The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Works, Senator Kabir Gaya, has explained his decision to sponsor a bill for the establishment of special courts to try corruption cases in Nigeria.
The lawmaker told State House correspondents on Friday that he decided to intervene because the delay in ruling on corruption cases in regular courts also affect the use of monies seized from suspects.
Gaya had led members of the National Planning and Implementation Committee of the first National Youth Open Water Swimming Competition tagged Youth Unity Cup 2016 to a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House, Abuja.
“You will find out that court cases on corruption have been lasting for years. Some have lasted for 10 years and for eight years.
For those monies that the government has seized, some of these monies the people are in court, and there is court process in those areas. So, those funds that have been recovered cannot be utilised because they have caveat on them.
“These court cases can drag on for a long time which means that monies recovered by this government can not be utilised. It is in view of that that I brought up a bill to set up special courts on anti-money laundering and corruption,” he said.
If the bill is passed into law, Gaya said the special courts would time limit of taking up cases and trashing them.
The courts, he said, would be expected to complete corruption cases within a period ranging from three months to nine months or maximum of one year.
He said once the cases are dispensed with, the recovered funds would go back to the treasury and then a budget can be done based on those funds recovered.
“We have courts on industrial cases and I don’t see the reason why since this government is fighting corruption, we should not have this special court for corruption cases,” he added.
Gaya said the bill had gone through the first reading and that as soon as senators return from break, it would go into second reading and thereafter go for public hearing.
He expressed hope that the bill would be sent to the President early next year for signing.
