By Ezra Ijioma, Abuja

Wednesday, 1 Dec 2010

Nigeria lacks the regulatory and legal framework to effectively tackle the worsening menace of cybercrime.

This was disclosed by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Drugs, Narcotics and Financial Crimes and Anti-Corruption, Senator Sola Akinyede, at the 1st West African Cybercrime Summit held in Abuja on Tuesday.

According to him, the foundation of Nigeria’s war on cybercrime is faulty given that the courts do not recognise computer print outs as evidences.

He said, “The foundation for fighting crime is the law and the foundation of the law is evidence. But the Nigeria Evidence Act is totally archaic and out of sync with modern happenings. The Evidence Act does not recognise computer print out as evidence and this is sad.”

However, Akinyede said that the process of amending that Act had started at the Senate with the bill for that purpose passing the second reading.

He said the contentious constitutional amendment and preparations for forthcoming elections had delayed the National Assembly from turning the bill into law.

Similarly, the Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mrs. Farida Waziri, agreed that the Evidence Act was hampering the work of the commission.

She said, “What the senator said about the Evidence Act is shocking, that since independence, this colonial Evidence Act that has been inherited is what Nigeria is still using.

“But I am glad that Senator Akindele is so committed to what we are doing in EFCC. And once the Evidence Act is gotten right, we will make headway in fighting cyber crime. We hope with the support of the National Assembly, we will get relevant laws that will make computer-generated evidence acceptable in the courts.”

Waziri said the spread of cyber crime to neighbouring West African states meant that common measures and strategies should be adopted by the region in combating the menace.

 

Source: Punch