Former presidential spokesman Josef Onoh has launched a scathing critique against ex-Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), labelling his recent complaints against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission as hypocritical. Onoh, in a statement issued from Paris, asserted that Malami disregarded court orders and oversaw politically motivated prosecutions while in office, and should therefore submit to ongoing EFCC investigations instead of attempting to “blackmail and intimidate” the anti-graft agency’s chairman.
The sharp rebuke from Onoh, who is the Chairman of the Forum of Former Members of the Enugu State House of Assembly, comes in direct response to Malami’s recent public demand for EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede to recuse himself from probes involving the former minister. Malami had cited an alleged conflict of interest stemming from Olukoyede’s prior role as secretary to the Justice Ayo Salami Judicial Commission of Inquiry.
“It is particularly revealing that Mr. Malami now cries vendetta and persecution,” Onoh stated, alleging a consistent pattern of disregard for judicial authority during Malami’s tenure as the nation’s chief law officer. He framed Malami’s current situation as an ironic turn of events, given the former AGF’s oversight of agencies like the EFCC and the Department of State Services in high-profile cases.
Onoh’s statement referenced several contentious legal episodes from the Buhari administration. He specifically pointed to the 2020 ordeal of former EFCC acting chairman Ibrahim Magu, whom Malami, as AGF, had accused of malfeasance in a memo to President Muhammadu Buhari. Magu was subsequently arrested, suspended, and investigated by the Salami Panel. “Although Magu was never prosecuted or convicted, his career was effectively ended,” Onoh noted, adding that Malami himself failed to honour a subpoena to appear before the same panel.
The former South-East spokesman also catalogued other instances he claimed exemplified the weaponisation of state power. These included the prolonged detention of former National Security Adviser, Colonel Sambo Dasuki (retd.), despite multiple court orders granting him bail, and the prosecution of former PDP spokesman Olisa Metuh. Onoh further cited the handling of the case involving the Indigenous People of Biafra and its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, which attracted widespread condemnation from civil society and international observers for alleged flouting of court directives.
“These actions exemplified the weaponisation of prosecutorial powers that Malami now decries when the tables are turned,” Onoh declared.
Addressing the legal basis of Malami’s call for recusal, Onoh dismissed the argument as unfounded. He contended that the Chapter Nine reference in the Salami report does not bar the EFCC from investigating former officials and that Olukoyede’s past secretarial role does not create a legal or ethical conflict. “The law on recusal applies to judicial or quasi-judicial proceedings, not routine law enforcement investigations,” he clarified.
Challenging Malami to engage with the process transparently, Onoh urged him to submit to the EFCC’s investigation and defend himself in court if confident of his innocence. He went a step further, calling on the former minister to publicly declare his assets as of 2010, prior to holding high office, to enable a comparison with his current holdings and foster public accountability.
The exchange underscores the increasingly tense atmosphere surrounding corruption probes into former high-ranking officials. Onoh positioned his statement as a defence of institutional integrity, asserting that “under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, attempts to undermine anti-corruption institutions would not succeed.” He concluded with a firm declaration that the EFCC must remain undeterred, emphasising that Nigerians demand the consistent, non-selective application of justice, a principle he implied was often overlooked in the recent past.
The public dispute sets the stage for a deeper examination of the rule of law and the conduct of past administrations.
