Melaye wants withdrawal of Adoke’s SAN title

A civil rights group, Anti-Corruption Network on Thursday called on the Legal Practitioners Privilege Committee to commence the process for the withdrawal of Senior Advocate of Nigeria on the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Adoke.
The group cited alleged incompetence, abuse of office and conflict of interest as reasons for the call.
Executive Secretary of ACN and a former House of Representatives member, Dino Melaye, stated this at a briefing in Abuja.
Melaye, who frowned on Adoke’s style of leadership at the ministry, said the AGF refused to produce 14 witnesses that were to testify in the $180m Halliburton bribery scandal, which led to the striking out of the suit by an Abuja High Court.
He said, “Today the Malabu oil deal is dead and buried because the AGF has refused to push the case and is in fact frustrating the prosecution. The prosecution of the officials of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission was also withdrawn against public interest.
“In the case of Erastus Akingbola at the Federal High Court in Lagos, case of N10bn money laundering, the case was struck out by Justice Charles Archibong on grounds that the prosecution was shoddy, and the case has yet to be re-filed by the AGF.
“It is also laughable that the Federal Government declared the chairman of the dissolved Pension Reforms Task Team wanted; yet the AGF did not file any charge against him.”
But the Chief Press Secretary to the AGF, Mr. Ambrose Momoh, who urged Melaye to forward his feelings to the ministry for appropriate response, said the ex-lawmaker was “entitled to his opinion”.
He said, “I cannot respond to a press conference that was addressed and I was not there to know what transpired. You will concede to me that it will not be appropriate to respond to what Melaye has said.”