Legal profession must take responsibility in fight against corruption – AB Mahmoud

The legal profession has come under attack with lawyers and judges accused of being clogs in the wheel of justice and the fight against corruption. In this interview, Senior Advocate of Nigeria and former Attorney- General of Kano State, ABUBARKAR BALARABE MAHMOUD speaks of the role of lawyers in the battle against corruption, the leadership of the Nigerian Bar and the current state of the economy. THEODORA KIO-LAWSON WRITES:

DO YOU THINK THE RECENT ONSLAUGHT OF A SENIOR LAWYER BY THE ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL CRIMES COMMISSION (EFCC) HAS ANYTHING TO DO WITH THE STATEMENTS CREDITED TO THE PRESIDENT AND THE CHAIRMAN OF THE ANTI-GRAFT AGENCY THAT LAWYERS AND JUDGES WERE OBSTACLES IN THE ANTI-CORRUPTION CAMPAIGN?

If you take a good look at the issues relating to the anti-corruption fight in Nigeria, you will understand that this is a campaign every Nigerian must support and must be associated with, if we had a better functioning society.

This is however not the case, as the legal system in this country and the administrators of justice have not handled anti corruption cases in line with global best practices; swiftly and timeously. Instead, the outcomes we find in this part of the world are truly discouraging. Criminal cases go on forever in courts and even when they reach a conclusion, the outcomes are very shocking.

So at this point, the legal profession in Nigeria must take responsibility for what is going on and senior lawyers must lead the fight against corruption and not the other way round.

With respect to specific allegations, I haven’t seen the statement of facts (or fact sheet) of the EFCC but if there were real facts and issues about anyone, then following DUE PROCESS, we would want to see those issues brought forward and dealt with appropriately. If colleagues are being accused of committing infractions of the law, they should be subject to the law regardless.

WHAT IS THE ROLE OF THE BAR IN ALL OF THIS?

As a profession and as the conscience of the people, we must protect the integrity and independence of the legal profession, as this the only way we can carry out our responsibilities properly.

If there is a general intimidation of legal practitioners or lawyers generally, then that of course has to be opposed. We must protect the integrity of the bar to be able to fulfill our obligations to the law and to the citizens.

ON PLEA BARGAIN AND REFUND OF LOOTED FUNDS, SHOULD CORRUPT OFFICIALS BE MADE TO FACE THE LAW OR LET OFF AFTER THE REFUND OF THEIR LOOTS?

When you are dealing with issues of corruption, which have become systemic the last few years, one has to make strategic decisions as to how far and wide you will cast your net. If you decide to pursue every case of corruption, you will have to deploy the entire machinery of governance and that may not be totally efficient.

Thus, we have to be strategic with the way we respond to it.  In my view, key culprits, particularly public office holders who abuse the trust imposed on them must be targeted and dealt with according to law.

Many times, we have various chains of accessories and a situation where the anti-graft agent asks for a return of the stolen funds, could possibly be a strategic move based on the circumstances of the case and in order not to deplete its resources pursuing every minute case of infraction in the same manner. Right now, we find that the issue of corruption is endemic and those who carry out their functions in an honest manner, are in the minority.

The fact is, if the plea bargain mechanism is properly administered, it can greatly reduce the workload of the anti-corruption agencies; and the load on the judiciary, while targeting strategic cases; probably on the basis of magnitude or level of abuse. Deciding to punish every single one after each refund may be impractical.

All we need do is ensure that the plea bargain process is transparent, fair and based on clear parameters and not on uncertain negotiation terms or “know you” basis. These are however decisions that those in charge of the agencies and the system would have to make.

STATE OF THE ECONOMY AND THE DWINDLING FOREIGN EXCHANGE

Speaking as a layman, I’d say that the current situation of things is an opportunity for a country such as ours which sits on a wealth of resources and which has for several years been speaking of the diversification of the economy.

Nigeria is so vast and so rich, not only in terms of land and agricultural resources but also in terms of people. Last week, I was in Oxford with one of Nigeria’s foremost industrialist, Alhaji Aliku Dangote and he made a point which struck me, that Nigeria has more agronomic land than China but look at where we are today; we cannot feed our own people and we rely heavily on imported goods (even for things we can produce ourselves.

So this is a golden opportunity for the country, for the government and for us as a people to redirect our energies and to make fundamental shifts in terms of how we see ourselves as a people. We should be able to produce what we eat and what we consume. We do not need to rely on foreigners us for basic items.

Going forward, I believe that the crash in oil prices and the dwindling foreign exchange can be a blessing for us. The question should be, “do we have the capacity and political will to make the hard decisions that need to be made.

There is no doubt that there will be short-term pain as a lot of us are used to the consumption of foreign produce, and sending our children overseas for studies. With the exchange rate that we have now, we may need to efficiently manage some of the lifestyle choices we make. The inconveniences will be there for now but looking at the long run, this is no doubt a great opportunity for the country.

ON CONFLICTING JUDGMENTS AND THE SANCTITY OF THE JUDICIARY

There are certain important ethos and ethics governing our profession and the legal system. Constitutionally, the Supreme Court is the highest court of the land and its decisions are final and binding on all authorities and persons. This does not however mean that its decisions cannot be criticized.

People have a right to their views and as such can disagree with the decisions of a court based on whatever principles they proffer. There should however be a ‘HEALTHY’ debate about such outcomes. Academic writers should be able to take on this and apply jurisprudence.

We must remember that the legal profession and the legal system is not all about lawyers and judges. What we do affects the lives of the people. For this reason and more, the citizenry should be able to air their views about processes and the resultant effects of what goes on in the system and in our courts.

Therefore, when the Supreme Court makes a decision, we must respect it but it does not stop anyone from disagreeing with it or debating the issue. There is however no need to discredit the judges or call them names. Criticism can be done constructively and even the court and the judges understand that.

On the other hand, if there are allegations of malpractice or that judgments have been influenced, these are matters that the leadership of the judiciary must investigate. The citizens of this country will be interested in such investigations and its outcome. It must however be done in accordance with the law. This way, we protect the sanctity of the judiciary.

THE BAR AND ITS LEADERSHIP

The current administration is doing very well. The President continues to draw attention to burning national issues and has shown courage tackling some of them.

I was recently on his delegation to the North East to follow developments in the region, with specific regard to human rights abuses and I thought that was a very courageous move. The insurgency in the North East has been on for many years and I had not been there myself, so I was shocked at what had been going on there.

He also led a delegation to Zaria recently on a fact-finding mission of the Military and Shiites incident.

This is the sort of commitment expected of the leadership of the bar and the current administration has demonstrated its tenacity not just to the development of the law but to citizens as well – taking its place as a beacon of hope to the people.

 THEODORA KIO-LAWSON