Plea Bargaining in Nigeria Under the Administration of Criminal Justice Act

Abstract

In the past decade or so, the subject of plea bargaining has assumed a, hitherto lacking, currency and has become more topical in Nigeria. This owes to the activities of the anti-corruption agencies which have, of recent, tended to use it in the resolution of cases. This increased use has resulted in outrage and condemnation of the practice. In order to ameliorate the perceived abuse of the practice of plea bargaining, the new criminal procedure statute, the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 (the ACJA), attempts to make comprehensive provisions to guard against its abuse. This article critically assesses the provisions of the ACJA on plea bargaining. It finds that the provisions are unduly broad, verbose and clumsy. Many are superfluous and overlap with others. It suggests an amendment of the statute in order to streamline such provisions.