These are definitely not good times for former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister ofJustice, Mallam Abubakar Malami, who, still locked up in Kuje Prisons, is subject of a fresh petition linking him to alleged narco-terrorism.
A senior lawyer, Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja (SCN), has written an open letter to the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Mr. Oluwatosin Adeola Ajayi, demanding a full investigation into allegations that Malami (SAN) introduced narco-terrorism into Nigeria during his tenure from 2015 to 2023.
Dr. Jaja claims that Malami’s leadership at the Federal Ministry of Justice was marked by corruption, abuse of office and the systematic termination of criminal cases against alleged financiers of terrorism and narco-terrorists. Jaja further asserted that Malami allegedly received inducements to drop such cases, and that several senior legal and anti-corruption officials allegedly collaborated with him in doing so.
Among those named as Malami’s purported accomplices were:
• Dayo Apata, SAN, former Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Justice (now Ekiti State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice);
• Monday Onyekachi Ubani, SAN;
• Sakaba Ishaku, Acting Head of Investigation at the Independent Corrupt Practices and Related Offences Commission (ICPC); and
• John O. Asein, Director-General of the Nigerian Copyright Commission.
Dr. Jaja also cited several notable figures as potential witnesses to his claims, including Chief Okoi Obono-Obla, former Special Adviser on Prosecution to the late President Muhammadu Buhari, and Otunba Lanre Ipinmisho, former Director-General of the NDLEA.
In his letter, Dr. Jaja urged the DSS to investigate Malami and his associates under the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition (Amendment) Act, 2022, alleging that their actions created an enabling environment for narco-terrorism in Nigeria and caused significant financial and emotional harm to honest public servants.
The allegations against Malami come amid a series of ongoing legal and security challenges facing the former justice minister.
In recent months, Malami has been detained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over alleged corruption, money laundering and terrorism-financing offences. The EFCC has charged him, his wife and son in a multi-billion-naira money laundering case, and a Federal High Court granted bail in the sum of N500 million each with conditions that have yet to be perfected.
In parallel, a fresh probe involving the discovery of weapons and ammunition at Malami’s residence in Birnin Kebbi has reportedly been handed over to the DSS for a broader national security investigation. Security sources say this new development is outside the EFCC’s mandate and is being examined by the intelligence agency.
Some of the individuals named by Dr. Jaja have publicly denied any wrongdoing. Dr. Monday Ubani, SAN, has characterised the allegations linking him to Malami as reckless, defamatory and lacking factual basis, warning that legal consequences could follow for such public claims. His legal team insists there is no evidence of any professional or financial connection between Ubani and Malami in relation to the accusations.
Moreover, Malami himself has consistently denied allegations of terrorism financing and other misconduct, dismissing such reports as baseless and politically motivated, and highlighting his record in strengthening Nigeria’s anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorism legal framework during his tenure.
Dr. Jaja’s letter implores the DSS to act swiftly to avert further damage to Nigeria’s justice system and national security. “Malami ought to be prosecuted under the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition (Amendment) Act, and a Federal High Court order can be obtained for his remand,” Jaja stated, emphasising that the DSS should not wait until Malami is released from custody in other matters.
The DSS has not yet publicly responded to Jaja’s letter at the time of publication.
Find below Dr. Jaja’s open letter to the DSS boss:
“OPEN LETTER TO DIRECTOR-GENERAL, DSS: HOW MALAMI INTRODUCED NARCO-TERRORISM INTO NIGERIA BUT HE DID NOT ACT ALONE, HE HAD ACCOMPLICES SUCH AS DAYO APATA, SAN, FORMER PERMANENT SECRETARY, FEDERAL MINISTRY OF JUSTICE, MONDAY ONYEKACHI UBANI, SAN, SAKABA ISHAKU, AG. HEAD OF INVESTIGATION DIVISION, ICPC AND JOHN O. ASEIN, DG, NIGERIAN COPYRIGHT COMMISSION (JUST TO MENTION A FEW)”
By
Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja, Senior Counsel of Nigeria-SCN.
Dear Director-General, Department of State Security Services (DSS) Sir,
By way of introduction my name is Tonye Clinton Jaja, I am a lawyer and I qualified in the year 2004, I am currently on a two year leave of absence in the Kingdom of Lesotho.
I make this statement as a public interest disclosure and place myself under oath in accordance with the Oath Act, 1963, that the contents of this open letter is 100% true and correct and verifiable.
Let me begin by stating that Sections 1A (2) of the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition (Amendment) Act, 2022 provides the legal basis for DSS to prosecute Malami for his failure to prosecute financiers of terrorism during his tenure as the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice between November 2015 to May 2023.
Chief Okoi Obono-Obla, Esq. former Special Adviser on Prosecution to former President of Nigeria, (late Muhammadu Buhari) is an eyewitness that can be called upon to verify some of the claims that I am making in this written statement. His mobile phone number is +234 803 349 0404
Otunba Lanre Ipinmisho, former Director-General of the Nigerian Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) can also be called to testify about some of the claims in this letter. His mobile phone number is +234 803 311 0110.
The former Director/CEO of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU),
Bello Usman Hamman assigned me an officer with the phone number +234 805 460 7543. This is the person that provided me details of the monies that were moved around by Mr. John O. Asein, Director-General of the Nigerian Copyright Commission for settling Malami. I was allowed access to this information because by them I was the Chairman of the Governing Board of the Nigerian Copyright Commission and we had received several petitions of embezzlement of public funds by the said John O. Asein.
Mr. Sakaba Ishaku, Ag. Head of Investigation Division, Independent Corrupt Practices and Related Offences Commission (ICPC) is another accomplice of Malami that should be questioned. His task was simply to write investigation reports that exonerates culprits after they have given inducements to Malami.
Mr. Dayo Apata, SAN, former Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Justice is an accomplice of Malami in the art of termination of criminal cases against both the financiers and the narco-terrorists themselves.
He is currently the Attorney-General and Commissioner of Justice of Ekiti State. His WhatsApp phone number is +44 7946 236641.
Chief Okoi Obono-Obla, Esq. can testify to the number of criminal cases that Dayo Apata, SAN took away from him (Chief Okoi Obono-Obla) to prevent him from prosecuting after inducements had been given to Malami the overall boss.
Apart from the financial drain that Malami’s actions caused upon the Nigerian economy, there is also the psychological trauma and emotional distress that it inflicted upon the few Honest-Hearted Nigerians who worked in close proximity with Malami at the Federal Ministry of Justice. Due to their unwillingness to bend the rules as required by Malami they were often used as scapegoats and sacrificial lambs.
The former Director of Civil Litigation at the Federal Ministry of Justice, Mr. Adeyanju, his phone number is +234 803 912 9071.
It was Mr. Kayode Ajulo, SAN that called me and introduced me to Mr. Adeyanju in the year 2020/2021 to act as a therapist and counsellor to Mr. Adeyanju who was then undergoing psychological trauma because Malami had turned against him, Adeyanju for his refusal to do Malami’s biddings.
I was selected for this assignment because Mr. Kayode Ajulo, SAN had previously observed first-hand how I stood my ground against Malami in the year 2020.
NARCO-TERRORISM involves the criminal activities involving illicit drugs and terrorism, they are inter-related, the money obtained from sale of illicit drugs is used to finance terrorism and vice-versa, during his tenure, Malami by his refusal to prosecute both financiers of terrorism and terrorists themselves created an enabling environment for NARCO-TERRORISM to be introduced and thrive within Nigeria.
For the foregoing reasons, Malami ought to be prosecuted by the Department of State Security Services (DSS) under the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition (Amendment) Act, 2022.
An Order of the Federal High Court Abuja can be obtained for his remand (under the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015) during the investigation by the DSS, the DSS does not need to wait for him to be released from the Kuje prison.
Yours faithfully,
E-Signed,
Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja,
Executive Director,
Nigerian Law Society, Abuja,
Federal Capital Territory (FCT)
+23490567601192026.
