The Supreme Court has dismissed the suits filed by state Governors challenging the establishment and prosecutorial powers of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC).
The apex court described the suit as “selfish,” supporting establishing the anti-graft agencies and their powers to investigate and prosecute financial crimes across the federation.
A seven-member panel of the apex court, led by Justice Uwani Abba-Aji, passed the judgment on Friday in cases filed by the Attorneys General of Kogi State and others against the Attorney General of the Federation.
In her judgment, Justice Uwani Abba-Aji stated “By Section 15 of the 1999 Constitution, and the decision of this apex court in AG vs Ondo, the National Assembly has the powers to enact laws relating to fighting corruption, irrespective of whether the funds belong to the federal, state, or local governments,”
She thereafter added that the states are constituents of the federal government under the jurisdiction of the EFCC’s powers.
Origin of The Suit
The lawsuit challenged the legality of the EFCC arguing that the enactment of the EFCC Act did not follow the requirements of Section 12 of the 1999 Constitution regarding the domestic incorporation of international conventions, making the Act improperly established.
They based their claim on the contention that the establishment of the agencies ran contrary to a 2004 Supreme Court precedent, which, according to them, mandated that international conventions—such as the United Nations Convention against Corruption which gave rise to the EFCC Act – must get a majority vote from Nigeria’s state assemblies before becoming effective.
The suit was brought up by the Kogi state Attorney General before 18 other states like Ondo, Edo, Adamawa, Ebonyi, Oyo, Ogun, Nasarawa, Kebbi, Katsina, Sokoto, Jigawa, Enugu, Benue, Anambra, Plateau, Cross River, and Niger joined as parties to the suit.
However, Adamawa, Ebonyi, Benue, and Anambra states later withdrew from the suit.
Significance of Court Judgement
The court judgment puts every issue regarding the creation of the EFCC by an act of parliament to rest and effectively upholds the commission’s right to carry on with its duties of investigating financial crimes at the federal, state, and local levels without external influence.
It also reinforces the EFCC’s powers to go after state Governors who are suspected of financial mismanagement once their tenure elapses and the immunity is taken from them.
