President Bola Tinubu has urged Nigerian courts to close procedural loopholes exploited by politically exposed persons and organised crime suspects to delay corruption trials, warning that outdated legal practices could undermine the fight against graft.
The President also called for reforms in prosecution strategies and legal precedents to address the growing complexity of financial crimes involving artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, cryptocurrency and other digital innovations.
Tinubu, represented by Vice-President Kashim Shettima, made the call on Tuesday in Abuja at the eighth annual capacity-building workshop for judges and justices organised by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in collaboration with the National Judicial Institute (NJI).
He urged judicial officers to review existing legal practices and ensure that procedural rules were not used to shield individuals accused of financial crimes from accountability.
“Probe prosecution strategies, dismantle outdated precedents, and seal procedural gaps that politically exposed persons and organised crime actors exploit to delay or frustrate trial,” he said.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 President warned that corruption posed a serious threat to Nigeria’s survival and stressed that tackling the menace required cooperation among the executive, legislature and judiciary.
He argued that courts must go beyond the technical application of legal rules to ensure that justice serves the broader interests of society.
“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,” Tinubu said.
He added that meaningful progress against corruption would remain difficult without an independent judiciary willing to embrace reforms and respond to emerging challenges.
Speaking on the workshop’s theme, “Investigation and Prosecution of Economic and Financial Crimes in a Digital Age,” Tinubu urged judges to strengthen their capacity to adjudicate cases involving cryptocurrency fraud, digital assets and other technology-driven offences.
He cited the EFCC’s financial recoveries as evidence of progress in tackling digital crimes, disclosing that the commission secured the forfeiture of $22,417.91 worth of Bitcoin, 1,001,301.87 USDT in digital assets and $5.6 million linked to the CBEX scheme in 2025.
The President also said 192 foreign nationals arrested for cyberterrorism and cryptocurrency fraud had been prosecuted and deported.
According to him, the developments underscored the need for judicial officers to acquire the expertise required to assess complex digital evidence and handle emerging forms of financial crime.
Tinubu assured that the Federal Government would support efforts to equip the judiciary to meet the demands of justice delivery in the digital age.
Earlier, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, said technological advancements had transformed how digital evidence was obtained, preserved and presented in court, making effective case management increasingly important.
She said sustained judicial education and capacity development were helping to improve case management and justice delivery, adding that the EFCC-NJI partnership was designed to address emerging challenges in the administration of criminal justice.
Also speaking, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes, Emmanuel Udende, said the growing sophistication of financial crimes, particularly those involving politically exposed persons, had created challenges for timely case management.
He assured that the National Assembly would support the anti-corruption campaign through proactive legislation.
The 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 improve their capacity for thorough investigations and diligent prosecutions, noting that no single arm of government could effectively tackle corruption alone.
In his welcome address, NJI Administrator Babatunde Adejumo described the EFCC-NJI partnership as a key component of efforts to strengthen the judiciary’s response to financial crimes in the digital era.
EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede said the workshop had become an important part of the institutions’ annual programmes, describing it as a national imperative amid the increasing complexity of financial crimes.
He said the commission had recorded significant convictions and financial recoveries over the past three years and pledged that recovered assets would be managed transparently and judiciously.
Olukoyede, however, warned that technological innovation was advancing faster than existing legal frameworks and prosecution instruments, stressing the need for continuous reforms and closer cooperation among investigators, prosecutors and judicial officers.
