Property forfeiture: Ex-AGF Malami, EFCC fight dirty over rights violation claim

Malami docked

Former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission have disagreed over a claim by the ex-minister that the Department of State Services, and the EFCC were obstructing his right to fair hearing in an ongoing interim forfeiture case.

The former minister had, in a statement on Saturday, said actions taken by both the EFCC and the DSS amounted to “a deliberate attempt to frustrate” his ability to defend himself before the Federal High Court.

Malami, who served as attorney general between 2015 and 2023 under the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, has been under scrutiny since leaving office, with multiple probes initiated over alleged financial misconduct and abuse of office.

His case has since become one of the highest-profile post-Buhari era investigations targeting former top officials.

The EFCC’s application for interim forfeiture relates to assets linked to Malami, with prosecutors arguing that the properties and funds in question were subject to forfeiture pending the determination of substantive criminal allegations.

Interim forfeiture proceedings typically allow the government to temporarily seize assets while a full trial or investigation is ongoing.

However, Malami’s Special Assistant on Media, Mohammed Doka, said, “After the EFCC filed charges against the former AGF, the court granted him bail on conditions, including the immediate surrender of his international passports.

“The EFCC delayed submitting the passports for approximately one week, extending Malami’s detention and slowing down the execution of the bail order.

“He was subsequently detained for five days without access to lawyers or family, and only permitted to meet his legal team after prolonged isolation and grave violations of his fundamental human rights.

Doka maintained that denying the former minister access to a counsel impeded consultation, weakened preparation, and undermined due process before the court.

He criticised what he described as a growing pattern in which suspects were arrested before investigations were concluded, with evidence gathered only after detention.

Doka warned that such practices undermined public confidence in the rule of law which would weaken judicial oversight.

However, the EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, while speaking with Sunday PUNCH said the anti-graft agency had always done it job professionally.

Oyewale argued that after charging Malami to court, the commission should not be worried whether he (Malami) met his bail condition. Punch