Abubakar Malami The Reformer As An Activist And Defender Of Justice -By Hajia Hadiza Mohammed

From the essays that I have done on Abubakar Malami, SAN, the erstwhile Attorney-General and Minister of Justice of the Federation (2015 – 2023), it could be seen that he is not just a legal icon but a man of many parts: an activist, seasoned politician, astute administrator, a reformer and a philanthropist per excellence. He is a man of principle and a defender of justice. He is a thorough-bred professional who is guided by ethics and principles and who is always motivated by the desire to leave an indelible footprint wherever his feet trod. And this explains my interest in him.

As an activist, he is a courageous fighter of what he believes in. When the issue of Ibrahim Magu infractions in the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) came up, the two-time Attorney-general stood his ground and recommended the removal of Magu from office despite oppositions and blackmail from Magu’s supporters. Malami is a defender of Justice who believes in equality before the law. When there were allegations against him during his tenure as Attorney-general of the Federation, Malami offered to step aside and make himself available for probe.

Malami is a politician with sound political philosophy anchored on service to the people. He believes that the whole essence of national politics is for the accomplishment of goals of national unity and rebirth through service to the people. This explains his patriotic fervor in his work. This is also the reason for his philanthropy to the poor and the vulnerable. During the COVID-19 pandemic era when many unscrupulous politicians were hoarding palliatives for future elections, Malami, the Kebbi-born politician opened his door to his people and cared for them out of his means through many interventionist gestures.

Malami is a reformer with incredible administrative ingenuity. Although, some of his landmark achievements recorded during his tenure like the recovery and repatriation of the nation’s loot stashed abroad have been mentioned in the earlier essays in this series, I will highlight some others that have not been stated. As he stated in one of his press statements during his tenure, that they are: “working round the clock to ensure that Nigerian legal system reflects nation’s existence in view of dynamism and contemporary realities,” he did his best to make a mark.

Malami’s Ministry of Justice recorded tremendous breakthrough convictions under the new anti-piracy law at the Federal High court sitting in Port-Harcourt and successfully prosecuted and secured three high profile convictions under the Terrorism Prevention Act before the federal High Court sitting in Maiduguri within a year. Also, it is to his credit that through the instrumentality of the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty, that Malami personally spearheaded the prosecution of suspected international fraudsters, who under guise of providing COVID-19 personal equipment to Germany and Netherlands allegedly attempted to defraud them, at the Federal High Court Abuja.

Malami’s efforts and accomplishments were not limited to the home fronts. He participated in many international conventions and saw to the implementation of the international protocols and agreements like the 2019 adopted Protocol to the Cape Town Convention on matters specific to Mining, Agricultural and Construction (MAC) Equipment. He was the Chairman of the 78th Session of the International Institute for the Unification of Private Laws UNIDROIT General Assembly, Rome in 2020.

Again, despite the political hiccups during the Buhari era, Malami as the Attorney-general and Minister of Justice make remarkable attempt to fight corruption. He also made recognized attempt to improve the human rights record of the regime and he got positive acclaim from both local and international agencies. It is noted that: “no fewer than twenty-five civil society organizations have expressed appreciation over the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami’s efforts that culminated into the successes recorded in the anti-corruption crusade of the President Muhamadu Buhari’s administration. Again, the 2020 Report of the Committee to Protect Journalists says Nigeria was no longer among countries where crimes against journalists go with impunity. According to the report, Nigeria is the only country that gets out of the list of the country where crimes against journalists go with impunity.

Furthermore, the report of a survey conducted by the Socio-Economic Right and Accountability Project (SERAP) tagged “Nigeria: Anti-Corruption Social Norms Report 2019” “Breaking-down the statistic, shows that 56.7 per cent of Nigerians surveyed responded positively that they are optimistic the Federal Government of Nigeria is capable of reducing or ending corruption in the country which is a clear indicator of the confidence Nigerians have in the Federal Government’s anti-corruption fight.

It is generally believed that Malami was so hardworking, patriotic and loyal to his boss Mohammadu Buhari that he became one of his most trusted allies; one of those that had the privilege of a reappointment as a minister. That was also the reason Muhammadu Buhari appointed him as a member Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for Presidential Power Initiate. It was rumored during the build-up to the 2023 presidential election that Buhari was not willing to hand over power to Bola Ahmed Tinubu because of his many scandals and that Abubakar Malami was one of those that persuaded Buhari otherwise.

Hajia Hadiza Mohammed

hajiahadizamohammed@gmail.com

An actress, social activist, politician

London, UK