Orji Uzor Kalu: Beyond celebrating the conviction, we need to ask WHY?

Orji Uzor Kalu

It has taken 12 years to conclusively prosecute a simple case of stealing. This should make us ask WHY?

Our criminal justice system is apparently very slow in dispensing justice. Even though the EFCC's poor investigative skills and politicization often contributes to this, the executive and legislative branches of government need to do something to amend the criminal code such that there will be zero room for unnecessary delays during a criminal prosecution.

Even though the GEJ administration did something in this area by writing and getting the Administration of Criminal Justice Act passed by the then-National Assembly, there is apparently so much more that needs to be done.

Having said these, something tells me that the prosecution of high-profile criminal cases in Nigeria have largely been politicized since 1999 till date. I feel that the dispensing of many of these cases is often used to service political interests more than serving the cause of justice. This is one of the plausible reasons why there is often a lot of delay in concluding many of these cases.

Orji Uzor Kalu's case was started in 2007. It has gone from the Yaradua to the Jonathan's and now Buhari's administrations over the span of 12 years. Within this period, he was an active politician. Did politics play a role in this?

While this court ruling sentencing him to prison should be celebrated as a significant victory in the fight against corruption, I hope that Nigerians can also pause for a moment to ask why it took so long to get to this conviction.

Did the EFCC have no case from the beginning? Did they have a case but were stifled by the court system? Were there external political (or other) influences on both the EFCC and the court system which caused the delay? Beyond the celebration, I believe that these are pertinent questions that need to be asked by investigative journalists, and indeed all Nigerians in order to forge a better system going forward.

Thank you.


Chukwubuikem Paul Anunaso is a civil/structural engineer who is keen about good governance. He is also the editor of The Paul Anunaso Blog where he provides information and perspective on critical issues within the polity.