• THE ADMINISTRATION OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT, 2015: A BLESSING OR A CURSE?

                                                                           BY:
                                                         IFEANYI UGWUANYI 
                                                    ifeanyiugwuanyi247@gmail.com

The Nigerian criminal justice system has lost its capacity to respond quickly to the needs of the society to check rising waves of crime; speedily bring criminals to book and protect the victims of crime. Each state in Nigeria has prior to now, adopted either the Criminal Procedure Act or the Criminal Procedure Code which shall hereinafter be referred to as CPA and CPC respectively. These laws have been applied for many decades without significant improvement. However, as a result of the need to sanitize the criminal justice system, a Reform Administration of Criminal Justice was first developed in 2005 by the National Working Group on the reform of the criminal justice in Nigeria. The group which was established by the then Attorney- General of the federation, Chief Akin Olujinmi (SAN) was maintained by his successor, Chief Bayo Ojo (SAN).
Upon assumption of office, the Attorney- General of the federation, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN) set up a Panel on Implementation of Justice Reform (PIJR) in 2011to implement the proposals for reform produced by the National Working Group under the earlier administration.
By virtue of section 493 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act which shall hereinafter be referred to as “ACJA”, the CPC and CPA stand repealed. According to Prof.Yemi Akinseye George (SAN) – in his article Innovative Provisions of the ACJA, the ACJA merged the provisions of the principal legislations (CPA and CPC) into one principal federal Act which is intended to apply uniformly I all federal courts across the federation.
Substantially the Act preserves the existing criminal procedures. But it introduces new innovative provisions that will enhance the efficiency of the justice system. In other words, the ACJA 2015 builds upon the existing framework of criminal justice administration in the country. However, it fills the gaps observed in these laws over the course of several decades
The 495 section law which is divided into 49 parts sets out its purpose in section 1 therein as to ensure efficient management and dispensation of justice in the criminal sector. Having set out the objective of the Act, I will proceed to highlight the relevant portions of the law which will ultimately reveal whether the Act is a blessing or a curse.

*Abolition of stay of proceedings and interlocutory appeals
The effect of a combined reading of sections 306 and 396 of the ACJA abolished stay of proceedings in criminal trials. Prior to this novel provision, it was uncommon to witness cases last for donkey years under the auspices of stay of proceedings and interlocutory appeals. Thanks to goodness, the above sections can now be likened to a deux ex machina. Without loosing sight of the finality of the decision of the apex court as expressed in Adegoke Mortors V. Adesanya, (1989) 3 NWLR pt.109 250 at 274-275 per Chukwudifu Oputa JSC. One will not however be wrong in criticizing the decision of the Supreme Court in Federal Republic of Nigeria V. Saraki (2016) 3 NWLR Pt. 1500 p. 531 wherein the apex court in defiance of the above sections granted a stay of proceeding to the Senate President. One may not be wrong in classifying the decision as a political judgment vis-à-vis the decision of the Federal High Court Abuja in Federal Republic of Nigeria V. Nnamdi Kanu, wherein the leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) was denied a stay of proceeding in the light of the above sections. This being the case it therefore follows that the Supreme Court appears to have rendered the provisions of the Act cosmetic.

*Unlawful arrests and notification of arrest
Sections 2-7 of the ACJA set out the procedure of arrest by the police. Section 7 specifically prohibits arrest in lieu. Hence, a person shall not be arrested in place of a suspect .without more, this section will curtail the abuse of power manifested by the police and other agencies – EFCC, NDLEA, ICPC, NAFDAC where relatives and close associates of the suspect are arrested in lieu of the suspect .this will go a long way to decongest our prisons.
Sections 5 and 38 of the CPA and CPC respectively provided that a police officer or a person making an arrest is to inform the arrested person the reason for such arrest except where he is being arrested in the course of the commission of the offence or pursued immediately thereafter. S.6 of the ACJA preserves the above provision but went further to insert a proviso which mandates the officer to warn the arrested person of:
a. His right to remain silent
b. Consult his counsel before writing or answering any question.
c. Free legal representation by the legal aid council of Nigeria where applicable.
Suffice it to say at this juncture that the proviso in section 6(2) is quite laudable since the suspect will have the benefit of being informed of the offence against him but also the additional advantage of counsel assisting in securing his immediate release. Following from the above provision, one will readily appreciate that the constitutional provision in section 35(2) is both preserved and reaffirmed. Section 8 deals with improper employment of the machinery of criminal justice – whereby individuals wrongfully or maliciously initiate criminal proceeding on matters that are purely civil.
 
*Mandatory inventory of property
Section 10 of ACJA mandates the police upon arrest to take inventory recovered from suspects and same must be duly signed by the police officer and the suspect. However failure of the suspect to sign shall not invalidate the inventory recorded. On the face value of it, this provision will make for accountability and transparency.
Section 15(1) and (2) provides for record of personal data of an arrested individual within the specified time.
*Establishment of police central registry
Section 16 (1) of the Act established a data collection registry to keep records for future investigation, prosecution and adjudication. The Act provides that the registry is to be established at every state police command which shall keep and transmit criminal records to the central records registry.

*Electronic recording of confessional statement
Section 15(4) of the Act provides that where a person arrested with or without a warrant of arrest volunteers to make a confessional statement, the police officer shall record the statement in writing or may record the making of the confessional statement electronically on a retrievable video compact disc or such other audio visual means. Subsection (5) of section 15 provides that notwithstanding the provision of subsection (4), an oral confession of arrested suspect shall be admissible in evidence. This provision of the ACJA conforms to the position of the law as contained in the Evidence Act, 2011.

*Right to Bail
Sections 30, 31, 32 and 158-164 of the ACJA attempts a simplification of the right of an arrested person to bail. It permits an oral application in the trial of non-capital offences. The Act also made specific provisions as to bail where a person is charged with a capital offence. Such a person can only be admitted to bail by a High Court Judge under exceptional circumstances. Such circumstance may include:
A. Ill health of the applicant which shall be confirmed and certified by a qualified medical practitioner employed in a Government hospital;
B. Extraordinary delay in the investigation, arraignment and prosecution for a period exceeding one year; or
C. Any other circumstances that the Judge may, in the particular facts of the case, consider exceptional.

MUSINGS
While the ACJA is commendable for the innovations and for addressing some fundamental factors militating against the smooth and efficient dispensation of criminal justice in Nigeria, there may be reasons to suggest difficulty in the application of some of its provisions. The electronic recording of confessional statements is aimed at limiting the procurement of involuntary confessional statements from suspects. In practice however, one may not be very convinced that this may be a full proof method of obtaining confessional statements.
Funding, indiscipline and lack of independence of some of the key players in the justice system may also be major clogs in the smooth operation of the new Act. The Judiciary and the Nigeria Police are the major participants in the administration and dispensation of criminal justice. There may be an immediate need to review the number of appointed Judges, training of Judges; welfare package for judicial officers and increased provision of facilities, as otherwise, the significance of the new legislation may not be immediately realized.
 
CONCLUSION
Having x-rayed the novel provisions of the new statute, it is my humble suggestion and submission that adequate funding of the Judiciary and the Police, coupled with a transparent and independent Judiciary will do away with some of the implementation and funding problems which may if left unattended to, turn the perceived blessings of the Act into curses. Relevant institutions and their officers who are saddled with the effective implementation of the new legislation must also strive towards arriving at the intention of the legislature in providing an avenue for a speedy dispensation and conclusion of criminal trials in Nigeria.