TheCable

Abubakar Malami, attorney-general of the federation (AGF), says he will not allow his office to be “dragged into petty squabbles” in the midst of burning national issues. 

He said this while refuting the claim that his office leaked the list of those being allegedly probed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Kayode Fayemi, minister of mines and steel; Walter Onnoghen, chief justice of Nigeria; Ngozi Okonjo-Iwala, former minister of finance; Godswill Akpabio, former governor of Akwa Ibom state are some of those on the list.

After the was list leaked, the EFCC said investigation had been damaged.

But in a statement by Salihu Othman Isah, media aide to the minister, Malami said he knew nothing about how the information was made public.

“The honourable attorney-general of the federation and minister of justice wishes to express his displeasure over the unfortunate and unbecoming innuendo by certain persons and agencies which sought to accuse his office of leaking what was termed as classified information to the public,” the statement read.

“This office, therefore, wishes to state categorically, but with absolute repudiation, that it did not at any time leak such information to the media as wrongly alluded by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

“The pertinent question to ask is since the EFCC has publicly denied that the honourable chief justice of Nigeria is not under probe or investigation; is it then possible for the same EFCC to have forwarded any classified information on a non-existent probe or investigation of the Honourable CJN to the honourable attorney-general of the federation?

“It also goes to show that the office of the honourable attorney-general of the federation could not have leaked a non-existent classified information on an equally non-existent probe or investigation.”

He also distanced himself from any unpatriotic effort to denigrate his exalted office of the chief justice of Nigeria.

“We therefore use this opportunity to reaffirm our deep respect for the distinguished person and office of the honourable chief justice of Nigeria,” he said.

“We wish to state unequivocally that the office of the honourable attorney-general of the federation will continue to collaborate with his lordship in his efforts to reform the judiciary and galvanise the anti-graft war.

“Indeed the present administration appreciates his lordship for his unwavering support for its anti-corruption drive. We wish to state further that we are neither aware of nor privy to any purported probe or ongoing investigation of the honourable chief justice of Nigeria by any security or anti-graft agency.

“The office of the honourable attorney-general of the federation dissociates itself from the baseless allusion or suggestion obviously made in bad faith to the effect that his lordship is under any form of probe or investigation whatsoever.”