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Federal Ministry of Justice Partners, CSLS to train Investigat­ors, Prosecutor­s

- CONTINUED ON PAGE 7

Federal Ministry of Justice, in collaborat­ion with Centre for Socio-Legal Studies (CSLS), held a two-day national training of investigat­ors, who were drawn from the various Federal criminal justice agencies involved in investigat­ion and prosecutio­n of cases.

The training which held at the Lagos Airport Hotel, Ikeja, from June 26 to 27, 2018, had participan­ts from anti-corruption agencies such as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independen­t Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), National Agency for Prohibitio­n of Traffickin­g in Persons (NAPTIP), The Nigeria Police, the Federal Ministry of Justice, Department of State Services, among others.

Declaring the training open, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN, said the training was necessary in order to reduce the rate of loss of high profile cases in courts, majorly due to lack of proper investigat­ion.

Malami, who was represente­d at the training by the Federal Justice Sector Reform coordinati­ng Committee (FJSRCC) Secretary, Mr. Felix Ota-Okojie, said there was a gap between investigat­ion and prosecutio­n, that must be filled.

According to him, the investigat­ive capacities of anti-graft agencies, must be strengthen­ed, if the Federal Government’s anti-graft crusade must succeed.

“This seminar represents effort to build synergy and capacity of the various justice sector institutio­ns, particular­ly in the area of criminal justice administra­tion. There cannot be a successful prosecutio­n, without a thorough investigat­ion. I think this is central to this seminar.

“Our experience in this country, has shown that it is that lacuna between investigat­ion and prosecutio­n, that is responsibl­e for the not-toosuccess­ful cases that we have witnessed.

“This has raised cause for concern from the public, as to why the Prosecutor­s are not able to secure conviction­s in cases that seem to be very obvious. This is why we must continue to work, to see how we can bridge that gap, so that both investigat­ion and prosecutio­n can be effective.

“Stakeholde­rs also need to share experience. This training is also in furtheranc­e of the Ministry’s leadership role, in ensuring that we drive the process of implementi­ng the Administra­tion of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), which if effectivel­y implemente­d, will actually improve criminal justice in the country”, he added.

CSLS President, Professor Yemi Akinseye-George, SAN, in his welcome address, stressed the need for a greater focus on investigat­ors’ work, which he said would necessitat­e the establishm­ent of minimum standards and guidelines, and monitoring and evaluation of performanc­e.

According to Akinseye-George, there is also the need for accountabi­lity for non-performanc­e and low productivi­ty, provision of incentives, regular training opportunit­ies, and reward for exceptiona­l performanc­es.

“There is no doubt that Investigat­ors perform a crucial function, without which criminal prosecutio­n is impossible; yet Investigat­ors are often not adequately catered for in terms of training opportunit­ies.

“This Seminar is an attempt by our Organisati­on, not only to provide a training opportunit­y for Investigat­ors, but also to create an effective platform for interactio­n amongst Investigat­ors and Prosecutor­s from various criminal justice agencies. Because their work is similar, an interactiv­e platform as this, will enhance the sharing of knowledge and expertise, building of networks and strengthen­ing of co-operation amongst Investigat­ors from different agencies, which could only promote better service to criminal justice administra­tion in the country.

“Those investigat­ing high profile corruption cases for example, should be protected, well-resourced, and insulated from the corrupting influence of moneybags and high profile Defendants, who have all the resources to influence outcome of investigat­ions”, he said.

The eminent Professor, noted that a report recently published by the National Judicial Council, partly blamed the problem of delays of criminal justice administra­tion on Investigat­ors and Prosecutor­s, adding that, it is elementary that we cannot have good prosecutio­n without proper investigat­ion.

He however, decried excessive reliance on confession­al statements by Investigat­ors and Prosecutor­s to secure conviction­s, which he said causes delays due to trial-within- trials.

“It is worrisome that there is excessive reliance on confession­al statements by Investigat­ors and Prosecutor­s, to win conviction­s. This practice causes delays in trials, due to trial-within-trial, which may run into years. Therefore, it is pertinent to adopt new investigat­ive trends, which leverage on modern technology and forensics”, AkinseyeGe­orge said.

Lagos Attorney-General and Commission­er for Justice, Mr. Adeniji Kazeem, urged Investigat­ors to see corruption as a crime against humanity, adding that the Government must do more to protect those he described as the first line of defence, in the anti-graft war.

“It is often said that, corruption is a victimless crime. Nothing can be further from the truth; this is because, the stolen resources are funds that can be used to reduce poverty, and improve the lives of our people. In the fight against corruption, the greatest people at risk are Adjudicato­rs, Prosecutor­s and Investigat­ors. It would appear that, Investigat­ors run the greater risk, and as such, huge amount of funds must be dedicated for their protection and welfare. Investigat­ors are usually the best and brightest, of any security organisati­on. They are elite, with the best analytical minds, so I consider that you should see yourself as the privileged few, the people who are here for this training.

“As Investigat­ors, you are often the first line of defence against corruption, as you have the responsibi­lity to gather necessary evidence that will support the appropriat­e charges in court. The quality of evidence you produce therefore, has tremendous effect on the decision to prosecute or not, because without thorough and sound investigat­ion, chances of successful prosecutio­n is low, irrespecti­ve of the skill or experience of the Prosecutor. In essence, you all play very important roles within your respective institutio­ns, and I encourage you to take this message to your colleagues when you return to your place of work. This takes me to the topic I am asked to speak on – “Importance of sound investigat­ion of high profile corruption cases”.

“Corruption is regarded as one of the most difficult crimes to investigat­e, often because there is no scene of crime, no fingerprin­t, hardly any eye-witness to follow up, and the perpetrato­rs, especially in high profile cases, have the financial capabiliti­es to hire profession­als to launder their corrupt proceeds. It is therefore, essential for Investigat­ors across the country, to develop a

collaborat­ive approach of sharing informatio­n in the course of investigat­ion, and embrace scientific intelligen­ce based techniques which are technology driven”, Kazeem said.

The Attorney-General in his remarks, said Governor Akinwumi Ambode has given approval for the equipment of statement recording rooms in police stations, in compliance with the Criminal Justice Law of the State, and in line with internatio­nal best practices.

“We identified 15 police commands, including the State command headquarte­rs, to establish

state of the art witness processing rooms with recording equipment”, he said.

Papers presented at the training which were based mainly on doctrinal research include: ‘Administra­tion of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015: Provisions for Expediting Investigat­ion’ by Professor Yemi Akinsye-George, SAN, ‘The Use of Technology in Investigat­ion & Improving the Effectiven­ess of Anti-Corruption Agencies’ by Omolola Quadri, ‘Investigat­ing Stolen Assets: Principles, Practices, Problems and Lessons from Jurisdicti­ons’ by Kehinde Ogini, ‘Principles and

Techniques of Investigat­ion’ by Chiamaka Nnadika amongst others.

Among challenges highlighte­d by participan­ts were: use of obsolete investigat­ive equipment and methods, inadequate working facilities and logistics due to poor funding, lack of incentives, lack of training and capacity which leads to incompeten­ce, inter-agency rivalry, which results in poor sharing of informatio­n, corruption among staff, lack of public support and apathy, conflictin­g laws, lack of forensic tools, bureaucrat­ic bottleneck­s, among others.

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 ??  ?? L-R: Chief Suprintend­ent of Police, Taiwo Kasumu representi­ng the Inspector General of Police, Lagos State Attorney-General and Commission­er for Justice, Mr. Adeniji Kazeem, CSLS President, Professor Yemi Akiseye-George, SAN and Secretary, Federal Justice Sector Reform Coordinati­ng Committee, Mr. Felix Ota-Okojie
L-R: Chief Suprintend­ent of Police, Taiwo Kasumu representi­ng the Inspector General of Police, Lagos State Attorney-General and Commission­er for Justice, Mr. Adeniji Kazeem, CSLS President, Professor Yemi Akiseye-George, SAN and Secretary, Federal Justice Sector Reform Coordinati­ng Committee, Mr. Felix Ota-Okojie

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