Buhari’s Anti-corruption Wobbles As He Introduces Plea Bargain
President Muhammadu Buhari[/caption]
The anti-corruption drive of the regime of President Muhammadu Buhari is now on faulty grounds as his Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC) has recommended plea bargaining as an alternative means of settling corruption cases.
The committee which unveiled its report in Abuja on Monday recommended that not all criminal cases should be prosecuted to finality.
Part of the manual reads: “This manual is a guide to the decision making process when considering alternative means of disposing of criminal allegations and plea-bargaining.
Advertisement
“Although not every criminal case should be prosecuted to finality through full trial if it can be resolved by alternative means, the manual mandates custodial sentence as part of the sentence no matter how short.
“The aim of plea-bargaining is usually for the defendant to enter into an arrangement or plead guilty in exchange for concessions by the prosecution, which may take the form of the offer of a plea by the defendant to some of the charges, a different offence or less serious charge or to one of multiple charges.”
It further stated that, “The guidelines are to ensure that decisions on alternative means of disposing a case are taken with integrity, accountability, credibility and transparency embedded in them.”
Several individuals including Sambo Dasuki, former National Security Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan are standing trial for nearly a year without any tangible step on their matters.
