Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice,Mr Mohammed Bello Adoke has denied a report that he has been “ Secretly Funding Anti-Election Lawsuit Through Cronies”.Adoke who denied the allegation raised by Sahara Reporters issued the denial in a statement by Senior Special Assistant to the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, P.T. Akper, SAN
Akper said “I wish to categorically state from my vantage position that these allegations are not only false but are designed to harass, distract and intimidate the Attorney General from discharging his duties. Let Nigerians be assured that the Attorney General of the Federation remains committed to the conduct of free, fair and credible elections and within the time frame clearly stipulated in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 and the Electoral Act, as amended.
“Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke, is very conscious of the ethical and professional demands of his high office and his constitutional responsibility as ‘Guardian’ of the Constitution and has demonstrated this time and again in the discharge of his duties. He is one Public Officer that has the moral conviction and courage to speak the truth at all times in the defence of national interest no matter whose ox is gored. Aware of his place in history and the experiences of his predecessors in office, Mr Adoke has refrained from partisanship and has not allowed it to becloud his sense of judgment.
“ It was this strength of character that prompted him to disassociate himself from the Affidavit that was supposedly deposed to on his behalf, by a Staff of the Federal Ministry of Justice without his authority and knowledge of its contents.It will be recalled that the Attorney General of the Federation on becoming aware of the Affidavit in question,took responsibility for the actions of his staff and directed the affidavit to be withdrawn forthwith. Those who know him would readily agree that if he believed in the contents of the Affidavit, he would have had the courage to stand by it. However, in this instance, he believed that the Affidavit represented a perverse interpretation of relevant provisions of the Constitution and the Electoral Act.
His aide “Mr. Mohammed Adoke, as I know him, is irrevocably committed to the conduct of the general elections; he is a constitutional purist who would rather resign his office, than engage in acts capable of undermining the Constitution. His strength of character and personal conviction will not permit him to resort to underhand tactics in order to subvert the electoral process. To the best of my knowledge, the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation has not received N 2 Billion to facilitate the filling of lawsuits to postpone, terminate the elections or disqualify any candidate. I challenge any Lawyer who has been so retained to speak up in the interest of our democracy and present his or her letter of instructions to that effect.
“Iam fully aware that the Attorney General has directed the withdrawal of the Affidavit in question and appropriate challenge of the competence of the suit. In addition, the staff concerned has been queried. It is instructive to note that the Office the Attorney General is a position of public trust. Nigerians should therefore avail themselves of the open door policy of the Ministry to verify information instead of fabricating tales that are capable of misleading the public and occasioning undue anxiety in the polity.
The statement recalled that “on Wednesday 4th March 2015, when the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke, SAN, CFR was attending the High Level Segment of the 28th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, in Geneva Switzerland, ‘Sahara Reporters’published an article under the caption“Attorney General Adoke Secretly Funding Anti-Election Lawsuit Through Cronies”.
“The article sought to portray the Attorney General as the person actively working in concert with other lawyers (named and unnamed) to scuttle the forthcoming elections through the filing of frivolous lawsuits. What is even more preposterous was the assertion that “the Attorney General had received and was solely managing the disbursement of a war chest of N 2 billion provided by President Jonathan to enable him to recruit a retinue of groups to file lawsuits aimed at further postponement of the elections, their termination, or the disqualification of MuhammaduBuhari, the main opposition candidate.”
“My first impression after reading the article was to dismiss it as a mere tale emanating from the fertile imagination of some creative minds determined to entertain the polity through the social media. But, upon deep reflection and the unfortunate trust deficit that pervades the polity, I decided to confront the Attorney General who incidentally is my boss, colleague and confidant. I was not surprised that Mr. Mohammed Adoke was equally astounded at the article in much the same way that I was when I read it. I felt quite moved when he responded thus: “Peter! You have worked closely with me for about 5 years, knowing me the way you do, can you associate me with the antics alleged in the article?”. My answer was in the negative. It was after this encounter that I decided to respond to the article and to let the truth be told.
