Section 34
Substitution of section 32
of Private Employment Agencies (Amendment) Act 2017
The principal Act is amended by substituting for section 32
the following section:
“Power to compound offences
Quoted provision
Section 32
The Minister may, with the approval of the Public
Prosecutor, make regulations prescribing—
(a)
any offence under this Act and any regulations made under the Act that may be compounded;
(b)
the criteria for compounding such offence; and
(c)
the method and procedure for compounding such offence.
(2)
The Director General may, with the consent in writing of the Public Prosecutor, compound any offence, except offences under subsections 7(2), 13b(2), 13c(2), 13e(7), 13g(2),
18(2) and section 28 committed by any person under this
Act or any regulations made under this Act and prescribed to be a compoundable offence by making a written offer to the person suspected to have committed the offence to compound the offence upon payment to the Director General of such amount of money not exceeding fifty per centum of the amount of maximum fine for that offence within such time as may be specified in his written offer.
(3)
An offer under subsection (2) may be made at any time after the offence has been committed but before any prosecution for it has been instituted.
(4)
If the amount specified in the offer is not paid within the time specified in the offer or such extended time as the
Director General may grant, prosecution for the offence may be instituted at any time after that against the person to whom the offer was made.
Private Employment Agencies (Amendment)
(5)
Where an offence has been compounded under subsection (2), no prosecution shall be instituted in respect of the offence against the person to whom the offer to compound was made, and any document or thing seized in connection with the offence may be released by the Director General, subject to such terms as he thinks fit.
(6)
All sums of money received by the Director General under this section shall be paid into and form part of the
Federal Consolidated Fund.”.