A Critique of the Punishments for Breach of Code of Conduct for Public Officers in Nigeria

Abstract

The Code of Conduct for Public Officers as well as the Code of Conduct & Tribunal Act (hereinafter to be called "the Code” and "the Act” respectively) provide punishments for breach of code of conduct for public officers contained in Part I of the 5^thSchedule to the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which include vacation of office or seat, disqualification from being a member of legislative house or any office and seizure and forfeiture to the state of any property acquired in abuse or corruption of office. The two laws also provide that a public officer found liable by the Code of Conduct Tribunal will still be subject to criminal trial in respect of same misdeeds in conventional court of law. This paper discusses these provisions of the two laws and contends that it will amount to double jeopardy for the same person who has been punished by the Tribunal to be subjected to further trial on account of the same infractions of the law. The paper suggests that the two laws be amended to state all the attendant punishments should there be any breach of the Code instead of the present situation where the public officer will be made to proceed to ordinary law court for further trial and punishment after successful trial by the Code of Conduct Tribunal.