Former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami on Thursday lost a bid to secure bail for his release from the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Abuja, rejected his bail application, saying the former minister is lawfully held by the EFCC.
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Citing section 35 of the Nigerian constitution, the judge, Babangida Hassan, held that Mr Malami’s detention in EFCC custody since 8 December is backed by a court order and is therefore lawful.
“Asking this court to grant this application is tantamount to inviting the court to sit as an appellate court over an application made by a court of coordinate jurisdiction which the court has no power to do,” the judge said.
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Mr Malami, who has now been detained by the EFCC for 10 days over corruption allegations, had brought his bail application through his lawyer, Suliaman Hassan, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).
A statement from the EFCC said Mr Hassan argued at Thursday’s bail hearing that the former minister’s detention by the EFCC for its ongoing investigation was illegal.
But the EFCC, represented by Jibrin Okutepa, also a SAN, argued that the former minister was being held by a valid remand order obtained from another judge of the FCT High Court, Sylvanus Oriji.
He added that the EFCC was a law-abiding commission that would not detain a suspect beyond the lawful period without an order of the court.
Judge Hassan agreed with the EFCC in his ruling, noting that the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 permits the prosecuting agency like the EFCC to obtain a detention order from the High Court to enhance its investigations.
It was the first time it would be publicly disclosed that the EFCC had obtained a court order for Mr Malami’s detention, although the duration of the remand order was not disclosed.
Administrative bail controversy
Until Thursday’s proceedings, the legality of Mr Malami’s detention had been a subject of controversy, with the former minister saying his probe was politically motivated and that he was unjustly held and denied bail by the EFCC.
But the EFCC had pushed back Mr Malami’s claims.
In a statement on Saturday, the EFCC’s spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, said the commission granted administrative bail to the former minister on 28 November after a brief interrogation, pending the conclusion of investigations and possible arraignment.
“Administrative bail is a discretionary temporary reprieve that allows a suspect to be released on stated conditions pending the conclusion of investigation and arraignment in court,” he said.
According to the EFCC, the former minister was granted provisional bail subject to five conditions, none of which he had fulfilled as of the time he was re-invited for further questioning.
Mr Oyewale said Mr Malami was expected to return on 1 December but later requested a deferment on health grounds through a letter dated 4 December, a request the commission said it granted despite his failure to meet the bail conditions.
He said Mr Malami neither submitted a medical report nor provided credible evidence to support his claim of ill-health.
The EFCC said it subsequently invited Mr Malami again on 8 December for further interrogation and detained him after he failed to meet the outstanding bail requirements.
He described Mr Malami’s claim that his bail was revoked as untenable, adding that it was wrong to suggest that the commission restricted him from granting media interviews or participating in political activities.
Allegations and probe
Mr Malami, who served as Nigeria’s Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice from 2015 to 2023 under former President Muhammadu Buhari, is being investigated over allegations including the alleged fraudulent duplication of expenses related to the recovery of assets linked to the late former military ruler, Sani Abacha.
Reports have also indicated that the commission is probing several bank accounts allegedly linked to the former minister, as well as his multi-billion-naira investments in Kebbi State.
Following his detention, Mr Malami’s lawyers challenged his continued custody, describing it as unlawful and a violation of his fundamental rights, a development that has drawn political reactions from opposition figures accusing the EFCC of politicising its actions.
Mr Malami, a founding member of the APC who recently declared his intention to contest the 2027 governorship election in Kebbi State, has linked his investigation and detention to his defection to the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
EFCC described the accusations by some political actors alleging the “weaponisation” and “politicisation” of the commission as a deliberate misrepresentation of its mandate.
The commission added that suspects from ruling, opposition, and non-partisan backgrounds do not enjoy immunity and are investigated and prosecuted equally.
On Wednesday, the EFCC raided Mr Malami’s homes and offices in Abuja and Kebbi, Kebbi State.
EFCC confirmed the operation to PREMIUM TIMES but called it a search necessary for its ongoing investigations of the former minister.
Mr Malami, who raised the alarm over the raids in a press release by his media aide on Wednesday, alleged that the operations were triggered by an earlier press release from his media team.
The said earlier statement referenced the Justice Ayo Salami Judicial Commission of Inquiry’s report, which Mr Malami claimed indicted the EFCC chair, Ola Olukoyede, for his activities as the secretary to the EFCC from 2018 to 2020.
READ ALSO: EFCC operatives raid Malami’s homes, offices
Mr Malami specifically alluded to Chapter 9 of the report which he said focused on Mr Olukoyede.
“These actions (were carried out without prior notice and were expressly directed at searching for documents allegedly connected to Chapter 9 of the Salami Report,” the statement added, reiterating Mr Malami’s call on Mr Olukoyede to step aside from the ongoing probe.
But the EFCC chair had, in July during a meeting with media representatives, denied allegations levelled against him in the Salami report. He said he was unjustly suspended as the commission’s secretary over what he described as false corruption allegations.
He said he was later vindicated and reinstated after a review by the administration of President Bola Tinubu found no wrongdoing on his part.
