Mr. Kanmi Ajibola, the representative for Oriade State Constituency in the Osun State House of Assembly, has called upon the National Assembly to enact legislation enforcing death penalty for corruption offenses.
In a five-page letter addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas, Ajibola stressed the urgent need for stringent measures to curb the pervasive culture of corruption gripping the nation.
Part of the letter reveals, “As a human rights activist, I should not be thinking of a capital punishment to curb or drastically minimise corruption in Nigeria, but for the fact that the acts of the few leaders that are corrupt are leading to the death of their innocent subjects, I think this is the only way and the hard way.
“It is an axiomatic fact that if this stealing spree continually persists unchecked, the country will ultimately end up in an untimely grave. To prevent the sudden and untimely death of Nigeria, the 1999 Constitution has empowered the National Assembly with this responsibility to make laws for the peace, order and good government of the federation.
“At this very moment, before corruption kills Nigeria, it is desirable that Nigeria moves faster to kill corruption. The incumbent leadership of the National Assembly can be the Moses and Musa of the present Nigerian generation by removing the country out of death trap of corruption and its killing venom.
“Due to the non-availability of effective laws to checkmate corruption the way it should be properly checked, there are loss of peace, order, good governance and good government in the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“That Nigeria may continue to live, there is a compelling need for the prevailing public corruption to be curbed and controlled by capital punishment in our laws.
“Within the thirty days of the receipt of this letter, I plead with the National Assembly to perform this public duty to save Nigeria by introducing penalty clause of capital punishment into our Anti-Corruption Laws and Acts.”
Stating the loss of resources to corruption and its detrimental impact on Nigeria’s development, Ajibola noted that effective anti-graft laws, including capital punishment provisions, are essential for fostering peace, order, and good governance, therefore he urged legislative action within a 30-day timeframe to introduce capital punishment clauses into anti-corruption statutes.
