Prosecuting corruption under the international jurisdiction of the African Court of Justice and human and people's rights

Abstract

The adoption of effective reprobative measures against corruption have proven to have a positive impact on the public service sector and infrastructure of a state. With the alarming rate of corruption and the billions of dollars lost globally as a result of corrupt activities, it is not surprising that more and more legislation has been promulgated to combat corruption. The unequivocal stance against the prevalence of corruption is best denoted from the proposed amendments to the protocol establishing the African Court, as these proposed amendments explicitly provide for the crime of corruption. It is upon this premise that it is necessary to embark on an investigation and analysis of the possible impediments to the success prosecution of the crime of corruption by the court should the amendments be adopted. The study will therefore employ an in depth legal analysis of existing international instruments criminalising the crime and will draw lessons from varying jurisdictions that have adjudicated on the matter in order to give informed postulations that may aid the court in future.