The Immunity-Stripping Bill: A Dangerous Step Toward Tyranny -Maazi Tochukwu Ezeoke
A bill seeking to strip the vice president, governors, and their deputies of constitutional immunity has slithered through its second reading in the House of Representatives, cloaked in the noble guise of accountability. Proponents argue it will curb corruption and eliminate impunity in public office—an appealing promise in a nation weary of graft. But beneath this veneer of reform lies a sinister threat: a tool that could empower the president to wield unchecked power, purging dissenters at his whims and caprices. This legislation, far from being a beacon of justice, is a Trojan horse for tyranny.
The premise sounds laudable. Who wouldn’t want to hold public officials accountable? Corruption has long been a scourge, and the immunity clause—enshrined in the Constitution to protect elected leaders from frivolous lawsuits—has often been a shield for the unscrupulous. Yet, the solution now barreling through the legislature risks creating a cure worse than the disease. By removing immunity from the vice president, governors, and their deputies, the bill exposes these officials to a deluge of legal assaults, orchestrated not by aggrieved citizens but by a president eager to consolidate power.
Imagine the scenario: a vice president who dares to challenge the president’s agenda or a governor who refuses to bend to executive pressure. Without immunity, they become easy targets for trumped-up charges—corruption allegations, however baseless, weaponized through a compliant judiciary or pliant law enforcement. The president, armed with this bill, could sideline rivals under the pretext of “accountability,” dismantling checks and balances with surgical precision. This isn’t speculation; it’s a playbook seen in autocracies worldwide, where legal mechanisms are twisted to eliminate opposition.
The bill’s timing amplifies its menace. It emerges amid a frenetic constitutional review process, with 81 amendment bills advancing in just two days—42 on Wednesday alone, following 39 the day prior. This legislative blitzkrieg leaves little room for scrutiny or debate, suggesting a rush to reshape the political landscape before resistance can coalesce. Among the proposals is another telling move: separating the Attorney-General of the Federation and state attorneys-general from the Minister of Justice and state commissioners. While framed as a reform, it could centralize prosecutorial power, placing it squarely under presidential influence—a perfect complement to an immunity-stripping law.
Supporters claim this is about ending impunity, but the hypocrisy is glaring. If accountability were the true aim, why not extend the bill to the president himself, who retains immunity under the current framework? The selective targeting of subordinate executives betrays the real intent: not to level the playing field, but to tilt it decisively toward the presidency. A president unbound by such constraints could turn the vice president and governors into mere puppets, stripped of the autonomy the Constitution guarantees.
The dangers extend beyond the executive suite. Governors, as leaders of states, are linchpins of Nigeria’s federal system. Eroding their protections risks destabilizing the delicate balance between federal and state power, inviting a creeping authoritarianism that suffocates regional voices. A president emboldened to remove governors at will—through legal harassment or coerced resignations—could transform a federation into a unitary state, all under the banner of fighting corruption.
This bill is not a reform; it is a power grab masquerading as progress. Its passage would mark a chilling precedent, handing the president a cudgel to bludgeon adversaries while cloaking the act in moral righteousness. The House of Representatives must see through this ruse and halt its advance. True accountability demands transparency and fairness, not a law that risks turning the presidency into a dictatorship. Nigeria’s democracy, fragile as it is, cannot afford to gamble its future on a bill this evil.
Maazi Tochukwu Ezeoke is an IT Project Management Consultant and Media Practitioner.
