Chairman of Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-Corruption Agency, Barrister Muhuyi Magaji has accused legal practitioners of influencing technical bottleneck to scuttle cases filed against persons accused of corruption in Kano.

Barrister Muhuyi who spoke on Monday at a symposium making the 2019 Disability Awareness Week and International Day for Persons with Disability in Kano, regretted that the moderate successes being recorded in bid to rid the country of corrupt practice are being rattled with the application of technicalities in court.

According to Muhuyi, winning the fight against corruption in Nigeria may remain elusive, when the legal practitioners who are supposed to facilitate cleansing of the decayed system, now found scuttling the tempo of justice.

“After proper investigation of corruption case, you will see lawyers coming up with technicalities to scuttle investigation and thereby frustrating the cases. You will find lawyers advising their clients with all sorts of delay tactics to apply in court and that is why you see accused persons coming to court with stretchers and wheelchairs, pretending as if they are ill just to delay trial and scuttle justice,” Muhuyi said.

“It is very unfortunate because Lawyers are being guided by professional conduct which clear specifications how lawyers should conduct themselves. It is surprising to me because with the rampant cases of corruption, when all strata of bodies and sectors are required to subject to join the fight against corruption, you still find some people fighting against it, we may not make any headway.

Muhuyi stated that it is unethical for lawyers to defend people who are being accused to have stolen public wealth to enrich them and I believe the NBA should do something about this.

Reacting on the delay in the passage of Kano state Disability bill, the anti-graft boss insisted that the bill when passed into law may not change the lives of people with disabilities. Muhuyi who revealed that the delay was as a result of corruption, however, pledged to facilitate the quick passage.

The convener of the occasion and executive director Center for Citizens with Disabilities, Mr. David Anyaele, represented by manager Administration and Finance, Mrs. Florence Austin said the symposium was organized to strength capacity of people with disabilities and raise advocacy for the passage of Kano state disability bill.

One of the participants Aminu Abubakar lamented non-release of N50 million annual budget allocation to people with disability by Kano state ministry of Women Affairs. He said people with less capacity are lacking basic necessities and infrastructure due to corruption. (The Guardian)

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