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From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
President Bola Tinubu has urged judges to stop allowing legal technicalities to shield corruption and close procedural loopholes exploited by politically exposed persons and organised crime suspects to delay or frustrate trials.
He warned that the anti-corruption campaign could not succeed without an independent, progressive and reform-minded judiciary, calling for a review of prosecution strategies and outdated precedents.
Tinubu, represented by Vice-President Kashim Shettima, spoke at the eighth annual capacity-building workshop for judges and justices organised by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the National Judicial Institute (NJI) in Abuja yesterday.
“We must no longer permit legal pyrotechnics and procedural pedantry to shelter criminality. The Bench is not merely a mechanical arbiter of rules, but an active guardian of moral order and social equity.
“Probe prosecution strategies, dismantle outdated precedents, and seal procedural gaps that politically exposed persons and organised crime actors exploit to delay or frustrate trial.”
He said the law must serve the broader public interest, stressing: “Our courts must embody the spirit, and not just the arid letter, of the law.”
He warned that corruption threatened Nigeria’s survival and could not be treated as the exclusive responsibility of the executive, as its consequences affected all arms of government and ordinary citizens.
Addressing the workshop’s theme, “Investigation and Prosecution of Economic and Financial Crimes in a Digital Age,” Tinubu said artificial intelligence, blockchain technology and other digital innovations were increasing the reach and sophistication of financial crimes.
He urged investigators, prosecutors and judicial officers to continually update their knowledge and methods, particularly in cases involving cryptocurrency fraud, digital assets and complex digital evidence.
Citing the EFCC’s recoveries, Tinubu said the commission secured the forfeiture of Bitcoin worth $22,417.91, digital assets totalling 1,001,301.87 USDT and $5.6 million linked to the CBEX scheme in 2025.
He also said 192 foreign nationals arrested for cyberterrorism and cryptocurrency fraud had been prosecuted and deported.
Tinubu said the developments underscored the need for courts to strengthen their capacity to adjudicate cases involving emerging financial crimes and complement the commission’s enforcement efforts.
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He pledged the executive’s support for equipping the judiciary to meet the demands of justice delivery in the digital age and acknowledged the reform initiatives of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun.
Kekere-Ekun said technological developments had changed how digital evidence was obtained, preserved and presented, making disciplined case management increasingly important to criminal justice administration.
She said sustained judicial education was improving case management and justice delivery, adding that the EFCC-NJI partnership was designed to address evolving challenges confronting the justice system.
The Chief Justice urged judicial officers to develop the skills required to handle technology-driven cases and emerging forms of evidence.
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes, Emmanuel Udende, described the workshop as timely, given the increasing sophistication of financial crimes, particularly cases involving politically exposed persons.
He said such cases posed challenges to timely case management and assured participants that the National Assembly would support the anti-corruption campaign through proactive legislation.
Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, represented by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Rotimi Oyedepo, called for stronger collaboration among institutions responsible for investigating and prosecuting corruption cases.
He urged judges and lawyers to use the workshop to strengthen their capacity, improve investigations and ensure diligent prosecutions, stressing that no single arm of government could tackle corruption alone.
In his welcome address, NJI Administrator, Babatunde Adejumo, said the collaboration with the EFCC was integral to strengthening the judiciary’s response to financial crimes in the digital era.
EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, described the workshop as a national imperative in the face of increasingly complex financial crimes.
He said the commission had recorded significant convictions and financial recoveries over the past three years and pledged transparent and judicious management of recovered assets.
Olukoyede warned, however, that technological innovation was advancing faster than existing legal instruments, making continuous reforms and closer cooperation among investigators, prosecutors and judicial officers essential.
