By Biodun Busari

The Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, CACOL, has hailed the Supreme Court judgment affirming the jail term of Farouk Lawan, the former Chairman of the then House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on Fuel Subsidy.

CACOL said this on Friday, in a statement signed by the its Director of Administration and Programmes, Tola Oresanwo on behalf of the organization’s Chairman, Mr. Debo Adeniran.

Recall that the apex court, Friday, affirmed five years of jail time for a former federal lawmaker, Farouk Lawan, who was convicted of receiving a $500,000 bribe in 2012 during a legislative probe into the fuel subsidy regime.

Reacting to the ruling, CACOL commended Justice Angela Otaluka, for finding the four-term lawmaker for Bagwai/Shanono Federal Constituency of Kano State, guilty of demanding an aggregate sum of $3 million from the Chairman of Zenon Petroleum and Gas Ltd, Chief Femi Otedola, to give his company a clean bill of health in the fuel subsidy probe the House of Reps initiated on 2012.

The anti-graft group said the verdict showed that the Judiciary can still be trusted as far as fighting corruption in the country is concerned. 

It said, “The judiciary from the trial court, through the appeal to the Supreme Court has proven to Nigerians that it cannot be bought over and that justice is not for sale. The judgment has brought to the fore the fact that no one is bigger than the law or the widely publicized principle of equality before the law.

“We hope other public office holders will learn from the outcome of this case and try as much as possible to be above board while in office. We also hope the good work performed by the anti-graft agencies in prosecuting the ex-lawmaker will not be truncated by granting him Presidential Amnesty thereby exonerating him of wrongdoing.”

“We at CACOL therefore commend the judiciary for a job well done while still calling for judicial reforms that would facilitate speedy dispensation of justice especially as it concerned other high profile corruption cases that dotted various courts in the country.”