The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Attorney General of the Federation

  • Reps summon AGF, IGP over Kogi Assembly

    Reps summon AGF, IGP over Kogi Assembly

    The House of Representatives on Tuesday, summoned the Attorney General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami, to appear before its Committee on Judiciary over his alleged role in the Kogi House of Assembly crisis.

    This followed a point of order moved by Rep. Nicholas Ossai (Delta-PDP), who cited the Attorney General’s instruction to the Inspector-General of Police to reopen the assembly for proceedings.

    Ossai described the move as unwarranted and unlawful.

    In his contribution, the Majority Leader of the House, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila, described the actions of the Attorney General as sad.

    He said that the resolution of the house to seal Kogi assembly was based on Section 11 of the house’s rules.

    Pally Iriase, who led the chamber’s delegation to Kogi, said that the matter was not in court when the house passed a resolution to take over legislative functions of Kogi assembly as provided by the Constitution.

    The Speaker of the House, Mr Yakubu Dogara, said that sensitive matters like that should be treated with seriousness.

    On his part, Rep. Muhammadu Bago (Niger-APC) called for the Attorney General’s resignation, saying that he lacked the power to instruct the reopening of the assembly.

    The legislators, however, resolved to summon the Inspector-General of Police and Malami to appear before their relevant committees.

    They also constituted a 22-member Ad hoc Committee headed by the majority leader to investigate the matter and report back in two weeks for further legislative attention.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the house resumed plenary on Tuesday after two weeks recess for the Easter celebration.

     

  • Kashamu faults AGF’s directive to EFCC against his firm

    Kashamu faults AGF’s directive to EFCC against his firm

    Senator Buruji Kashamu has reacted to the directive by the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami (SAN) for the Economic and Financial Commission (EFCC) to investigate the contractual agreement between his company, Kasmal International Services limited and the Nigerian posta Service (NIPOST).

    Kashamu, in a reaction by his lawyer, Ajibola Oluyede in Abuja Wednesday, argued that the directive amounted to a clear criminal contempt of the Federal High Court which had on the 24th of February 2016 in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/100/2016 made an order restraining the AGF and the EFCC from “from interfering in a purely contractual relationship between Kasmal and NIPOST.”

    He noted that the Federal High Court in its judgments in Suits Nos. FHC/L/CS/1462/2013 (between Kasmal and the 22 Deposit Money Banks – DMBs) and FHC/L/CS/1710/2013 (between KASMAL and the Central Bank  of Nigeria – CBN) had interpreted the Stamp Duties Act LFN 2004 and the NIPOST Act LFN 2004 and found that the Stamp Duties Act made provision for the exemption of certain documents (including receipts for teller deposits and electronic transfers by Deposit Money Banks for sums of 1000 Naira and above) from payment of stamp duties if the documents have affixed to them 50 Naira postage stamps bought from the NIPOST.

    “The two actions were brought by KASMAL as public Interest actions to ensure that the banks remitted the 50 Naira to NIPOST after NIPOST had appointed KASMAL as its agent.

    “NIPOST as a statutory agency with exclusive authority to produce postage stamps in Nigeria has always operated through agents and pays them up to 20% as commission from collections made for sale of postal services including sale of postage stamps. KASMAL’s position is no different from this and it was agreed that if KASMAL could open up this stream of revenue from the DMBs for use of NIPOST postage stamps to denote stamp duties on receipts for teller and electronic transfers, KASMAL would be entitled to N7.50 from every N50 it collected.

    “Although we have no doubt that right minded observers will see the injustice in the move by the AGF’s office to deprive KASMAL of the fruits of its efforts, we believe that the directive by the AGF is mischievous and calculated to bring the judicial process into disrepute. We will bring this unlawful abuse of office to the attention of the court at its next sitting on this matter on the 17th of April 2016,” he said.

     

  • Credit card fraud: Court okays suspect’s extradition to U.S

    Credit card fraud: Court okays suspect’s extradition to U.S

    Justice Saliu Saidu of the Federal High Court, Lagos, has granted an application by the Federal Government seeking to extradite Mr. Olugbemiga Adebisi to the United States to face credit card and other fraud charges.

    The office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) said three indictments were filed in the U.S District Court, New Hampshire, against Adebisi.

    He was charged in the Hampshire court with “access device fraud, receipt of stolen mail matter, aggravated identity theft and fraudulent use of social security number” on July 20, 2006.

    The alleged offences were in violation of Title 18, U.S. Code, sections 1029, 1708, 1028A and Title 42, U.S. Code, Section 408(a) 7(b).

    Adebisi was also said to have been charged on April 5, 2005 in the Trial Court of Massachusetts, Middlesex County, Concord District Court, U.S.

    He was accused of “larceny over $250 credit card fraud, forgery of a document, uttering false document and identify fraud.”

    The offences were said to be a violation of Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 266, Section 30(1), 37(c)(e) and Chapter 267, Section 1 and 5.

    ‎Granting the application, Justice Saidu held that he was satisfied that “the U.S had formally requested for the extradition of the respondent within the requirement of the Extradition Act Cap E25 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.”

    He added: “The affidavit of Alfred Rubega (a United States Assistant Attorney) was signed before a magistrate judge of the District of New Hampshire, which has not been disputed by the respondent in the case.

    “And this affidavit was only attached to a certificate duly executed from the Department of State of the U.S.A. and the United State Department of Justice and further certified by one David Warmer, an Associate Director, Office of International Affairs Criminal Division, Department of Justice, U.S.A.

    “All these are enough evidence to give credit and validity to the affidavit of Alfred Rubega.”

    A lawyer from the AGF’s office, Akintah Ukaeyina, had argued that the offences for which Adebisi is being wanted in the U.S are also provided for and punishable in the contemplation of Nigerian laws.

    But Adebisi’s lawyer, Toye Latilo, urged the court to refuse the extradition application because it was only initiated after his client had challenged his prolonged detention without charge.

    “The respondent was arrested at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport by the Interpol on the basis of a warrant of arrest issued in the United States and from that time till date he has been in the prison custody.

    “It was when the respondent applied to enforce his fundamental right that the applicant was prompted to initiate these proceedings before this court,” the lawyer said.

     

  • Court bars NDLEA from arresting Kashamu

    Court bars NDLEA from arresting Kashamu

    Justice Okon Abang of a Federal High Court in Lagos on Wednesday  stopped the police and other law enforcement agencies from arresting or extraditing the Senator-elect, Prince Buruji Kashamu, to the United States to stand trial for alleged drug trafficking.

    ‎He made the order while delivering judgment in a fundamental rights suit FHC/L/CS/508/15, filed by Kashamu against the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and 11 others, just as he awarded N20,000 cost in favour of the applicant against Chairman, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Ahmadu Giade, and N10,000 against the National Security Adviser (NSA), Attorney-General of the Federation, and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), to be paid before further steps can be taken.

    The judge declared as illegal any attempt to abduct or forcibly transport Kashamu to the U.S to stand trial in relation to drug-trafficking allegations, for which he had been exonerated by two British courts.

    He further held that having earlier obtained a subsisting court judgment in Nigeria on January 6, last year, restraining his arrest, extradition to the U.S, Kashamu cannot be arrested or extradited to the America by the respondents.

    Suspecting a conspiracy between the AGF, Mohammed Adoke and the IGP, Solomon Arase, to abduct and whisk him to U.S before his swearing-in as Senator on May 29, Kashamu had in April, instituted a suit before the court, seeking nine declarative orders against the agencies.

    ‎Other respondents in the suit include Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC); Director General, State Security Service (SSS); The Interpol National Central Bureau, (NCB); the Clerk of the National Assembly; Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC); Nigeria Custom Services (NCS), and Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS).