Lagos Newly Signed Anti-Graft Law Unconstitutional, Retrogressive — Olabode George

*Says Legislation Dead On Arrival

Former Deputy National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP), Chief Olabode George, has kicked against the recent Anti-
Corruption Bill passed by the Lagos State House of Assembly and
signed into law by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, which he said seeks
to shield criminals from being prosecuted by the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), describing it as
unconstitutional and retrogressive.

Chief George expressed this view on Monday in Lagos at a press
conference titled: “Nigeria: Time to Chart a new direction,” which
he addressed during the welcome party, organised to celebrate the
recent victory recorded by the party at its recently concluded
zonal Congress in Osogbo, the Osun State capital.

The PDP chieftain, who is also the Atona of the Source, while
frowning at the new law, and further describing it as self-serving,
dubious and incongruous legislation, declared it as dead on
arrival, calling on EFCC to look into the books of Alphabeta
company with the view of ascertaining criminal complicity in the
looting of Lagos treasury.

“The Lagos State government legislation that seeks to shield
criminals from being prosecuted by the EFCC is unconstitutional and
retrogressive.

“EFCC is advised to look into the books of Alphabeta company
with the view of ascertaining criminal complicity in the looting of
Lagos treasury,” he said.

George further lampooned the new Anti-graft law, saying it
amounted to politics of deceit and self-serving glorification, in a
bid to “railroading their enemies into jail and protecting their
own,” just as he recalled his sad personal experience which led to
his being jailed “for committing no offense at all until I was
discharged and acquitted by the highest court in our land.”

“At this juncture, I must return to my state again in view of
the self-serving, dubious, incongruous legislation that seeks to
shield the looters of our state treasury from the prosecutorial
mandate of the EFCC.

“Sanwoolu’s legislation that seeks to shield criminals from
Federal prosecution is dead on arrival. It is an elementary
assertion that once a state law conflicts with federal legislation,
the state law is voided. This is what the constitution says.

“Section 4(5) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) amplifies: ‘If any Law enacted by the
House of Assembly of a State is inconsistent with any law validly
made by the National Assembly, the Law made by the National
Assembly shall prevail, and that other law shall to the extent of
the inconsistency be void.’ It will not work,” George said.

Speaking further, the PDP chieftain, as part of his 10- point
demand, charged President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately accede to
agitations to restructure the country, declaring that Nigeria was
not under military rule and, therefore, impossible for one man
sitting at the top to direct and manage her affairs from one
source.

George, while making the demand, noted sadly that the country’s
polity was now straying towards its elastic limit, declaring that
it was now over-stressed and beyond the bounds of
acceptability.

According to him, the survival of Nigeria as a nation is
genuinely being questioned everywhere as violence sprouts
everywhere across the land, declaring that the country surely can’t
continue like this and, therefore, the need to reverse “the ruinous
course and retrieve ourselves from the gaping chasm that confronts
us all.”

“Nigerian Federation is skewed, distorted and should be
restructured for equity and fairness to prevail,” the PDP chieftain
said.

“So Oga (Buhari) must immediately do something. By the 29th of
May this year, it will be exactly two years left for him, he can
still do something. But my own position is that we must revisit the
system of governance in this country that allows one man sitting at
the top to direct and manage Nigeria from one source, it is not
possible. It is not a military government.

“This is the time to change the path of old, to look beyond what
hobbles our progress, to redefine our value system, to rejig and
restructure the various anomalies that presently hinder the greater
possibilities of the Nigerian Union,” he declared.

Other demands made by George are that politics should be seen as
a public service and not as an avenue to amass wealth and that the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should jettison
its manual procedure and embrace Electronic Voting System, among
others.

The PDP chieftain reiterated the call that the two Toll gates at
Lekki be pulled down permanently and a monument erected in honor of
those young men and women who were martyred in pursuit of a better
Nigeria, just as he demanded that the National Union of Road and
Transport Workers, which he described as the militia wing of Lagos
State chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC) government and
agent of violence and destabilization in the state be outlawed.

“The NURTW which is a militia wing of the APC government in
Lagos State continues to be the core of destabilization and
violence and should therefore be abolished,” he said.

The rest demands, according to Chief George are: “That Nigeria
can be a better place when we all eschew ethnic jingoism, sectarian
bias and crass nepotistic agenda.

“That we cannot continue like this. Something must give. There
is no other way. There is no other path. Those who have stripped
our collective coffers must face the full wrath of the law as a
deterrence to others,” the PDP chieftain declared.

On the local government polls coming up in the state in July,
George said pointedly that the party had very little interest in
the exercise due to past experiences but quickly said PDP would
participate in it to enable the citizens see the lack of interest
Lagosians have in the exercise.

According to him, the way and manner the appointment of members
of the electoral body came about could not guarantee justice and
fairness, saying what took place in the 2019 polls was another
reason that the local council polls in the state cannot be free and
fair.

“For the local government election you know, we are just back.
We have just finished the Zonal Congress. Congresses are coming and
so from this week, the exco of our party will now embark on trying
to get those who would contest.

“Very little interest, very little interest we have in the
exercise because of what happened during the general election, how
can there be fairness? he queried.

“We have had so many elections with them, they will just go and
write results. But we would compete so that people will go round
and see how many people will come out, that would be a measure of
lack of interest by members of the public,” he added.

*Says Legislation Dead On Arrival

Former Deputy National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP), Chief Olabode George, has kicked against the recent Anti-
Corruption Bill passed by the Lagos State House of Assembly and
signed into law by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, which he said seeks
to shield criminals from being prosecuted by the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), describing it as
unconstitutional and retrogressive.

Chief George expressed this view on Monday in Lagos at a press
conference titled: “Nigeria: Time to Chart a new direction,” which
he addressed during the welcome party, organised to celebrate the
recent victory recorded by the party at its recently concluded
zonal Congress in Osogbo, the Osun State capital.

The PDP chieftain, who is also the Atona of the Source, while
frowning at the new law, and further describing it as self-serving,
dubious and incongruous legislation, declared it as dead on
arrival, calling on EFCC to look into the books of Alphabeta
company with the view of ascertaining criminal complicity in the
looting of Lagos treasury.

“The Lagos State government legislation that seeks to shield
criminals from being prosecuted by the EFCC is unconstitutional and
retrogressive.

“EFCC is advised to look into the books of Alphabeta company
with the view of ascertaining criminal complicity in the looting of
Lagos treasury,” he said.

George further lampooned the new Anti-graft law, saying it
amounted to politics of deceit and self-serving glorification, in a
bid to “railroading their enemies into jail and protecting their
own,” just as he recalled his sad personal experience which led to
his being jailed “for committing no offense at all until I was
discharged and acquitted by the highest court in our land.”

“At this juncture, I must return to my state again in view of
the self-serving, dubious, incongruous legislation that seeks to
shield the looters of our state treasury from the prosecutorial
mandate of the EFCC.

“Sanwoolu’s legislation that seeks to shield criminals from
Federal prosecution is dead on arrival. It is an elementary
assertion that once a state law conflicts with federal legislation,
the state law is voided. This is what the constitution says.

“Section 4(5) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) amplifies: ‘If any Law enacted by the
House of Assembly of a State is inconsistent with any law validly
made by the National Assembly, the Law made by the National
Assembly shall prevail, and that other law shall to the extent of
the inconsistency be void.’ It will not work,” George said.

Speaking further, the PDP chieftain, as part of his 10- point
demand, charged President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately accede to
agitations to restructure the country, declaring that Nigeria was
not under military rule and, therefore, impossible for one man
sitting at the top to direct and manage her affairs from one
source.

George, while making the demand, noted sadly that the country’s
polity was now straying towards its elastic limit, declaring that
it was now over-stressed and beyond the bounds of
acceptability.

According to him, the survival of Nigeria as a nation is
genuinely being questioned everywhere as violence sprouts
everywhere across the land, declaring that the country surely can’t
continue like this and, therefore, the need to reverse “the ruinous
course and retrieve ourselves from the gaping chasm that confronts
us all.”

“Nigerian Federation is skewed, distorted and should be
restructured for equity and fairness to prevail,” the PDP chieftain
said.

“So Oga (Buhari) must immediately do something. By the 29th of
May this year, it will be exactly two years left for him, he can
still do something. But my own position is that we must revisit the
system of governance in this country that allows one man sitting at
the top to direct and manage Nigeria from one source, it is not
possible. It is not a military government.

“This is the time to change the path of old, to look beyond what
hobbles our progress, to redefine our value system, to rejig and
restructure the various anomalies that presently hinder the greater
possibilities of the Nigerian Union,” he declared.

Other demands made by George are that politics should be seen as
a public service and not as an avenue to amass wealth and that the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should jettison
its manual procedure and embrace Electronic Voting System, among
others.

The PDP chieftain reiterated the call that the two Toll gates at
Lekki be pulled down permanently and a monument erected in honor of
those young men and women who were martyred in pursuit of a better
Nigeria, just as he demanded that the National Union of Road and
Transport Workers, which he described as the militia wing of Lagos
State chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC) government and
agent of violence and destabilization in the state be outlawed.

“The NURTW which is a militia wing of the APC government in
Lagos State continues to be the core of destabilization and
violence and should therefore be abolished,” he said.

The rest demands, according to Chief George are: “That Nigeria
can be a better place when we all eschew ethnic jingoism, sectarian
bias and crass nepotistic agenda.

“That we cannot continue like this. Something must give. There
is no other way. There is no other path. Those who have stripped
our collective coffers must face the full wrath of the law as a
deterrence to others,” the PDP chieftain declared.

On the local government polls coming up in the state in July,
George said pointedly that the party had very little interest in
the exercise due to past experiences but quickly said PDP would
participate in it to enable the citizens see the lack of interest
Lagosians have in the exercise.

According to him, the way and manner the appointment of members
of the electoral body came about could not guarantee justice and
fairness, saying what took place in the 2019 polls was another
reason that the local council polls in the state cannot be free and
fair.

“For the local government election you know, we are just back.
We have just finished the Zonal Congress. Congresses are coming and
so from this week, the exco of our party will now embark on trying
to get those who would contest.

“Very little interest, very little interest we have in the
exercise because of what happened during the general election, how
can there be fairness? he queried.

“We have had so many elections with them, they will just go and
write results. But we would compete so that people will go round
and see how many people will come out, that would be a measure of
lack of interest by members of the public,” he added.