The suspended acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, has applied to the Justice Ayo Salami (retd.)-led investigative panel to summon the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami.
In a separate letter also dated September 4, 2020, Magu sought the recall of “several witnesses who appeared and testified before this judicial commission of inquiry at the time” he “was not allowed to participate in the proceedings and cross-examine such witnesses”.
Both letters, copies of which were shared with journalists on Monday, were authored on Magu’s behalf by his lawyer, Mr Wahab Shittu.
Shittu argued in the letters that the requests were made in line with the spirit of fair hearing guaranteed under Section 36 of the Nigerian Constitution.
He added in the letter requesting the AGF to be summoned that his client was entitled to being confronted with the allegations leveled against him, especially those by Malami, whom he described as his “main accuser”.
Shittu, who cited Section 36(a), (b), (c) and (d) of the Nigerian Constitution, added, “Based on the foregoing, we humbly request that the Honourable Attorney General, who is the main accuser in these proceedings, be graciously invited to give evidence in connection with the subject matter of this inquiry with specific reference to our client in the interest of fair hearing.
“We believe this request ought to be resolved before our client is called upon to enter his defence in these proceedings.”
A copy of the proposed subpoena attached to the letter sent to the Justice Salami panel stated that Malami was “expected to give evidence on his allegations against Ibrahim Magu”.
Specifically, Shittu stated that his client expected Malami to appear in the panel to testify on his allegations including, that the “acting Chairman of EFCC is not acting in the overall best interest of the country and the policies of this administration due to its mismanagement and lack of transparency in managing recovered assets”.