President Bola Tinubu has asked the Senate to consider and pass a bill seeking to repeal the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015, and re-enact it as the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2026, to address challenges affecting the effective administration of criminal justice in Nigeria.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio read the President’s letter during plenary on Thursday.
According to Tinubu, the proposed legislation is designed to provide a legal framework for the administration of criminal justice in the courts of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and other federal courts across the country.
The President said the bill also proposes the establishment of an Administration of Criminal Justice Monitoring Council to strengthen compliance with the law and improve its implementation nationwide.
“The general objective of the bill is to repeal the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 and to enact the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2026 to provide for the administration of criminal justice in the courts of the Federal Capital Territory and other Federal courts in Nigeria and establish an Administration of Criminal Justice Monitoring Council for effective and efficient administration of criminal justice in Nigeria,” the letter reads.
Tinubu said the proposed law is aimed at promoting the efficient management of criminal justice institutions, ensuring speedy dispensation of justice, protecting society from crime and safeguarding the rights and interests of suspects, defendants and victims.
He added that the legislation would also ensure that courts, law enforcement agencies and other authorities involved in criminal justice administration comply fully with the provisions of the Act.
The President explained that the move to repeal and re-enact the 2015 law was necessitated by legal, procedural and institutional challenges that have impeded its effective implementation.
According to him, the challenges include delays in criminal investigations and prosecutions, inadequate deployment of technology in criminal proceedings, poor coordination among criminal justice institutions, inefficient case management systems and weak monitoring of compliance with the Act.
“The bill, as reviewed by a team of law officers with extensive experience in criminal law, criminal procedure, and legislative drafting, have extensively addressed the above challenges,” he said.
“The bill also reflects developments in criminal justice administration, judicial pronouncements, technological innovations, and international best practices relating to criminal justice reform.
“It has strengthened the administration of criminal justice, monitoring council, and provides additional measures aimed at effective implementation of the Act by relevant institutions.”
Tinubu urged the Senate to expedite consideration of the proposed legislation.
“In the light of the above, it is my hope that the Senate would consider the bill for an Act to repeal the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 and to re-enact the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2026 expeditiously,” he added.
Following the presentation, Akpabio referred the bill to the Senate Committee on Rules and Business and directed it to report back to the chamber within four weeks.
