Amnesty for looters’ bill: Youths spoil for war

Gbenro Adeoye, Jesusegun Alagbe and Olaleye Aluko

Angry youths across the country have warned members of the House of Representatives against passing the Economic Amnesty Bill into law.

Expressing disappointment over the sponsor of the bill, the youths said lawmakers should get ready for war should they ignore their warning and pass the bill into law.

The bill was introduced and read for the first time on June 14, 2017 on the floor of the House and awaits a second reading in July when it would be debated.

The bill seeks to give looters leeway to escape any form of probe, inquiry or prosecution after satisfying certain conditions.

The proposed law is titled, “A bill for an Act to establish a scheme to harness untaxed money for investment purposes and to assure any declarant regarding inquiries and proceedings under Nigerian laws and for other matters connected therewith.”

According to the sponsor of the bill, Linus Okorie (Peoples Democratic Party, Ebonyi State), the bill “seeks to allow all Nigerians and residents, who have any money or assets outside the system or have acquired such money or assets illegally (looted or any variant of the cliche) to come forward, within a set time frame, to declare same, pay tax/surcharge and compulsorily invest the funds in any sector of the Nigerian economy; and be granted full amnesty from inquiry or prosecution.”

A similar move had been suggested at the Senate in May 2016 when the Chairman, Senate Committee on Gas, Bassey Akpan, advocated special amnesty for owners of Nigeria’s stolen money stashed in the various banks across the world should such looters be willing to bring back the money and invest it in the country.

Speaking to Saturday PUNCH on the bill, the President of the Ijaw Youth Council, Mr. Eric Omare, said should the lawmakers pass the bill into law, they should get ready for a fight.

Describing the bill as immoral, Omare said should the bill be passed into law, the Federal Government should consider scrapping all anti-corruption agencies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

He said, “If the bill is passed into law, it means corruption has won. It means we should scrap anti-corruption agencies like the EFCC and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission.

“As a group, we are going to use everything within our power to prevent it from being passed into law.”

Asked if the group would join other angry youths in the country, who have vowed to stone the lawmakers should they pass the bill, Omare said, “Yes, that will be the position of our organisation, too.”

The President of the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, Shettima Yerima, said the group would fight tooth and nail to ensure the bill isn’t passed into law.

“Anyone sponsoring or supporting the bill is a looter and is looking for an escape route. No Nigerian should support it. It will encourage more people to embrace corruption, and as a group, we will fight tooth and nail so that the bill is not passed. We are opposed to it,” he said.

The Publicity Secretary, Youth Arise for Nigeria, Liborous Oshoma, said the bill should be dumped immediately.

 Asking those supporting the bill to be investigated, Oshoma advised constituents to recall any lawmaker who supports the bill.

“We should insist that the process of recalling lawmakers should be made easier and we should find a way of recalling lawmakers who do things we do not subscribe to. Lawmakers who support such a bill should be recalled,” he said.

The factional leader of the National Association of Nigerian Students, Mr. Chinonso Obasi, warned lawmakers should they give any attention to the bill again, students across the country would be mobilised to protest against the action.

He said, “For it to have scaled the first reading, it is sabotage for the anti-corruption campaign. The sponsors and the supporters must have criminal or corruption mindset to have done that. It makes no sense. If the bill is passed into law, it will make corruption appeal to everybody.

“On behalf of the Nigerian students, we declare that that bill must not be passed. We stand against it; it is satanic, and we are going to protest against it to make sure it is not passed.”

Similarly, the National Public Relations Officer, Association of Nigerian Graduates Against Unemployment, Mr. Oni Kehinde, said all youths and constituents would be mobilised to recall lawmakers who support the bill.

“If they pass the bill, we will go to our constituencies to see the names of lawmakers who supported it and begin the process of recalling them,” he said.

The Convener, Unemployed Graduates Association of Nigeria, Mr. Michael Odor, said it was unfortunate that the lawmakers were proposing giving soft landing to corrupt people.

He also suggested that the group would mobilise the youth to go on a rally at the National Assembly.

Meanwhile, the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights has warned against the passage of the bill into law.

The CDHR President, Malachy Ugwummadu, said the fundamental objectives of the National Assembly as provided in the constitution included to abolish all forms of corruption and abuse of power, and not to condone treasury looters.

He said, “It is unfathomable that a bill that seeks to bypass criminal investigation and trial of criminal perpetrators can be entertained in the National Assembly. It is ironical to democratic practice and a complication of crime. That the National Assembly, in the first place, entertained that deliberation is disheartening. The act of looting the treasury of a country is a criminal offence.”

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Source: Punchng
Amnesty for looters’ bill: Youths spoil for war

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