Ali Ndume, the Senate’s Chief Whip, clarified the distinction between corruption committed by politicians and ordinary individuals.
According to Ndume, corruption in Nigerian politics is a people problem and shouldn’t be subject to harsh penalties.
Politicians “steal and share with the people,” the senator acknowledged.
He made this claim on Tuesday during his appearance on Channels TV Politics Today, when he discussed the death penalty as a deterrent for anyone found in possession of drugs.
He claimed that corruption among politicians is a “small one” in comparison to other crimes.
“If you compare politicians like us to all the corruption, we are very small,” he said. Our corruption stems from our people. You’ll go share it with the people if you steal it. You’re not coming back for four years if you don’t. Stealing has no justification.
“As we are currently lying on TV, I can’t state that I attended the National Assembly. I will support the death penalty if it is meant to be applied to corruption, but you don’t go execute someone who stole a million or a billion dollars. However, a person who embezzles $1 trillion from the government ought to be killed”
The senator declared that he is in favor of drug dealers being executed.
“The most effective way to discourage those caught using narcotics is to execute them. Drug use results in the deaths of people.
“That actually indicates that you have killed and destroyed a great number of lives,” he remarked.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act (Amendment Bill) 2024 was recently enacted by the Senate.
The bill stipulated that anyone found guilty of trafficking in heavy substances and narcotics would be executed.
However, there has been discussion and criticism about whether President Bola Tinubu should emphasize the law by a number of stakeholders.
Various legal professionals voiced differing views on the bill’s debate on Saturday. While some of them pushed for the bill to be brought into law, others encouraged President Bola Tinubu not to consent to the Senate’s enacted legislation.
A few attorneys emphasized that the country’s drug-related offenses, including drug trafficking, could not be solved by the death penalty.
