For the average Nigerian, July has been a rough start to the year’s second half as many await renewed hope. But for Abubakar Malami, July looks like the beginning of a series of tough months ahead. Based on the latest news reports that centre on transactions he oversaw while in office, Malami is truly having it rough.
The Cable on July 24 exclusively reported that Malami, the former Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), will be interrogated over at least five suspicious transactions during his time in office. While no charges have been brought yet against him, he will undoubtedly be apprehensive, going by the experiences of former EFCC chair Abdulrasheed Bawa and former CBN governor Godwin Emefiele, who are both in custody and were key figures in the last administration.
So why is Malami staring down a barrel of hot soup? Here’s what you need to know.
[Abubakar Malami / The Guardian]
What are the five transactions Malami is facing investigation for?
Malami served as both the AGF and Minister of Justice under President Buhari. His appointment in 2015 made him the youngest minister in Buhari’s cabinet. In his position, the 56-year-old Malami was the point of call for arbitrage and settling disputes and transactions involving the federal government.
According to The Cable, here are the five transactions Malami is facing investigation for:
Ajaokuta settlement
The name Ajaokuta is synonymous with “wastage” and white elephant ventures. The moribund steel project in Kogi state has been the subject of several controversies.
The gist is quite long, but the abridged version of it goes something like this:
In September 2022, the FG resolved a long-standing contractual dispute with Global Steel over the Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited (ASCL) and National Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO) Itakpe concessions. Instead of paying an original claim of $5.258 billion, Nigeria secured a 91% reduction and agreed to pay $496 million following threats of the dispute being taken up at the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The dispute began in 2008 when Global Steel’s concessions were revoked for alleged asset stripping and tax evasion. In 2016 a modified concession agreement was executed, allowing Global Steel to retain Itakpe. The recent settlement rescued Nigeria’s steel, iron ore, and rail industries, but other allegations remain unresolved. Malami’s role in the ordeal and how he handled some settlements is what is being investigated.
Mysterious sales of recovered assets
The EFCC questioned Ladidi Mohammed, the head of the asset recovery and management unit in the Ministry of Justice, about fraud allegations in August 2022. They didn’t charge her, however. She claimed to have acted under instructions from Malami in selling recovered assets worth billions. Malami reportedly granted a confidential multibillion-naira asset recovery contract to Gerry Ikputu & Partners and their legal agent, M. E. Sheriff & Co., offering them three per cent of the value of each successful recovery. The AGF and the justice ministry were criticised for engaging private firms instead of using competent anti-graft agencies like the EFCC and ICPC for asset recovery.
[Ladidi Mohammed / The Cable]
Paris Club refunds
During Malami’s tenure, consultants who claimed they assisted states in calculating their share of the Paris Club refunds sued the FG. They demanded payment for their services.
Malami opted for an out-of-court settlement. He agreed that the states would pay $418 million to the consultants, deducted from their federation allocations over time.
This led to a public disagreement between Malami and the governors. The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) accused the consultants of using Malami to obtain the states’ funds. The NGF contested the deduction, and a federal high court in Abuja restrained the consultants from transacting with the promissory notes. The case, which involves Senator Ned Nwoko, is ongoing in court.
Download the Citizen Election Report: Navigating Nigeria’s Political Journey
Mambila deal
In early 2020, Malami committed the federal government to pay Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited (SPTCL) $200 million as a “final settlement” for the Mambilla power project dispute in Taraba state.
This settlement was to avoid an arbitration claim by Sunrise in France over an alleged breach of contract. The project, delayed since the 1970s, aims to be the country’s largest power plant with a capacity of 3,050 megawatts. Previously, Sunrise Power had accused the government of sidelining them from the project against the advice of Malami.
However, in a response dated April 20, Buhari replied to a memo by Malami regarding the settlement, saying, “FG does not have USD 200 million to pay SPTCL”. The case is still in arbitration.
Abacha loot
No story revolving around graft in Nigeria is complete without mentioning the former head of state, Sani Abacha.
In 1999, the Nigerian government hired Swiss lawyer Enrico Monfrini to recover looted funds traced to Abacha. After seven years of work, Monfrini successfully recovered $321 million from Luxembourg banks, which the Swiss government then held.
Instead of directly requesting the transfer of the funds to Nigeria, Abubakar Malami engaged two lawyers, Oladipo Okpeseyi and Temitope Adebayo. They wrote a letter to the Swiss authorities requesting the return of the funds. These lawyers were paid $17 million in “professional fees.” This figure was more than what the Swiss lawyer received for tracing and recovering the funds.
Okpeseyi was associated with the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC). President Buhari founded the party, and Malami was the party’s legal adviser.
