Bankers, EFCC absent at public hearing on Evidence Act

The Central Bank of Nigeria, bankers and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Monday failed to make presentations before the senate’s public hearing on the amendment of the Evidence Act.

The bankers, CBN and EFCC will form major players in the execution of the provisions of the Evidence Act when amended, but they were absent.

The CBN’s spokesperson, Mohammed Abdullahi, said they were not aware of any invitation to attend the public hearing by the senate committee on Judiciary, Human Right and Legal Matters.

The EFCC spokesman, Femi Babafemi, however, said they got the invitation to make input which they did in form of writing to the committee. Mr. Babafemi added that it is probably a matter of communication error that they were not at the hearing to present their input themselves.

The thrust of the amendment of the Evidence Act is to enable the “obsolete” act accommodate electronic documents in civil and criminal cases especially with regards to evidence tenderable before courts by anti corruption agencies in financial corruption cases.

One of the major amendments is the expansion in meaning of “bankers’ books” phrase in the current act to include electronic records, writing and recordings and all other documents used in the ordinary business of a bank.

Sola Akinyede (PDP Ekiti State) sponsored the bill which had received an overwhelming support of senators when it was debated last year saying the Evidence Act is long overdue for amendment.

“Evidence Act is archaic”

“The Evidence Act is archaic, we need to change it and we need to change it fast without sentiments,” the senate president, David Mark, said at the event.

The Evidence Act was enacted 65 years ago and apart from some minor amendments effected between 1948, 1958 and 1991, the Act has remained unchanged and does not recognise electronic documents as evidence before a court.

Mr. Mark added that the fact that the world had become a global village which had made computer technology indispensable.

“This had made it paramount that our laws recognise this benchmark in order for the nation to attract the desired foreign investments and enable our businessmen and women compete favourably internationally,” Mr. Mark said.

Expansion of the meaning of document

In the proposed amendment, the meaning of the word “document” is expanded to include electronic document or electronic records and electronic record is defined as data that is recorded or stored in any medium in, or by a computer system, mobile phone or similar device that can be read or perceived by a person or computer system or other similar device. It includes a display, print-out or other output of that data among others.

At the public hearing, the senate also took the views of the public on the proposed amendment of Electronic Offences Bill.

“The electronic fraud bill is very important because cyber crimes have caused us a lot of problems in this country. 419 have gone beyond what it used to be those days. Now people invent all sorts of things as cyber crimes and then perpetrate them with impunity what we want to do is to make sure people don’t get away with it,” Mr. Mark said in his opening speech.