reading on the floor of the legislature.

Isah revealed that the AGF explained that the purpose of the bill is to facilitate the provision and obtaining by Nigeria of mutual assistance in criminal matters to and from foreign states.

The minister stated that to make the bill a reality, “the Federal Ministry of Justice collaborated with various stakeholders and development partners to ensure that the contents of the bill are in conformity with global best practices while meeting our domestic needs.

He affirmed that, “In the final review of this bill, it was subjected to a close scrutiny by the Presidential Committee on Financial Action Task Force (PC-FATF) between 2013 to 2014, which subsequently adopted the bill in its present form.”

According to the Chief Law Officer of the nation, the existing legislation on the subject matter is the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters in the Commonwealth, (Enactment and Enforcement) Act, 2014, which has limited application to the Commonwealth countries and does not serve the wider needs of Nigeria for mutual cooperation and collaboration globally especially in areas of criminal matters.

Malami also pointed out that, ‘’in addition, the increasing rate of cross border crimes aided by globalisation and advancement in information and communications technology has made it imperative for a legislation of this nature to promote cooperation for the prosecution of offenders across the borders.

He also opined that, ‘’When enacted into law, the legislation will enable the effective prosecution of cross border crimes and will assist in the reduction or elimination of offences with cross border dimension.’’

Giving the background to the legislation, Mrs. Juliet Chikaodili Ibekaku-Nwagwu, Special Adviser on Judicial Reforms to the Honourable Attorney General and Minister of Justice, recalled that the 2004 Act applied only to Commonwealth countries such as the United Kingdom, Sierra Leone and Ghana among others.

She affirmed that the Act as it currently stands does not serve Nigeria’s needs as it relates to mutual cooperation and collaboration in criminal matters globally. ‘’The need for a shift in our legal jurisprudence in this regard has become urgent against the background of the government’s desire to strengthen cooperation with other countries.’’

According to Ibekaku-Nwagwu, as a result of the apparent limitations in Nigeria’s legal system with regards to ‘mutual cooperation in criminal matters’ over the past several years, Nigeria has continued to enter into ‘bilateral agreements’ with other countries that are not members of the Commonwealth for the purpose of mutual legal assistance in criminal matters.

She said, ‘’The current status of our ‘non-compliance with international laws’ has hampered Nigeria’s capability to move quickly to seek support in the investigation and prosecution of multinationals and foreigners who escape the country after committing an offence and those who commit offence in other countries and run back to Nigeria to hide.’’

The Special Adviser added that, globalisation and advancement in communications technology has continued to facilitate the free movement of persons from one jurisdiction to another making it imperative for Nigeria to enact a law to promote cooperation for the prosecution of offenders across borders.

‘’The bill will enable effective prosecution of cross border crimes and will in no small measure assist in the reduction or elimination of offences with international dimension including terrorism, war crimes, human trafficking, drug trafficking, smuggling and oil theft.

‘’When the bill is passed, it would provide the Attorney General of the Federation full powers as the ‘Central Authority’ responsible for the making, receiving and transmitting of international requests for assistance in criminal matters to countries outside the Commonwealth.

The Attorney General would also be empowered to negotiate and agree on terms and conditions relating to requests for assistance and ensuring compliance with the terms and conditions of requests’’, she concluded.

It is worthy to note that the bill is in conformity with Nigeria’s legal traditions, the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and reflects Nigeria’s obligations under existing international treaties and conventions ratified and acceded to by the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Also, Nigeria had on several occasions assured the international community especially the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the Inter-Governmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA) of her preparedness and political will to enact some identified laws necessary for the fulfilment of her obligations under the FAFT recommendations.

Top on the list of these critical laws is the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters. This assurance is one of the basic considerations that enabled the recent exit of Nigeria from the list of nations that require monitoring by the FAFT.

Furthermore, the legislation is one of the requirements of the FAFT in its consideration of Nigeria’s application for membership and will be required towards the GIABA Mutual Evaluation scheduled to hold in the first quarter of 2017.

The ten broad based parts in the document includes, (i) Object, Scope and Application, (ii) Designation of Central Authority and Requests for Assistance, (iii) Requests for Assistance by Nigeria (iv) Request for Assistance to Nigeria and (v) Interception of Telecommunications and Postal Items, and Surveillance, including Covert Electronic Surveillance.

Others are (vi) Request by Foreign States for Forfeiture and Confiscation of Property, (vii) Use of Exhibits and Production of Judicial or Official Records, (viii) Admissibility in Nigeria of Evidence Obtained Outside Nigeria, (ix) Special Provision on Cooperation, and (x) Miscellaneous.

The PC-FATF comprised of the Federal Ministries of Justice; Finance; Industry, Trade and Investment; relevant regulatory institutions; law enforcement, security and intelligence agencies, including the Office of the National Security Adviser.

Signed,

Comrade Salihu Othman Isah

Special Adviser, Media and Publicity

Office of the Honourable Attorney General and Minister of Justice

Federal Ministry of Justice, Abuja, Nigeria.