Nigeria In One Minute
Rep seeks 20-year jail term for financial crimes
The House of Representatives wants persons convicted of economic and financial crimes to be jailed for 20 years.
This is part of the details of the new amendments to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission Act, 2004, which The PUNCH obtained on Sunday.
The Act currently prescribes a penalty of “not less than two years” for economic and financial crimes.
Lawmakers consider this to be “lenient” for the serious crime of stealing public money or other forms of financial crimes.
Four consolidated bills before the House are seeking to further empower the EFCC to fight crime, insulate the anti-graft agency from interference by the Presidency and enhance its financial autonomy.
One of the bills, which was sponsored by a member from Cross River State, Mr. Bassey Ewa, proposes to raise the two-year term for economic and financial crimes offenders to 20 years.
In the new bill, Section 18 of the Principal Act is amended to prescribe tougher punishments for economic and financial crimes.
The new subsection (C) reads: “All convicted persons shall serve an imprisonment of a term not less than 20 years and have their ill-gotten property, accounts or investment confiscated by the government.”
Punch. April 3, 2017
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Oise Oikelomen
April 3, 2017 at 1:49 pm
The real problem right now is not the lightness or severity of the prescribed sentence. The real problem is the lack of political will to implement the written laws. A sentence of “not less than two years” would serve as some deterrent if it’s implemented, if “public thieves” leave their exalted position to go to jail and leave with the stigma of being an ex convict ever after. A sentence of 100 years and more would make no difference if the thieves know that it would never take effect. I think the NASS know this very well, they are just playing to the gallery.