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Establishment of Code of Conduct Bureau
(1) There is hereby established a bureau to be known as the Code of Conduct Bureau (in this Act referred to as the Bureau").
(2) The Bureau shall consist of a chairman and nine other members who shall be
(a) persons of· unimpeachable integrity in the Nigerian society; and
(b) at the time of appointment, not less than fifty years.
3. FUNCTIONS OF THE BUREAU
The chairman and the other members shall be appointed by the President subject to confirmation of the Senate.
4. MEMBERS OF STAFF OF THE BUREAU
The chairman and any member shall vacate office upon attaining the age of seventy.
Aims and objectives of the Bureau
The aims and objectives of the Bureau shall be to establish and maintain a high standard of morality in the conduct of government business and to ensure that the actions and behaviour of public officers conform to the highest standards of public morality and accountability
(a) Receive assets declarations by public officers in accordance with the provisions of this Act;
(b) Examine the assets declarations and ensure that they comply with the requirements of this Act and of any
law for the time being in force;
(e) take and retain custody of such assets declarations; and
(d) receive complaints about non-compliance with or breach of this Act and where the Bureau considers it necessary to do so, refer such complaints. to the Code of Conduct Tribunal established by section 20 of this Act in accordance with the provisions of sections 20 to 25 of this Act:
(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the tenure of office of staff of the Bureau shall be the same as that provided for in respect of officers in the civil service of the Federation.
(2) The power to appoint members of staff of the Bureau and to exercise disciplinary control over them shall vest in the Bureau, and shall be exercisable in accordance with the provisions of rules and regulations as may, from time to time be made by the President.
5. CONFLICT OF INTEREST WITH DUTY
A public officer shall not put himself in a position where his personal interest conflicts with his duties and responsibilities.
6. RESTRICTIONS ON SPECIFIED OFFICERS
Without prejudice to the generality 'of section 5 of this Act, a. public officer shall not-
a) receive or be paid .the emoluments of any public office; or
b) except where he is not employed on full-time basiS engage or participate in the management or running of any private business, profession or trade; but nothing in this paragraph shall prevent a public officer from engaging in farming or participating in the management or running of any farm.
[1990 No. 5]
7. PROHIBITION OF FOREIGN ACCOUNTS
Any public officer specified in the Second Schedule to this Act or any other persons as the President may, from time to time, by order prescribe, shall not maintain or operate a bank account in any country outside Nigeria.
[Second Schedule]
8. RETIRED PUBLIC OFFICERS
A public officer shall not, after his retirement from public service and while receiving pension from public funds, accept more than one remunerative position as chairman, director or employee of a company owned or controlled by any Government or public authority or receive any other remuneration from public funds in addition to his pension and the emolument of one such remunerative position.
9. CERTAIN RETIRED PUBLIC OFFICERS
(1) Retired public officers who have held offices to which this section applies are prohibited from service or employment in foreign companies or foreign enterprises.
(2) This section applies to the office of President, Vice-President, Chief Justice of Nigeria, Governor and Deputy Governor of a State
10. GIFTS OR BENEFITS IN KIND
(1) A public officer shall not ask for or accept any property or benefits of any kind for himself or any other person on account of anything done or omitted to be done by him in the discharge of his duties.
(2) For the purposes of subsection (1) of this section, the receipt by a public officer of any gifts or benefits from commercial firms, business enterprises or persons who have contracts with the Government, shall be presumed to have been received in contravention of subsection (1) of this section, unless the contrary is proved.
(3) A public officer shall only accept personal gifts or benefits from relatives or personal friends to such extent and on such occasions as are recognized by custom.
Provided that any gift or benefit to a public officer on any public or ceremonial occasion shall be treated as gifts or benefits to the appropriate institution represented by the public officer, and accordingly, the mere acceptance or receipt of any such gift or benefit shall not be treated as a contravention of this provision.
11.RESTRICTION ON LOANS, GIFTS OR BENEFITS TO CERTAIN PUBLIC OFFICERS
The President or Vice-President, Governor or Deputy Governor, Minister of the Government of the Federation or Commissioner of the Government of a State or any other public officer who holds office of a Director-General or head of any public corporation, university, or other parastatal organization shall not accept
a) a loan, except from government or any of its agencies or a bank, building society or other financial institution recognized by law; or
b) any benefit of whatever nature from any company, contractor, businessman or the nominee or agent of such person.
Provided that the head of a public corporation or of a university or other parastatal organization may, subject to the rules and regulations of any such body, accept a loan from any such body.
12. BRIBERY OF PUBLIC OFFICERS
No person shall offer a public officer any property, gift or benefit of any kind as an inducement or bribe for the granting of any favour of the discharge in his favour of the public officer's duties.
13. ABUSE OF POWERS
A public officer shall not do or direct to be done in abuse of his office, any act prejudicial to the rights of any other person, knowing that such act is unlawful or contrary to any government policy.
14. MEMBERSHIP OF SOCIETIES
A public officer shall not be a member of or belong to or take part in any society the membership of which is incompatible with the functions or dignity of his office.
15. DECLARATION OF ASSETS
(1) Every public officer shall, within fifteen months after the coming into force of this Act or immediately after taking office and thereafter
a) at the end of every four years;
b) at the end of his term of office; and
c) in the case of a serving officer, within thirty days of the receipt of the form from the Bureau or at such other intervals as the Bureau may specify,
Submit to the Bureau a written declaration in the Form prescribed in the First Schedule to this Act or, in such form as the Bureau may, from time to time, specify, of all his properties, assets and liabilities and those of his spouse or unmarried children under the age of twenty-one years.
[First Schedule.]
(2) Any statement in any declaration that is
found to be false by any authority or person authorized in that behalf to verify it, shall be deemed to be a breach of this Act.
(3) Any property or assets acquired by a public officer after any declaration required by subsection (I) of this section and which is not fairly attributable to income, gifts or loan approved by this Act, shall be deemed to have been acquired in breach of this Act unless the contrary is proved.
16. ALLEGATION OF BREACH OF PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT
Any complaint that a public officer has committed a breach of or has not complied with the provisions of this Act shall be made to the Bureau.
17. AGENTS AND NOMINEES
A public officer who does any act prohibited by this Act through a nominee, trustee or other agent shall be deemed ipso facto to have committed a breach of this Act.
18. EXEMPTION
(1 ) The President may by order exempt any cadre of public officers from the provisions of this Act if it appears to him that their position in the public service is below the rank which it considers appropriate for the application of those provisions.
(2) The President may by order confer on the Bureau such additional powers as may appear to it to be necessary to enable it to discharge more effectively the functions conferred upon it under this Act.
.
19. INDEMNITY OF MEMBERS OF THE BUREAU
The chairman and other members of the Bureau shall not be liable, and shall be indemnified in any action or litigation for any acts or omission done or purported to be done in the course of the discharge of their duties under this Act.
(1) There is hereby established a bureau to be known as the Code of Conduct Bureau (in this Act referred to as the Bureau").
(2) The Bureau shall consist of a chairman and nine other members who shall be
(a) persons of· unimpeachable integrity in the Nigerian society; and
(b) at the time of appointment, not less than fifty years.
3. FUNCTIONS OF THE BUREAU
The chairman and the other members shall be appointed by the President subject to confirmation of the Senate.
4. MEMBERS OF STAFF OF THE BUREAU
The chairman and any member shall vacate office upon attaining the age of seventy.
Aims and objectives of the Bureau
The aims and objectives of the Bureau shall be to establish and maintain a high standard of morality in the conduct of government business and to ensure that the actions and behaviour of public officers conform to the highest standards of public morality and accountability
(a) Receive assets declarations by public officers in accordance with the provisions of this Act;
(b) Examine the assets declarations and ensure that they comply with the requirements of this Act and of any
law for the time being in force;
(e) take and retain custody of such assets declarations; and
(d) receive complaints about non-compliance with or breach of this Act and where the Bureau considers it necessary to do so, refer such complaints. to the Code of Conduct Tribunal established by section 20 of this Act in accordance with the provisions of sections 20 to 25 of this Act:
(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the tenure of office of staff of the Bureau shall be the same as that provided for in respect of officers in the civil service of the Federation.
(2) The power to appoint members of staff of the Bureau and to exercise disciplinary control over them shall vest in the Bureau, and shall be exercisable in accordance with the provisions of rules and regulations as may, from time to time be made by the President.
5. CONFLICT OF INTEREST WITH DUTY
A public officer shall not put himself in a position where his personal interest conflicts with his duties and responsibilities.
6. RESTRICTIONS ON SPECIFIED OFFICERS
Without prejudice to the generality 'of section 5 of this Act, a. public officer shall not-
a) receive or be paid .the emoluments of any public office; or
b) except where he is not employed on full-time basiS engage or participate in the management or running of any private business, profession or trade; but nothing in this paragraph shall prevent a public officer from engaging in farming or participating in the management or running of any farm.
[1990 No. 5]
7. PROHIBITION OF FOREIGN ACCOUNTS
Any public officer specified in the Second Schedule to this Act or any other persons as the President may, from time to time, by order prescribe, shall not maintain or operate a bank account in any country outside Nigeria.
[Second Schedule]
8. RETIRED PUBLIC OFFICERS
A public officer shall not, after his retirement from public service and while receiving pension from public funds, accept more than one remunerative position as chairman, director or employee of a company owned or controlled by any Government or public authority or receive any other remuneration from public funds in addition to his pension and the emolument of one such remunerative position.
9. CERTAIN RETIRED PUBLIC OFFICERS
(1) Retired public officers who have held offices to which this section applies are prohibited from service or employment in foreign companies or foreign enterprises.
(2) This section applies to the office of President, Vice-President, Chief Justice of Nigeria, Governor and Deputy Governor of a State
10. GIFTS OR BENEFITS IN KIND
(1) A public officer shall not ask for or accept any property or benefits of any kind for himself or any other person on account of anything done or omitted to be done by him in the discharge of his duties.
(2) For the purposes of subsection (1) of this section, the receipt by a public officer of any gifts or benefits from commercial firms, business enterprises or persons who have contracts with the Government, shall be presumed to have been received in contravention of subsection (1) of this section, unless the contrary is proved.
(3) A public officer shall only accept personal gifts or benefits from relatives or personal friends to such extent and on such occasions as are recognized by custom.
Provided that any gift or benefit to a public officer on any public or ceremonial occasion shall be treated as gifts or benefits to the appropriate institution represented by the public officer, and accordingly, the mere acceptance or receipt of any such gift or benefit shall not be treated as a contravention of this provision.
11.RESTRICTION ON LOANS, GIFTS OR BENEFITS TO CERTAIN PUBLIC OFFICERS
The President or Vice-President, Governor or Deputy Governor, Minister of the Government of the Federation or Commissioner of the Government of a State or any other public officer who holds office of a Director-General or head of any public corporation, university, or other parastatal organization shall not accept
a) a loan, except from government or any of its agencies or a bank, building society or other financial institution recognized by law; or
b) any benefit of whatever nature from any company, contractor, businessman or the nominee or agent of such person.
Provided that the head of a public corporation or of a university or other parastatal organization may, subject to the rules and regulations of any such body, accept a loan from any such body.
12. BRIBERY OF PUBLIC OFFICERS
No person shall offer a public officer any property, gift or benefit of any kind as an inducement or bribe for the granting of any favour of the discharge in his favour of the public officer's duties.
13. ABUSE OF POWERS
A public officer shall not do or direct to be done in abuse of his office, any act prejudicial to the rights of any other person, knowing that such act is unlawful or contrary to any government policy.
14. MEMBERSHIP OF SOCIETIES
A public officer shall not be a member of or belong to or take part in any society the membership of which is incompatible with the functions or dignity of his office.
15. DECLARATION OF ASSETS
(1) Every public officer shall, within fifteen months after the coming into force of this Act or immediately after taking office and thereafter
a) at the end of every four years;
b) at the end of his term of office; and
c) in the case of a serving officer, within thirty days of the receipt of the form from the Bureau or at such other intervals as the Bureau may specify,
Submit to the Bureau a written declaration in the Form prescribed in the First Schedule to this Act or, in such form as the Bureau may, from time to time, specify, of all his properties, assets and liabilities and those of his spouse or unmarried children under the age of twenty-one years.
[First Schedule.]
(2) Any statement in any declaration that is
found to be false by any authority or person authorized in that behalf to verify it, shall be deemed to be a breach of this Act.
(3) Any property or assets acquired by a public officer after any declaration required by subsection (I) of this section and which is not fairly attributable to income, gifts or loan approved by this Act, shall be deemed to have been acquired in breach of this Act unless the contrary is proved.
16. ALLEGATION OF BREACH OF PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT
Any complaint that a public officer has committed a breach of or has not complied with the provisions of this Act shall be made to the Bureau.
17. AGENTS AND NOMINEES
A public officer who does any act prohibited by this Act through a nominee, trustee or other agent shall be deemed ipso facto to have committed a breach of this Act.
18. EXEMPTION
(1 ) The President may by order exempt any cadre of public officers from the provisions of this Act if it appears to him that their position in the public service is below the rank which it considers appropriate for the application of those provisions.
(2) The President may by order confer on the Bureau such additional powers as may appear to it to be necessary to enable it to discharge more effectively the functions conferred upon it under this Act.
.
19. INDEMNITY OF MEMBERS OF THE BUREAU
The chairman and other members of the Bureau shall not be liable, and shall be indemnified in any action or litigation for any acts or omission done or purported to be done in the course of the discharge of their duties under this Act.