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Plea bargaining in the Nigerian criminal justice system: A procedural tool for loot recovery or justice administration?

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Abstract

Plea bargaining is one of the procedural tools introduced into the Nigerian Criminal Justice System to ensure quick dispensation of justice, save time and resources that would have been spent on a trial, and solve the problem of prison congestion in the country. This paper examines the application of this procedural tool in the administration of justice in corruption cases in Nigeria. It argues that plea bargaining is used by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) mainly to recover looted resources from the culprits without giving due consideration to the provisions of the law and the essence and purposes that punishment serves. Also, the application of plea bargaining in various corruption cases has resulted in lighter punishments for the culprits. The paper draws on Deterrence Theory to argue that the way plea bargaining is being applied in corruption cases may encourage corrupt practices, rather than deter offending. Therefore, to achieve a reasonable outcome in fighting corruption in Nigeria, the rule of law must be upheld.

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Notes

  1. See Section 75-76 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Repeal and Re-enactment Law of Lagos State 2011.

  2. Section 180(1) of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act 2004 states that ‘Subject to the provisions of Section 174 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 which relates to the power of the Attorney General of the Federation to institute; continue or discontinue criminal proceedings against any provisions in any court of law, the Commission may compound any offence punishable under this Act by accepting such sums of money as it thinks fit, not exceeding the amount of the maximum fine to which that person would be liable if he had been convicted of that offence.

  3. Section 14(2) of the Criminal Procedure Act 1990 states that ‘when more charges than one are made against a person and a conviction has been had on one or more of them the prosecutor may, with the consent of the court, withdraw the remaining charge or charges or the court, of its own motion, may stay the trial of such charge or charges’.

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  1. Department of Criminology and Security Studies, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria

    Habeeb Abdulrauf Salihu

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Salihu, H.A. Plea bargaining in the Nigerian criminal justice system: A procedural tool for loot recovery or justice administration?. Crime Law Soc Change 78, 145–164 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10611-022-10022-5

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