The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), has asked the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja to dismiss a suit challenging the competence of the charges filed against the ex-AGF, Mohammed Adoke (SAN), and others over their alleged involvement in the $1.1bn Malabu oil scam.
Malami also insisted that Adoke and others named in the charges must prove their innocence in court.
The AGF position is contained in the documents he filed opposing Adoke’s suit before a Federal High Court in Abuja.
He urged the court to decline jurisdiction on the matter.
He argued that such civil suit “cannot be used to stop criminal prosecution already initiated.”
Malami noted in his papers that the charges which its validity Adoke was challenging were five counts involving the fraudulent transfer of billions of dollars derived from the Oil Processing Licence (OPL) 245 deal.
Adoke had in May 2017 filed the suit against his successor as the sole defendant, urging the court to declare as illegal his prosecution by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over alleged involvement in the deal between Malabu Oil and Gas Limited and the Federal Government over OPL 245.
Malami, through the Permanent Secretary and the Solicitor-General of the Federation, Dayo Apata, filed in response to the suit, a notice of preliminary objection challenging the competence of the suit and the court’s jurisdiction to hear it.
He also filed a counter-affidavit challenging the merit of the case.
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