• Friday, March 29, 2024
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BusinessDay

Bastardising the principle and practice of separation of powers

National-Assembly

From the invasion of the houses of various justices of the supreme court, their arrests, detention by the Department of State Services (DSS) over allegations of corruption and abuse of judicial powers to the invasion of the National Assembly by operatives of the DSS and the various attempts to mastermind the forceful removal or change of principal officers of the National Assembly to the unilateral suspension of the Chief Justice of the federation, Walter Onnoghen over alleged false declaration of assets – the executive have often acted unilaterally and arbitrarily to muzzle and control the two other arms of the government, which in Nigeria’s presidential system are equal and coordinate arms of government – like it is in the United States of America from where we copied our presidentialism.

This is a dangerous trend and if not stopped other presidents would want to follow the trend thus endangering our democracy. While admitting that there is an obligation on the part of the government to rid the country of corruption, the executive must realise that the constitution also provided for separation of powers among the three arms of government and provided for their independence while granting them the powers to check the excesses of the other arms.

It is universally acknowledged that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. History is replete with leaders who had sought absolute powers and have used them to pursue goals that are not in tandem with the public good. That is why democratic constitutions make adequate provisions for separation of powers amongst the arms or branches of government to prevent one arm, usually the executive from abusing its awesome powers. By seeking to arrogate to itself the exclusive powers of disciplining and checking the excesses of other arms of government without the other arms also having such powers in relations to it, the executive is going on illegal power grab that may collapse the country’s democracy.

Furthermore, it has been established that the best way to fight corruption is within the ambits of the law. It is not possible to successfully prosecute the war on corruption outside the ambit of the law. Indeed, the very act of disrespecting the provisions of the constitution is corruption itself and does not bode well for the country. We have said it severally that the root cause of corruption in the country is the weakness or even absence of institutions. The government cannot therefore claim to be fighting corruption by further destroying existing institutions when the best way to fight corruption is to build and strengthen institutions.

What is more, the reckless manner the executive has been pursuing its agenda has consequences, which will deeply hurt the country and its corporate image among the comity of nations. First, no self-respecting country will do business with a country that doesn’t respect its laws. Second, no foreign investor will invest in a country that has no regard for its laws and where the courts are not independent or cannot be trusted to arbitrate on contract and trade disputes impartially and efficiently.

We are at pains to remind the regime that prosperous and sustainable societies are built around respect for the rule of law and on strong institutions. This administration must not set a bad example of trampling on and consequently destroying institutions while trying to build a prosperous society. It never works.