Immunity Clause, Abuse of Judiciary in Nigeria – Ndarani SAN

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mohammed Ndarani has advocated the removal of Section 308 from the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).

Section 308 of the Constitution states that no civil or criminal proceedings can be instituted against the President, Vice-President, Governor or Deputy Governor and they can’t be arrested or imprisoned or a process of any court requiring or compelling their appearance can be issued against them.

In a media parley with judiciary correspondents, Ndarani Mohammed stated that Section 308 of the Constitution, often referred to as Immunity Clause, “is the spinal cord of corruption in Nigeria”.

The senior lawyer attributed the hydra-headed socio-economic and political problems bedevilling the country’s growth to the immunity being enjoyed by governors and their deputies while in office.

He said, “Some of the problems in this country are caused by governors and their deputies because some of them hide under Section 308 of the Constitution to perpetrate all manner of things.

“In view of this, I call on the National Assembly to look at Section 308, nullify it, water it down, struck it down or remove it to a level, where we can have acountability and responsibility from governors.

He therefore urged the National Assembly to expunge the section from the constitution if the fight against corruption must be won.

“I don’t believe in Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution, which bestows immunity on the President, Vice-President, Governors, and Deputy Governors of 36 States of the Federation.

“Globally, immunity clause can be acceptable for the President and the Vice-President, but honestly, I am not totally happy with it being applied to governors and deputy governors.

“How will you fight corruption (in Nigeria) when you know that some group of people can not be sued or prosecuted, yet we operate a constitution that provides for equality of all citizens before the law.

“Immunity Clause gives room for impunity for certain groups of people, and a certain number of governors are using Section 308 of the Constitution for shade.

“If we are seriously fighting corruption, Section 308 and some other sections should be removed for even development and economic prosperity,” Ndarani Mohammed said.

Garry Ochigbo, Edited By Grace Namiji