CHAPTER ONE
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
It is important to study corporate crime because of the economic damages that organizations can cause. In the contemporary world, the impact of the activities of corporations is tremendous in the society. In their day-to-day activities, not only do organizations affect the lives of people positively, but they also bring many devastating impact upon the people. Activities of corporations may cause serious damage to health or the environment; and may sometimes result in death. Fraudulent actions by some companies may lead to huge financial losses for individuals, groups, or other companies. In the 1990s, both the United States of America and Europe recorded an alarming number of environmental, antitrust, fraud, food and drug abuses as well as false statements, workers’ death, bribery, obstruction of justice, and financial crimes involving corporations. The most recent and prominent case in the United States has been the Enron scandal in which one of the largest accounting firms in the world, Arthur Andersen LLP, was charged and convicted for obstruction of justice and for destroying Enron-related documents.[1] Other corporations, among which are Olympic Pipeline, Exxon-Mobil, Pfizer and Bayer pharmaceutical companies, breached the environmental or health and safety laws.[2] MC Wane Incorporated, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of cast iron pipes, has an extensive record of violations which have caused the death of workers in the work place.[3]
The capsized Zeebrugge ferry, the King’s Cross fire, the Clapham and Paddington Rail crashes, and the Hillsborough football tragedy all represent recent disasters in the United Kingdom.
In Nigeria, we have had incessant reports of plane crashes, collapsed buildings, petroleum oil pipe and gas explosions, sea disasters and breaches of environmental or health and safety laws by corporations, killing innocent Nigerians in their thousands. There is also an account of the loss of lives involving over 120 employees of a rubber-related product manufacturing factory aggravated mainly by the company’s policy of locking the workers inside the factory at the commencement of work daily.[4] The recent events in the Nigerian Banking sector are reminiscent of what was witnessed during the era of the Failed Banks Tribunals.[5] Directors and bank officers were prosecuted and punished despite the fact that they acted on behalf of the banks. We can not also forget in a hurry the dumping of harmful toxic waste materials in Koko, Delta State of Nigeria in June, 1988 by a foreign company.
Generally, corporations are now involved in relatively new and usually white collar crimes such as: tax evasion, fraudulent trading or insider dealing, fraud, unfair competition, breach of fiduciary duty, banking and insurance frauds, and false invoicing (including over-invoicing). Companies may also commit crimes ranging from corporate fraud, commercial pollution of air and water, environmental and health and safety violations, illegal currency manipulations, capital transfers, illegal mining, maritime fraud scheme, currency counterfeiting, murder and corporate manslaughter, and so on.
Corporate criminal liability, more than ever before, is becoming increasingly prevalent. These corporate crimes result in great loss of lives and properties. The consequences which most directly affect our society are the enormous loss of money, jobs and lives. At the same time, the long-term effect of these crimes, such as the damaging effects on the environment and health, which may not be apparent now, should not be underestimated.
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DEVELOPING AN EFFECTIVE LEGAL FRAMEWORK FOR CORPORATE CRIMINAL LIABILITY ADMINISTRATION IN NIGERIA
