Former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, SAN, has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Department of State Services (DSS) of coordinated actions aimed at frustrating his constitutional right to fair hearing and effective legal representation.
In a statement issued on Saturday by his Special Assistant on Media, Mohammed Bello Doka, Malami raised alarm over what he described as a pattern of obstruction, unlawful detention, and disregard for court orders by the two security agencies.
According to the statement, following charges filed by the EFCC, a Federal High Court granted Malami bail.
However, the EFCC allegedly delayed the submission of his international passports to the court for about one week, despite the passports being a key condition for the perfection of bail.
The delay, Malami’s office said, unnecessarily prolonged his detention and obstructed the execution of a valid court order.
The statement further alleged that immediately after Malami perfected his bail and was released from the Kuje Custodial Centre, he was rearrested by operatives of the DSS.
He was reportedly detained for five days without access to his lawyers or family members, and was only allowed to meet his legal team after prolonged isolation.
Malami’s office described the timing of the DSS detention as particularly troubling, noting that it coincided with a critical period when he was required to prepare and present his defence in an EFCC interim forfeiture proceeding before the Federal High Court.
The denial of access to legal counsel during this period, the statement said, directly impaired his ability to consult with his lawyers, prepare court filings, and give instructions.
The statement accused both agencies of adopting a practice where arrest precedes investigation, with evidence allegedly being sought after detention. This approach, Malami’s office argued, amounts to a blatant violation of the rule of law and constitutionally guaranteed rights.
“The Office stresses that bail granted by a court must have meaning,” the statement read, warning that no agency should be allowed to neutralise judicial orders through delays, rearrests, or denial of access to legal representation.
Malami, according to the statement, remains ready to defend himself fully before the courts and called on all state institutions to respect court orders, constitutional safeguards, and the rule of law.
The EFCC and DSS have yet to publicly respond to the allegations at the time of filing this report.
This life, eh! Malami claims he is innocent, and I hope he is. But it is not within his ambit to claim innocence in a case before a Court that the court is yet to rule on.
This is the same man who rushed the proscription of IPOB claiming it was a terror organisation, but never agreed Fulani killer herdsmen were terrorists. This life, eh!
Of course, his claim of innocence best serves as his defence, even while the case proceeds at the court.