Udom said the law-drafting panel was working on an organic law concerning deliberations on offences of political office-holders along with other legislation, including political parties and the Election Commission, which were 90 per cent completed.

The CDC is considering giving courts the power to proceed in cases where offenders have fled the country so that the cases are not held up and potentially cause evidence to disappear.

The CDC is also considering allowing offenders to appeal to the Supreme Court based on new legal interpretations and not new |evidence, as this would prolong the court hearings too long, Udom |said.

The charter draft has addressed the appeal process but does not go into detail so it is necessary for the specific conditions to be addressed in the organic law for clarity, Udom said.

In addition, support from new mechanisms, such as staff from the anti-corruption court, should be created to help the work of the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Political Office Holders, he added.

But all these details, he said, were still at an initial stage under the CDC’s subcommittee and needed further work, including holding public hearings.