Malami denies advising Buhari to suspend Nigeria’s Constitution over insecurity

 

365Daily – The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has said a report which claimed that he advised President Muhammadu Buhari to suspend the Nigerian constitution to tackle the escalating insecurity in the country more effectively was fabricated.

The Peoples Gazette reported on Wednesday, June 2, 2021, that Malami, in an 8-page May 4, 2021 memo, urged the President to consider declaring nationwide state of emergency and suspend the constitution in order to avoid bottlenecks in addressing the worsening security situation in the country.

The suspension was also suggested to involve the fundamental rights of all Nigerians as guaranteed under Chapter IV of the Constitution, the report added.

It stated in part: “The essence of declaration is to allow for suspension of constitutional and legal bureaucratic bottlenecks pertaining to matters of National Security with particular regards to fundamental rights guaranteed under Chapter IV of the 1999 Constitution and processes and procedures relating to procurements, among others.”

But in a response issued late Tuesday, June 2, Malami, disowned the document and asked that the report should be disregarded.

In a statement issued by his spokesperson, Umar Gwandu, he said it was the ”fabrications of anti-constitutional democratic stability in Nigeria.”

The statement read: ”The attention of the Office of the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN has been drawn to a false and fictitious report alleging that there was a secret memo emanating from the Office to the Presidency.
”General publics are hereby asked to disregard the media report as fabrications of anti-constitutional democratic stability in Nigeria.

”Malami remains a true democrat who believes in rules of law and tenant of democracy and Constitutional order.

”The Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice is a constitutionally recognised one with its role and responsibilities embedded in the constitution.

”It is antithetical to common sense to think that the holder of such coveted Office as the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice will stoop to what was printed by the media.

”The Government does not operate in secrecy as it is not a clandestine operation. Hence, Malami discharges his constitutionally recognized mandates in compliance with principles of transparency, openness and accountability.”

 

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