When you see public officials act with so much impunity and total disregard for laws and ethics one would be forced to imagine that there is no law regulating their activities but there is; that law is the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act. This law gives directives on how elected/appointed public officials should act and conduct themselves while they are in office; for starters, this law forbids them from awarding contracts to their friends or family members or to anyone who may be remotely related or close to them, this law also mandates them to declare their assets and let the whole world know what they own and what they owe before they assume the office, this law as well forbids them from taking bribes or kickbacks etc. This law also provided for the specific court they will be prosecuted if they breach any of the provisions.
The primary purpose of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act in general is to enforce a high standard of morality and ethics in the public service sector and its officials. The Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act, Chapter 58 LFN 1990 gave the Bureau the mandate to establish and maintain a high standard of public morality in the conduct of government business and to ensure that the actions and behavior of public officers conform to the highest standards of public morality and ethics.
The Code of Conduct Tribunal is a court that was established by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, The Tribunal is empowered to try public officials who are in breach of the provisions of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act; Just like the elections petition tribunal is established to hear election petitions and other related matters, code of conduct tribunal is at the same vein established to try conducts of public officials and other related matters.
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Some of the major areas this law hammered on are; the prevention of a government official from awarding contracts to his or her family members, the requirement of public officials to declare their assets, liabilities, and business interests and prohibits them from using their positions to benefit themselves or their families. Every public official is required by Law to declare his/her assets/liability including that of his spouse(s) who is not a Public Officer and even that of his or her children who are under 18 years of age.
This declaration of asset requirement is also a constitutional provision as it has been provided for in paragraph 11 of the 5th Schedule of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and failure to declare your assets as required by both the Constitution and the code of conduct bureau and tribunal act shall attract not just conviction of the offender but also (a) Removal from office, (b) Disqualification from holding any Public office, (c) forfeiture to the state any property which was undeclared.
Specifically, Section 5 of the Act prohibits public officers from carrying out any business with the government except through an open and competitive process. It also prohibits them from engaging in any transaction that involves a conflict of interest or which may result in personal gain. Any public official who violates these provisions can be investigated, prosecuted and penalized by the Code of Conduct Tribunal.
Every/any politician who has contested and won the election to occupy a particular elective position and any political appointee who has been appointed to occupy any position is bound and regulated by this law; from the president to the governors, down to the local government chairmen including the appointed Director Generals and heads of agencies and government parastatals.