By Ebere Agozie
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mohammed Ndarani, says that state pardon for public office holders undermines security institutions, democracy and democratic ideals.
Ndarani said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja.
He aligned himself with the views of Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and advised that constitutional provision for state pardon should exclude convicted political office holders.
NAN recalls that the AGF had at a roundtable meeting organised by ICPC for state Attorneys General (AGs) condemned the issue of state pardon.
The minister had stressed that those public office holders found guilty of corruption should not receive state pardon.
Ndarani agreed with the AGF that the next constitution amendment should take care of this anomaly.
“Granting pardon to politicians arraigned and convicted for corruption, fraud and looting of public treasury, undermines our public institutions like the courts, EFCC, ICPC, Police, etc, is wrong.
This is because these are people who have been painstakingly investigated over cases of fraud and corruption, been tried and convicted.
“This pardon by the President circumvents the whole punitive intent since they have their rights and full benefits of their offices restored, and go on to enjoy the booties of their crimes.
“This puts the integrity of our institutions in jeopardy. It damages the integrity and reputation of our courts the nation’s anti-corruption stance, and undermines democratic institutions and the rule of law’’.
He said that the odious grant of state pardon to corrupt politicians leaves one impression; the person granting the state pardon and the person getting the state pardon are birds of the same feather.
“The pardoner is preparing the ground for himself to be taken lightly for what funds he will also loot. It shows queerly that all thieving politicians are above the law.
“Once this perception sinks into the mind of the public, their trust and confidence in the government and governance or their policies will slacken and plummet.
“This is the state we have reached today in Nigeria. All politicians are seen as thieves, liars and deceivers, out to steal and loot the common wealth.
“The people can hardly understand why someone given power by the people would loot and steal the state coffers dry and be simply allowed to get off the hook.
“It gives the unshakeable impression that the government does not give care about the welfare of the masses’’.
The senior lawyer equally noted that state pardon has caused systematic and symbolic destruction of Nigeria’s image in the comity of nations.
“In 2020, former British Prime Minister David Cameron called Nigeria, ‘fantastically corrupt’ because of our actions and inactions.
“We have made Nigeria a cesspool of the most audacious, impudent and shameless acts of corruption on the face of the earth.
“Much of this can be traced to the now odious grant of state pardon. This is responsible for the abrasive and shockingly inhumane treatment meted out to Nigerian nationals at airports the world over’’.
He noted that granting state pardon to corrupt politicians, stopping, withdrawing their trials or pardoning their convictions and restoring the looted or corruptly acquired funds and properties, impacts negatively on democracy.
“It creates a sense of disillusionment and disenfranchisement in the citizenry. It greatly undermines legitimacy of the government and its institutions”.
He noted that withdrawal of this pardon will gradually restore the peoples trust and confidence in political office holders, and improve democratic ideals.
“The litany of abandoned, uncompleted, partially completed and poorly executed projects litter our political landscape.
“This is because the funds voted for these projects have been salted away by those who swore to develop our country.
“Corruption is now like cancer that must be deleted from the nation’s polity to guarantee us good health.
“It thus follows that granting these political thieves an underserved state pardon exacerbates the ugly situation, creating room for more such abandoned projects.
“If such trials are taken to their logical conclusions, and the convicts made to serve their sentences and forfeit the proceeds of their crimes, this trend would be drastically reduced”.
He said that the removal of state pardon will uphold the rule of law and justice, reinforce societal moral values and hold the convicted accountable.
“Prosecution and securing the conviction of the accused will serve as deterrence and protect the public against the plunder and looting of public funds by corrupt individuals.
“Also, punishing the guilty provides a good sense of justice for the public who would see that justice has been served when they see that stolen funds are being recovered.
“The havoc caused by politicians is part of what has caused the increasing prevalence of hardship, poverty and lack in the land,’’ he added.
He said that if nothing is done right now, Nigeria will be seen to be consistently instituting the government of fraudsters and thieves.
“The only goal of these individuals would be to ascend to the office and take over power to appropriate and loot the treasury and convert public funds to be their own.
“And the results would be devastating. The time to act is now”.
