HEDA Seeks Amendment Of Lagos  Anti-corruption Law

 The Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre),has implored  the Lagos House of Assembly to  review and amend the

Lagos State Public Complaints and Anti-Corruption Commission Law 2021’ which was recently signed into law by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu

The group said the development was necessary  in order to ensure that the llaw has   inputs of citizens and civil society.

The law establishes a new anti-corruption agency in Lagos, namely, Lagos State Public Complaints and Anticorruption Commission, which will have the exclusive rights to investigate financial crimes and corruption cases involving the finances of the Lagos State Government.

Olanrewaju Suraju, the Chairman of HEDA

commended the idea  behind the  anti-corruption agency in the state ,but regretted that the bill was passed without public hearing by the Lagos  State House of Assembly .

was eventually signed into law, that it was just a Trojan horse, an attempt to crookedly weaken the fight against corruption, rather than complement it.

Suraju  punctured Section 13(3) provides that the commission shall upon the commencement of this law take over the investigation of all anti-corruption and financial crime cases involving the finances and assets of Lagos State Government being investigated by any other agency.”

According to him,the development  was an unscrupulous attempt by the ruling elite of Lagos State to cover up serious cases of corruption in Lagos especially considering that three former governors as well as other top politicians in Lagos are undergoing various investigations or cases of corruption with the federal anti-corruption agencies, particularly the EFCC.

He  wondered how the new Lagos Commission will be able to prosecute some of the politicians when those politicians are suspected to be richer than the State and play critical roles in the electoral successes of the State’s Governor and members of the House of Assembly who will appoint the Commission’s Chairman and other board members.

He added that it is even unconstitutional by virtue of Section 4(5) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (As Amended) for Lagos State to enact such law to empower a Commission to take over cases from the federal anti-corruption agencies when the agencies are established by an Act of the National Assembly for a purpose which ordinarily “covers the field.”

“Such taking over can only be valid based on mutual consent between the agencies in accordance with the provision of the Act establishing the Federal Agency, not in accordance with the State law,” he said.

Section 13(5) of the Lagos law states that: “The commission shall have the power to the exclusion of any other agency or body to investigate and coordinate the investigation of corruption and financial crimes cases involving the finances and assets of the state government.”

Arrogating such exclusive power to its own agency is a blunt expression of lack of shame, dignity and integrity by the Lagos State Government and the Lagos House of Assembly,”he said.