The CCT seeks a 37-judge anti-corruption court, the target of the six-week trial

…Court proposes seven nationwide judicial divisions to expedite corruption cases

… CCT complains of inadequate influx of cases, struggles to access N2bn budget

Daud Olatunji

The Code of Conduct Tribunal has started efforts to transform itself into a full-fledged national anti-corruption court with seven judicial divisions and 37 judges dedicated to corruption-related cases.

The proposed tribunal, if approved by the National Assembly, is expected to adopt a summary trial system under which corruption cases would be concluded within six weeks of being heard in court.

CCT Acting Litigation Director Yahaya Laraski revealed this on Monday, outlining the court’s achievements and challenges under his new leadership.

Laraski said the proposal was being pursued through an executive bill by the Attorney General of the Federation and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

He explained that the proposed legislation would change the status and name of the court to the National Anti-Corruption Court, giving it broader jurisdiction to handle corruption cases.

According to him, the proposed court would have jurisdiction over cases brought by anti-corruption agencies and other relevant institutions, as well as civil society organizations.

He said: “The new President is lobbying the National Assembly, through the Attorney General of the Federation and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, for a law, as an Executive Bill, to change the name to the ‘National Anti-Corruption Court’ as a full-fledged court with seven judicial divisions across Nigeria.”

Laraski added that the proposed 37 judges will be assigned to the specialized court to ensure faster determination of corruption cases.

He said the summary trial procedure was designed to prevent corruption cases from lingering in the justice system for years.

“This will be a summary trial court, under which all cases will have to be disposed of within a period of six weeks from the date of hearing in court,” he said.

CCT retrieves two properties

Meanwhile, the court said its new leadership has recovered two of the three real estate properties allegedly sold illegally.

The recovered properties, according to Laraski, are the official residence of the Chief Justice and his North Eastern States zonal office in Bauchi.

He also revealed that the status of the president has been elevated to that of Chief Justice of the Federal High Court, while members of the court now enjoy the status of judges of the Federal High Court.

The court, he said, also created seven new departments to complement the three existing departments as part of efforts to strengthen its operations.

Laraski said exceptional staff promotions have been implemented, while 13 new benefits have been introduced.

He added that staff members underwent more than 20 capacity-building programs in a year.

...Court seeks more funding

Despite the reforms, the CCT has identified inadequate case flow and poor funding as major obstacles to its effective functioning.

Laraski said the court’s ability to adjudicate cases depends largely on referrals from the Code of Conduct Office.

He explained that the CCT can only decide on cases referred to it by the bureau, thus limiting the volume of matters before the court.

“The first is that the flow of cases to our Tribunal is determined only by the discretion of the Code of Conduct Office. Whatever case they want is the one we can adjudicate on,” he said.

On funding, Laraski disclosed that the court has not been able to fully access its budget allocation of N2bn.

“There is a serious inadequacy of funding because we can hardly get the $2 billion budget funded by the government,” he said.

He appealed to the Federal Government to improve funding for the court and provide essential infrastructure and operational equipment, including furniture, facilities and information and communications technology vehicles.

Laraski also called for continued investment in staff training and capacity building, saying stronger institutional support would be needed if the proposed anti-corruption court is to achieve its goal of ensuring speedy justice.

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