Log In
updated 10:20 AM UTC, Dec 13, 2023

Nigerian Court Upholds Executive Order On Interim Forfeiture Of Assets Linked To Corruption

Unic Press UK: A Federal High Court in Abuja has ruled that the Nigerian government’s Executive Order for the interim forfeiture of assets linked to corruption proceeds is not a violation of any law of the country.

In her judgment, Judge Ijeoma Ojukwu held that, as long as it does not run contrary to the principles of the separation of power, the Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has the authority to issue an Executive Order on interim forfeiture of any asset, and that such an order subsists even when the process of a criminal investigation has yet to be concluded.

It was on July 2018 that President Muhammadu Buhari signed an Executive Order, which declared emergency on corruption.

“Whilst there are many reasons why Nigeria has been struggling; regrettably, the most unfortunate cause of great disparity between Nigeria’s wealth and its poverty is endemic corruption. It is in consequence of this that I have decided to issue the Executive Order No. 6 of 2018 to inter alia restrict dealings in suspicious assets subject to investigation or inquiry bordering on corruption in order to preserve such assets from dissipation, and to deprive alleged criminals of the proceeds of their illicit activities which can otherwise be employed to allure, pervert and/or intimidate the investigative and judicial processes”, President Buhari said on July 6, 2018.

Tagged under

Leave a Reply