AGF receives 8,000 criminal case files from police

The Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation has received 8,000 criminal case files from the police since the enactment of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami, said this at the international workshop to examine the role of the judiciary in the fight against corruption in Abuja, on Monday.

Malami said the Act which prohibited policemen, who were non-lawyers from prosecuting criminal cases, had placed the responsibilities on the Department of Public Prosecution in his ministry.

To ensure effective prosecution of the cases, he said the ministry deployed additional counsels to the prosecution department and developed their professional capacity to handle the cases in a timely and efficient manner.

Malami said the ACJA had been rightly acknowledged as a revolutionary legislation that would facilitate the achievement of a humane and functional criminal justice system founded on social justice and rule of law.

He stressed the need for the total understanding of its provisions by all relevant sectors, particularly the security agencies, investigative and prosecution authorities, the legal profession and the judiciary.

Malami, who is also Minister of Justice, also underscored the importance of ensuring that the law became a truly national legislation by the adoption of its reforms by all states.

He thanked the organisers of the workshop, saying it would serve as a catalyst for the synergy needed in effective prosecution of corruption cases.

The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Mahmud Mohammed, said corruption in Nigeria “is a complex problem that cannot be solved in isolation.’’

Mohammed said corruption could not be easily tackled without transparent and efficient justice system and the cooperation of necessary stakeholders.

He said the workshop was a clear indication of the support of the judiciary to the Federal Government’s efforts at tackling corruption in the country.

The chief justice said the bench was determined to ensure that corruption and economic sabotage cases were heard within the time stipulated by law and perpetrators brought to book.

Mohammed said the various divisions of courts had dedicated judges to hear and determine cases on economic crimes and corruption.

He solicited the support of all stakeholders in the justice sector, the prosecution, defence, the police and others, to play their respective roles and ensure that they obeyed all directives from the courts.