The Federal Government on Tuesday said that former ministers indicted by any of the two chambers of the National Assembly for corrupt practices would be prosecuted.
The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Chief Michael Aondoakaa (SAN), who disclosed this in Abuja, faulted the apparent restriction of the war against corruption by the then Olusegun Obasanjo administration to former governors.
Aondoakaa spoke with newsmen at the Code of Conduct Tribunal Complex.
He said once any chamber of the National Assembly, in the course of performing its oversight functions, indicts a minister and the report is adopted by the Whole House, the Federal Government will prosecute such officer.
Aondoakaa specifically mentioned the House of Representatives� committee report on Pentascope.
The report on Pentascope, which indicted the former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mallam Nasir el Rufai, was, however, quashed by a Federal High Court in Abuja.
He said, �Apart from the governors, we are also going to prosecute ministers, people who were indicted by the National Assembly in their report of oversight functions as provided for by the constitution.
�They are given powers to investigate just like policemen. They carry out investigation and they compile report. And once that report, which is the caveat, is adopted on the floor of any of the houses, it becomes the mandate with which we are going to prosecute.
�I am going to liaise with the National Assembly from 1999 to the end of 2007 to obtain those reports, pentascope and several of such reports, to examine them especially the conclusions and findings and recommendations of such reports. If they now see criminal offences relating to crime committed by these ministers or anybody, we are going to file charges.
�It is no longer going to be anybody shielding corruption. We are not going to target war on corruption at governors alone but at everybody that is indicted by bodies authorised by law. And where criminal charges are clearly demonstrated in the report, we are going to carry out prosecution.�
Asked if the government has any plan to prosecute Obasanjo, he replied, �Well we don�t have any report. We work on reports. You heard me clearly that I have not heard whether the National Assembly has established anything against Obasanjo or not.
�If they have investigated him and a report adopted which I am not aware of, let me know. We will know what to do with it. I don�t work on speculations. I don�t work on newspapers. I don�t work on what people say in their homes. I work on the fact that the law should take its course.�
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