The Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami (SAN) Tuesday told the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Public Petitions that his office has no substantial evidence to prosecute the Chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal, Justice Danladi Umar, over allegations of corruption levelled against him by Anti-Corruption Network.
Malami, who made the disclosure when he appeared before the committee in Abuja, said investigations by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) could not establish any evidence that would warrant the prosecution of the CCT judge.
He said, “Cases are prosecuted on the basis of facts and not on the basis of suspicion.”
Malami, in his presentation, said: “We wish to state from the onset that the office of AGF identifies with each association whose purpose is to fight corruption by way of the undertaking we have committed ourselves and being accommodated in that respect.
“We also wish to state for the record that presumption of law as it relates with the constitutionality is embedded in section 36 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), section 36 sub-section 5 which is based on presumption of innocence until the contrary is proved.
“On receipt of the copy of the petition, we have taken steps to invite the appropriate authorities inclusive of the EFCC and demanded for their input arising from the petition that was received in that respect.
“I’m happy to bring to the notice of the committee that EFCC has provided opinion on the basis of which we acted, a copy of that letter I believe has been made available to the committee. It is dated. March 5, 2015.”
Earlier, the Executive Secretary of the Anti-Corruption Network Ajulo Ajulo, told the House committee that they were whistle-blowers and ‘’have fought corruption both locally and globally. We have fought corruption in primary school and in the Federal Executive. We have done this over.”
He further stated, ‘’We are here to adopt our petition with this honourable committee; we are also to say that the committee should use our petition to investigate and verify all the accusations; our organisation is not into blackmail, it is not sectional nor selective in our fight against corruption.”
-Leadership
