The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has written a letter to President Muhammadu Buhari explaining his financial status following the call for his removal over corruption allegations.
In the letter forwarded to the President, Mamai noted that he was not corrupt and has not stolen a dime from the public treasury. He added that he owned lucrative businesses before becoming a minister of the federation.
According to the letter, Malami listed 27 properties he acquired before he became a minister and how he got them legally. The AGF noted that he listed the properties in his asset declaration form submitted to the Code of Conduct Bureau.
In the letter, Malami said he was compelled to write to the Presidency in order to clear his name and set the record straight. He, however, stated that he has commenced legal action against people who made the allegations against him.
The letter read partly: “I have taken a personal decision to seek remedy from the court as a result of the series of derogatory contents so published against me. In the same vein, I have written the Inspector General of Police to investigate the matter.
‘’I, nonetheless, felt it is imperative to write Your Excellency on the subject above. This is because the crux of their campaign is to falsely portray me as a corrupt officer who used public office to acquire wealth and build an empire.
“On the contrary Your Excellency, since my appointment as a minister in your cabinet, I have conducted myself strictly within the confines of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers contained in Part 1 of the Fifth Schedule of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria, as amended.
“It is to be noted that apart from my successful legal practice of more than 20 years, seven of which wwere as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, before my appointment, I have as allowed by law had interests in business ventures, all of which I had resigned from active participation upon my appointment.
“Among other things, I owned lucrative business ventures of Rayhaan Hotels and Rayhaan Food & Drinks, both in Kano, since December 13, 2013, years before the 2015 election that saw to the victory of President Muhamadu Buhari as the President and long before I was appointed to be a Minister in the first term.”
Mamai, who has been under scrutiny following the accusation made against him by the suspended Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, said the law “does not preclude me from gaining the fruit of my establishments.”
