Posted on: 12:18 Thu, 28 Jan 2016



As battle against corruption continues, President
Buhari yesterday sent a letter to the Senate
asking for the amendment of two bills that will
advance his fight against corruption. The bills
are the Money Laundering Prevention and
Prohibition Bill 2016 and the Mutual Legal
Assistance in Criminal Matters Bill 2016.

The Money Laundering Prevention and
Prohibition Bill 2016, if passed into law, would
expand the scope of money laundering offenses,
provide protection for employees of various
institutions as well as bodies who may discover
money laundering, and the establishment of
mutual legal assistance in criminal matters.

The bill if passed into law will also enhance
customer due diligence, provide appropriate
penalties and expand the scope of supervisory
bodies, while recognizing the role of certain self-
regulatory organisations to address the
challenges faced in implementation of
comprehensive anti-money regime.

The second bill, Mutual Legal Assistance in
Criminal Matters Bill 2016, seeks to facilitate the
assistance of other countries whenever a
criminal offence is committed outside Nigeria.

Such assistance will include the provision and
obtaining of evidence. The Bill also seeks the
making of arrangements for persons to give
evidence or assist in criminal investigations;
recovery, forfeiture or confiscation of property in
respect of offences; the restraining of dealings in
property or the freezing of assets that may be
recovered. It also seeks the forfeiting, or
confiscation in respect of offences, the
execution of request for search and seizure, the
location and identification of witnesses and
suspects, the service of documents and other
matters connected with it.

The letter reads in part “Money Laundering
Prevention and Prohibition Bill 2016: This bill
provides for the repeal of the Money Laundering
Prohibition Act 2011, as amended in 2012, to
make comprehensive provisions to prohibit the
laundering of the criminal activities, expand the
scope of money laundering offences, provide
protection for employees of various institutions,
bodies and professions who may discover money
laundering, enhance customer due diligence,
provide appropriate penalties and expand the
scope of supervisory bodies, while recognising
the role of certain self-regulatory organisations
to address the challenges faced in
implementation of comprehensive anti-money
regime. The Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal
Matters Bill 2016.
This bill seeks to facilitate the provision and
obtaining by Nigeria of international assistance in
criminal matters, including the provision and
obtaining of evidence, the making of
arrangements for persons to give evidence or
assist in criminal investigations, recovery,
forfeiture or confiscation of property in respect
of offences; the restraining of dealings in
property or the freezing of assets that may be
recovered, forfeited or confiscated in respect of
offences; the execution of request for search
and seizure, the location and identification of
witnesses and suspects, the service of
documents and other matters connected
herewith”.