Politics
Immunity Clause And Nigeria’s Democracy
Since Nigeria returned to democratic rule in 1999, one of the most debated issues is the immunity clause in the country’s constitution. Contained in Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution, it shields the President, Vice President, governors and their deputies from all civil and criminal proceedings against their persons for the duration of their time in office.
This means that as long as they are in office, no civil or criminal suit can be brought against their persons. They can only be tried either at the expiration of their terms in office, or if they are impeached by the National Assembly or their state House of Assembly, according to the laid-down guidelines in the Constitution (Section 143 for the President and Vice-President; section 188 for governors and deputy-governors).
The contention has always been whether the immunity clause should be retained, modified or totally expunged in the constitution in order to put the country’s democracy on track.
Until 2007, virtually all public office holders were in support of its retention. Their reason being that anything otherwise would drastically affect Nigeria’s nascent democracy, because, according to them, such public office holders will be more pre-occupied with numerous frivolous suits in court than their statutory roles, which is governance.
On the other hand, proponents of its abrogation argue that immunity encourages corruption and therefore gives room for bad leadership. Their position is given credence by the current numerous allegations against some of the country’s former Heads of State and Governors.
Interestingly, it was the late Nigerian president, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua who, as a serving President, first took a different stand in far away Davos, Switzerland upon his emergence as President in 2007 when he said “nobody in Nigeria deserves the right to be protected by law when looting public funds”. He went further to argue that the immunity granted public office holders breeds corruption.
Since then, others have also toed the same line of argument. For instance, Alhaji Ibrahim Shekarau, the Governor of Kano State has also thrown his weight behind the abrogation of the immunity clause.
A group, Champions for Nigeria (CFN), had also followed suit. The group had gone ahead to forward a petition to the National Assembly on the need to amend Section 308 of the Constitution. They reeled out countries that jettisoned the idea of immunity for their elected leaders. All arguments on this divide point to one direction, which is “immunity promotes corruption”
It is in this light that many view the current bill seeking to accord immunity to lawmakers at both the federal and state levels. It has thus once again brought to the fore salient points regarding the immunity clause.
Sponsored by a member of the House of Representatives, Mr. Ali Ahmed (PDP – Kwara), the bill, which has passed through second reading, seeks to amend Section 4(8) of the 1999 Constitution as amended.
According to the bill, verbal or written comments made by lawmakers in the course of legislative duties will not be questioned in any court of law.
The argument against this bill is that, with such proposition coming at this point in Nigeria’s democracy, which has recorded such astronomical development in terms of awareness, it can only portend danger.
A legal practitioner, Mr Maxwell Opara was quoted as saying that the motive behind the bill is questionable. According to him, “Legislative immunity is not healthy for our democracy at this point in time; it is being pursued in bad faith”.
He explained that there had never been any case of a legislator being arrested or charged to court over his comments on the floor of the House. This is further buttressed by the argument that the legislators do not need such immunity because lawmakers are not liable for their utterances at plenary and at committee sittings.
It is, in fact, noted that legislative immunity is a universal convention, applicable in every democracy; that every issue in the House is a parliamentary one, hence “the rights and privileges of what you say in the House begins and ends there”.
The question, therefore, is “why the lawmakers should be pursuing their immunity at this time when many Nigerians are clamouring for the removal of the already existing immunity clause, given its apparent protection of corrupt officers?”
Many are asking if Nigeria’s democracy is still nascent; so much that facing her economic problems squarely (which is a determinant of its ability to resolve other problems) should continually be sacrificed for a few individuals privileged to be at the helm of affairs?
If so, at which point will Nigeria’s democracy be mature enough to truly consider making her leaders aware that they can be made answerable to their actions at any point of their stewardship? An unprejudiced answer will, to a large extent, determine the extent to which public office holders see themselves as servants or masters.
The Tide source reports that Prof. Akinoso was elected alongside 38 other executive members of the party at the congress held on Saturday.
Other executive members are Dr Abiola Olaonipekun, who emerged as Secretary, Alhaja Latifah Latifu, Women Leader and Mr A. Adeleke, elected as Youth Leader.
It was learnt that the congress, which took place at the Obafemi Awolowo Stadium, Oke Ado in Ibadan, was attended by representatives of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the Police, other security agencies and prominent members of the party.
The election was supervised by electoral committee members, among whom were Prince Diran Odeyemi, who served as Chairman, Hon. Awoniyi Tolulope, Mr Babatunde Gbadamosi, Queen Stepheine Oyechere, Alhaji Yusuf Abidakun, Mr Olumide Aguda and Dr Phillips Adeniyi, who served as Secretary.
Prof. Akinoso, in his inaugural address, urged members of the party to set aside intra-party differences.
He advised them to concentrate their resources on the promotion of the party, saying, “The primary responsibilities of party executive members are to coordinate party activities, ensure harmony among members, and ensure party victory during general elections.
“Our immediate assignments are to key into INEC released 2027 general election time-tables. As directed by the National Caretaker Committee of PDP, our party e-membership registration starts next week. We must be fully involved and do a membership drive.
“A political party is only relevant and benefits its members if it wins the election. This is our goal. We should set aside intra-party differences; concentrate our resources towards the promotion of the party. We will make necessary consultations and dialogue to actualise this”.
President Tinubu disclosed this during an interfaith breaking of fast with senior journalists and media executives at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Saturday.
He also disclosed that his administration had opened up on the principles of true federalism to the extent that local governments now get direct allocation from the Federal Government.
“There’s no morning that I ever leave my house without going through the newspapers. It’s an addiction. I read all of you.
“It might not be in full detail, but headline, the one that would hit me and the ones that won’t.
“At the beginning of this administration, I was just a little bit stubborn, looking at opportunities to correct things and make life more easier for the downtrodden.
“We’ve opened up the principle of federalism to the extent that local governments are now getting their money, but how they use it is in your hands. So, don’t bombard me alone,” President Tinubu said.
The ruling party said the ADC had turned criticism of the APC-led administration into its operating manifesto instead of presenting concrete solutions to Nigeria’s economic challenges.
In a statement issued on Saturday by the APC National Publicity Secretary, Mr Felix Morka, the party dismissed the ADC’s interpretation of a report presented at a policy dialogue organised by Agora Policy which suggested that the country’s poverty rate had risen from 49 per cent to 63 per cent.
Mr Morka said the opposition party’s reaction to the report as a “damning verdict” on the government’s economic policies reflected either ignorance of economic realities or deliberate political mischief.
“The African Democratic Congress’ attempt to spin a recent report presented at the Agora Policy dialogue indicating a rise of poverty rate of 63 per cent from 49 per cent as a damning verdict on this administration’s economic policies speaks either to its shocking ignorance of economic policy or its wilful blindness to the justification for, and transformative impacts of, ongoing economic reforms,” he said.
The APC spokesman noted that the report itself recognised the necessity of reforms aimed at correcting long-standing structural distortions in the economy.
According to him, the ADC had failed to present any credible alternative policy direction for Nigerians.
“Clearly, the ADC does not recognise itself as a political party. The ADC has not articulated a single alternative policy position or prescription of benefit to Nigerians. Condemning the APC and its policies has become its operating manifesto,” Mr Morka said.
He explained that major economic decisions taken by President Bola Tinubu, including the removal of fuel subsidy and the unification of multiple foreign exchange windows, were necessary steps to rescue the country’s economy from collapse.
Mr Morka said the subsidy regime had for years placed a heavy burden on public finances, consuming trillions of naira annually while encouraging corruption, fuel smuggling and inefficiencies in the system.
He added that the reforms had helped redirect national resources to key sectors such as infrastructure, healthcare, education and social development.
The APC spokesman acknowledged that economic reforms often come with short-term hardship but stressed that the measures were essential to build a stronger and more resilient economy.
“Economic reform is never cost-free anywhere in the world. The transient hardship experienced by Nigerians was an inevitable cost of reforms meant to build and guarantee a better future for all Nigerians,” he said.
Mr Morka maintained that the country’s economic outlook was already improving, citing recent growth figures and stronger external reserves.
“Our economy has rebounded and is expanding steadily. The country’s Gross Domestic Product grew by 4.4 per cent last year and is projected to expand by 5.5 per cent this fiscal year, with foreign reserves now exceeding $50 billion,” he stated.
He also pointed to government initiatives designed to cushion the effects of economic adjustments on citizens, including cash transfer programmes, student loan schemes and the rollout of compressed natural gas (CNG) initiatives to reduce transportation costs.
Mr Morka reaffirmed that the APC-led administration would remain focused on rebuilding the economy and expanding social investments to support vulnerable Nigerians.
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