18th October, 2014
Renowned constitutional lawyer, Mr Tunji Abayomi, on Saturday, said the approval of the removal of the immunity clause from the Nigerian constitution by the House of Reps lacked common sense.
Abayomi who said this in an interview with NAN said that the lawmakers’ decision was unnecessary and should be rejected by the Senate and state assemblies.
According to him, removing the immunity that is currently being enjoyed by the president, vice-president, governors and their deputies, will subject them to unnecessary distractions from performing their official functions.
“There is no common sense in subjecting the president, vice-president, governors and their deputies to the travails of prosecution while in office, so the amendment does not make any sense to me at all.
“After all, the immunity is only temporary; there is no time limitation to prosecution as such officeholders can still be prosecuted fifty years after leaving office.
“It, therefore, makes more sense to retain the immunity clause because removing it will make nonsense of the offices of these chief executives and I urge the Senate and state assemblies to reject it,” he said.
Abayomi also said Reps approval for separating the Attorney-General of the Federation’s office from that of Minister of Justice was unnecessary, arguing that a good AGF can effectively combine both.
He said that the decision would lead to increased government expenditure and unnecessary bureaucracy.
Abayomi said that the problem experienced in the past was that of some AGFs, who were working as agents of the government they served whose interest they put above that of the nation.
Also speaking in the same vein, Mr Mahmud Magaji, SAN, criticised the Reps decision, saying that it would make governance difficult for the chief executives because of the attendant litigation distractions.
“Instead of totally removing the immunity clause from the constitution, it should be regulated or conditioned, more so, every nation has some form of immunity clause to protect some categories office holders.
“In any case, we do not need any constitutional amendment for now. What Nigerians need are regular electricity, good roads, food on their tables, shelter, security of their lives, etc,” he said.
Magaji also said that there was no need to separate the office of the AGF from that of the justice minister as approved by the lawmakers, arguing that it had worked well in Nigeria for over thirty years already.
NAN recalls that the lawmakers on Wednesday approved the removal of the immunity clause and separation of the AGF’s office from that of Minister of Justice.
The decisions were part of the process for constitutional amendments being carried out by the National Assembly.