EFCC: Magu Denies Threatening Judicial Officer

The suspended acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, has denied the allegation levelled against him by the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami.

The Minister of Justice in an allegation filed before the presidential panel investigating Magu had accused the suspended EFCC boss of threatening Judiciary officers.

Magu, however, in his response denied the allegation that he threatened Judicial Officers while still in the position of the acting chairman of the anti-graft agency.

According to him, the plan is to tarnish his name and the corporate integrity of the Commission.

The suspended EFCC boss in his response delivered to the President panel said;

1. I unequivocally deny the entirety of the allegation that I threatened Judicial Officers. This allegation, to say the least, is not only untrue but mischievously made to tarnish my name and the corporate integrity of the Commission. In the exercise of my official duties, I have had no cause to threaten anybody let alone a serving Judicial Officer.

2. Contrary to the allegation that I threatened judicial officers, particularly Honourable Justice Binta Nyako, I know as a fact and I verily believe that:

(i) The Commission, in the course of performing its statutory duties and functions, discovered that one Sebore Farms & Extension Services Limited which received and retained various proceeds of unlawful activities has Honorable Justice Binta Nyako as one of its Directors. Currently, the company is standing trial alongside Admiral Murtala Nyako (a spouse of the Honourable Justice Binta Nyako) in criminal charge no. FHC/ABJ/293/2015 between the FRN v. 50 Murtala H. Nyanko & 8 Ors pending before the Honourable Justice E.O. Abang.

The Commission wrote to the Honourable Chief Judge of the Federal High Court applying that the Honourable Justice Binta Nyako recuse herself from matters instituted by the Commission. The letter to the Hon. Chief Judge is attached and marked as Annexure 34.

Though the Honourable Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, in his wisdom, declined the request of the Commission via a letter dated the 11th December 2018, his Lordship. Honourable Justice Binta Nyanko, having realized that justice is rooted in confidence, recused herself from all the matters instituted by the Commission and pending before her.

The Hon. Justice Binta Nyako delivered judgment in a civil suit no: FHCIABJ/CS/446/2017 Mohammed Bello Adoke v. Attorney General of the Federation wherein her Lordship at page 23 of the judgment held as follows: “On whether the plaintiff can be held personally liable for acts done in furtherance of the lawful directives/approvals of the President, I have examined paragraph 4d, 4bb and 4cc of the Affidavit in Support of the Originating Summons as well as Exhibits 10A & 10B, and 11A &11B. Exhibit 51 B is a Presidential approval directing the plaintiff to implement the Block 245 Resolution Agreement, while Exhibit 10B is the approval by the President for Malabu Oil and Gas Limited to be paid US1,080.040,000.00 Billion Dollars in settlement of the dispute. I am therefore in agreement with the Plaintiff’s submission that he was merely carrying out lawful directives of the President and that a principal and agent relationship is created where the President assigns responsibility to a minister appointed by him pursuant to section 147 and 146 OF the Constitution. Copy of this judgment is herewith attached and marked as Annexure 35.

The pronouncement of my lord Justice Binta Nyako as quoted above is extremely prejudicial to criminal Charge no. FHCIABJ/CR/268/2016, between FRN v. Malabu Oil and Gas Limited & 7 Ors and Charge no. FHC/AB/CR/39/2017 between FRN v. Mohammed Bello Adoke & Anor filed by the Commission and was subsequently assigned to his Lordship, Hon. Justice Binta Nyako.

The Commission was left with no option than to inform the Honourable Chief Judge about the state of affairs and why it believes that justice will not be done to the FGN if those criminal charges are assigned to Hon. Justice Binta Nyako. A copy of the letter to the Hon. Chief Judge of the Federal High Court dated the 13th February 2020 is attached and marked as Annexure 36.

That as a result of the above letter, his lordship recused herself and the matter has since been assigned to another Judge of the Federal High Court that we believe will do justice to all parties in the proceedings.