By George Mgbeleke<\/p>\n
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) strongly condemns what it describes as the disturbing and increasingly obvious attempt by the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee investigating the so-called Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) to assume the role of investigator, prosecutor and judge in a matter that is already before a court of competent jurisdiction.<\/p>\n
What Nigerians witnessed during the committee’s latest sitting was, in our considered opinion, not a genuine legislative oversight exercise but a carefully choreographed political spectacle apparently designed to manufacture a predetermined narrative and shield highly placed public officials from searching scrutiny.<\/p>\n
The speed with which the committee rushed to pronounce the appointment letter of Prince Adeyemi fake, its repeated public declarations on the authenticity of documents, and the tone adopted by the committee chairman all combine to create the unmistakable impression that the verdict had been written long before the hearing commenced.<\/p>\n
This is not legislative oversight. It is legislative overreach.
\nThis is not accountability. It is, in our view, an attempt to influence public perception while judicial proceedings remain pending.
\nThe Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria recognizes the doctrine of separation of powers. The National Assembly is not a substitute for the judiciary, nor is it constitutionally empowered to conduct proceedings in a manner capable of prejudicing matters that are sub judice.
\nIt is therefore deeply troubling that the committee appears determined to reach sweeping conclusions while the substantive issues remain before the courts.
\nEven more disturbing is the persistent refusal or inability of the Nigeria Police Force to produce Prince Adeyemi before the committee despite repeated requests. The explanation offered by the police is neither convincing nor satisfactory in the circumstances.
\nThe continued detention of the principal actor, the prolonged adjournment of his case, and his absence from proceedings where grave allegations are being publicly canvassed combine to raise fundamental questions about fairness, transparency and due process.
\nJustice cannot be done in the absence of the central figure in the controversy.
\nThe refusal to produce him effectively deprives him of the opportunity to confront the allegations against him and present his own account before the committee. Such a situation offends the constitutional guarantee of fair hearing under Section 36 of the Constitution.
\nHURIWA is particularly disturbed by what appears to be an overwhelming determination to exonerate certain powerful officials without subjecting every aspect of the controversy to equal scrutiny.
\nThe Chief of Staff to the President occupies one of the most influential offices in the Presidency. Considering the weight of the allegations and the public interest generated by this controversy, the appropriate democratic response would have been for him to voluntarily step aside to enable an independent and transparent investigation capable of commanding public confidence.
\nInstead, what Nigerians are witnessing appears to be an aggressive effort to protect the image of powerful public officials while directing the entire weight of public attention toward one detained suspect who has been denied the opportunity to publicly defend himself before the committee.
\nA careful examination of the utterances of the committee chairman leaves reasonable observers with the impression that the panel has already embraced a particular conclusion.
\nSuch conduct undermines confidence in legislative investigations.
\nLegislative inquiries must be impartial. They must not become instruments for validating official narratives or providing political soft landings for influential office holders.
\nHURIWA also finds it curious that a matter involving alleged failures of due diligence by multiple public institutions is now being reduced almost exclusively to the actions of one individual.
\nThis raises serious questions.
\nIf forged documents allegedly passed through several government ministries, departments and agencies, Nigerians deserve answers as to how such documents repeatedly escaped institutional verification.
\nThe investigation should not become a convenient exercise in identifying a lone scapegoat while systemic failures and possible official complicity receive little or no rigorous examination.
\nDemocracy demands accountability at every level.
\nNo public official should enjoy immunity from public scrutiny simply because of political influence or institutional relationships.
\nThe House of Representatives must resist every appearance of acting under external influence or institutional solidarity. Legislative independence is measured not by loud pronouncements but by demonstrable impartiality.
\nHURIWA therefore calls on the House of Representatives to suspend further public pronouncements capable of prejudicing pending judicial proceedings and allow the courts to discharge their constitutional responsibility without interference.
\nWe equally call on the Nigeria Police Force to immediately comply with every lawful process relating to Prince Adeyemi and guarantee his constitutional right to fair hearing.
\nFinally, we urge Nigerians to remain vigilant. Public institutions derive legitimacy from the Constitution and the rule of law\u2014not from political expediency. Any investigation perceived as predetermined, selective or designed to protect the powerful while denying others the opportunity to defend themselves ultimately weakens public confidence in democratic governance.
\nThe credibility of this investigation will not be measured by the volume of accusations made at televised hearings but by whether justice is seen to be impartial, transparent and firmly anchored on constitutional principles.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By George Mgbeleke The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) strongly condemns what it describes as the disturbing and increasingly obvious attempt by the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee investigating the so-called Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) to assume the role of investigator, prosecutor and judge in a matter that is already before […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11875,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16093","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-law-crime"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16093","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16093"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16093\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16094,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16093\/revisions\/16094"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11875"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16093"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16093"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16093"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}