THE REMOVAL OF IMMUNITY CLAUSE FROM THE 1999 NIGERIAN CONSTITUTION

          

There has been debates around the country whether the immunity clause of the Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution should be removed or not. At the ongoing National Conference, delegates had voted overwhelmingly for the removal of immunity clause from the constitution. The delegates had expressed the feeling that the immunity clause has contributed immensely to the corrupt practises by elected officers in the country's polity.
           By the resolution of the National Conference on Thursday, both the President and elected officers can now be dragged to court over criminal and civil cases.
In this section, we look at the proponents of the removal of the immunity clause from the constitution as voted by delegates during the National Conference. The country is taking a huge turn recently as the delegates are hoping to battle crime and corruption among leaders by removing the immunity clause protecting them; looks like a change is around the corner. There has always been issues of inexplicable actions and cases of unaccountability of public funds surrounding The President and State Governors in recent years while enjoying the benefits of the clause which has serve as a shield.
           Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria states that elected officers mentioned in sub-section (3) of that section are protected from arrest, prosecution, imprisonment, civil and criminal proceedings while their tenure lasts. And if there has been a case standing against any of them before being elected into office, such a case shall terminate or atleast be put to abeyance during the continuation of there tenure in office.
           The former Deputy National Chairman of The Peoples' Democratic Party, Olabode George on Saturday said the immunity clause for presidents and governors should be deleted from the Nigerian Constitution.
Bode George who was convicted for corruption in 2009 and jailed for 30 months supports the idea that it should expunged, proposing that it will start to assist the growth of the nation.
"In America, nobody is above the law. We still remember the Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky case while Clinton was in office."

":Exponents say that the fact that people trusted you to manage  their resources does not make you a super human being".

"But the opponents said Nigeria was at the level of Democratic practice where removal of immunity will lead to frivolous cases,". he stated.

"I support the idea that it should be expunged because it will start to assist the growth of the nation," he said.
A cleric, Rev Yinka Adedokun, of the Holy Ghost Harvest Church, Ilorin, on Monday also said the removal of the clause would make leaders more responsible and responsive to citizenry.
"The removal will no doubt make our leaders more responsible and responsive to the yearnings of the people, just as it has the capacity to strengthen our democracy."

"The fear that it will cause distraction is unnecessary, instead it will bring about accountability and probity in governance." he said.
With more people supporting the removal of the clause and few opposing its recommendation, the coming months will tell if the delegates made the right decision.