Following Justice Inyang Okoro’s bribery allegation against the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi and the then All Progressives Congress, APC, governorship candidate in Akwa Ibom state, Umana Umana, the Civil Society Network Against Corruption, CSNAC, has urged the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission, ICPC, to probe the allegation.
Justice Okoro, one of the judges recently arrested by the Department of State Services, DSS, had accused Amaechi and Umana of approaching him with the aim of influencing court decisions on election cases in Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Abia states.
CSNAC, in a petition by its Chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju, said, “If Justice Okoro’s allegation is anything to go by, then he definitely has a case to answer with the Commission.
“By virtue of Section 23 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act of 2000, Public Officers are duty bound to report bribery transactions.
“By virtue of the above stated section [Section 23], Justice Okoro had a duty to report the attempt to bribe him by Messrs. Amaechi and Umana. His failure to do same and only resorting to use the information as a first line of defense against the raid by the State Security Service will not exonerate him from the offense committed under the Act.
“In view of this, CSNAC is therefore by this petition calling on the Commission to commence an immediate thorough investigation into the allegations made by Justice Okoro and also ensure that prosecution and proper punishment is meted out in line with the established laws, rules, and regulations.”
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