Osun lawmaker wants death penalty for corrupt officials

A member of the Osun State House of Assembly, Hon. Kanmi Ajijola, has clamoured for capital punishment for corrupt officials.

The lawyer said the greatest injustice to the law of God and humanity is to allow those who steal the nation’s wealth live.

Hon. Ajibola, a former Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association representing Oriade State Constituency, said the only and sincere way to curb the menace of high level of stealing of public funds in Nigeria is to eliminate all culprits.

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The lawmaker expressed his view in a five-page letter to the Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, and the Speaker of House of Representatives, Hon. Tajudeen Abass, with copies to the Attorney-General of the Federation, Attorney-General of Osun State and Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Adewale Egbedun.

In the letter dated March 15, 2024, titled: “You can be the Moses and Musa of the present Nigerian generation,” the lawmaker said there was a compelling need now to stop and control corruption by capital punishment in Nigeria.

Citing Section 4(1) and (3) of the constitution, the human rights lawyer said it is in the purview of the National Assembly to make laws that should help to halt corrupt practices in the country.

He said there are few countries, including China, Indonesia and Thailand, that introduced capital punishment in their laws, while noting that today, these nations are now experiencing economic peace, security and rapid developments.

According to Ajibola, the anti-corruption Laws and Acts in their present forms in Nigeria are not result oriented.

He lamented that the London Chatham House in its estimation said from October 1960 to October 2019, Nigerian leaders, public officers and civil servants stole about $582 billion, while the Human Environmental Development Agenda reported that the country lost N1.6 trillion and $825.7 million to corrupt officials between 1999 and 2022.

He noted that if these humongous funds had been injected into the country’s capital project and infrastructural developments, the nation would not be facing the ongoing social vices such as kidnapping, unemployment, abject poverty and insecurity.

While highlighting other negative effects of corruption on the society, Hon. Ajibola said: “I think the greatest injustice to the law of God and humanity is to let live, the corrupt people whose acts are directly or indirectly killing the innocent Nigerians by the ultimate effect of their ungodly and illegal actions.

“As a human rights activist, I should not be thinking of a capital punishment to curb or drastically minimize corruption in Nigeria, but for the fact that, the acts of the few leaders that are corrupt are leading to the death of their innocent subjects. I think, this is the only way and the hard way.

“It is an axiomatic fact, that, if this stealing spree continually persists unchecked, the country will ultimately end up in an untimely grave.

“To prevent the sudden and untimely death of Nigeria, the 1999 constitution has empowered the National Assembly with this responsibility to make laws for the peace, order and good government of the federation.

“At this very moment, before corruption kills Nigeria, it is desirable that Nigeria Moves faster to kill corruption.

“The incumbent leadership of the National Assembly can be the Moses and Musa of the present Nigerian generation, by removing the country out of death trap of corruption and its killing venom.

“Due to the non availability of effective laws to checkmate corruption the way it should be properly checked, there are loss of peace, order, good governance and good government in the federal Republic of Nigeria.

“That Nigeria may continue to live, there is a compelling need for the prevailing public corruption to be curbed and controlled by capital punishment in our laws.

“Within the thirty (30) days of the receipt of this letter, I plead with the National Assembly to perform this public duty to save Nigeria by introducing penalty clause of capital punishment into our Anti-Corruption Laws and Acts.”

The former NBA boss however, stated that for the sake of justice, the penalty clause of capital punishment “shall not be made to operate retroactively”.