DOCUMENT: Nigeria’s Attorney-General, Malami Admits Filing Inaccurate Processes In Court, Absolves Enugu Governor-Elect Of Ex-Convict’s Claim

In the letter obtained by SaharaReporters and dated 28th April 2023, titled “Re: Wilful Mischief by Officers of the Federal Ministry of Justice in FHC/ABJ/CS/2257/2022: FELIX OGWU V. PETER MBAH & Others”, the Minister of Justice admitted that the processes filed by his keep of job had been immoral, and acknowledged that Mbah became once no longer convicted at any time.
 

The Dwelling of job of the Lawyer-Smartly-liked of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has written a letter, admitting that it filed wrong processes in court in a case keen the governor-elect of Enugu Allege, Dr. Peter Mbah, and hence absolved Mbah of the ex-convict claim forward of the Federal Excessive Courtroom, Abuja.

In the letter obtained by SaharaReporters and dated 28th April 2023, titled “Re: Wilful Mischief by Officers of the Federal Ministry of Justice in FHC/ABJ/CS/2257/2022: FELIX OGWU V. PETER MBAH & Others”, the Minister of Justice admitted that the processes filed by his keep of job had been immoral, and acknowledged that Mbah became once no longer convicted at any time.

Mbah contested the closing typical elections as governorship candidate below the platform of the Peoples Democratic Celebration (PDP) in Enugu Allege and became once declared winner by the Fair Nationwide Electoral Commission (INEC).
Six indigenes of the instruct led by Mr Felix Ugwu, who’re plaintiffs forward of the court had in December 2022 sued Mbah, mature governor, Chimaroke Nnamani, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the AGF, searching for an picture to repeat that Nnamani and Mbah had been tried and convicted accountable No. FHC/L/09/ 2007.
Nonetheless the response of the AGF, who’s the 4th respondent in the swimsuit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2257/2022, acknowledged that Mba and Nnamani had been no longer convicted at any time.
Apart from Ugwu, other plaintiffs in the swimsuit are; Jonathan Ndubusi, Okechukwu Eze, Agbachi Ude, Chris Ugwu and Emeka Aroh.
They’d prayed the court to repeat that by the provisions of Share 270 of the Administration of Prison Justice Act (ACJA) 2015, the discovering of plea of responsible entered on behalf of 1st and 2nd defendants (Mba and Nnamani) by Justice Yunusa of a Federal Excessive Courtroom sitting in Lagos, is a conviction in law and binding on the total defendants.
They had been moreover searching for a declaration that by the advise provisions of Share 182(1(e) of the 1999 Structure (as amended), Mbah became once ineligible to contest any election to the keep of job of Governor of a Allege within a interval of lower than ten years from seventh day of July 2015.
Ugwu acknowledged in his affidavit in give a rob to of the originating summons that he derived his facts from Mr. George Ogara, a senior authorized legitimate and deputy governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Enugu 2023 election.
It became once, alternatively, found that an officer in the Federal Ministry of Justice filed a course of that became once fraudulent and a misrepresentation of facts.
As an instance, court documents obtained confirmed that Mbah never entered into any fee or plea good deal in the Payment No. FHC/L/09C/2007, as he became once discharged over two years forward of the plea good deal became once entered.
By a ruling of the Federal Excessive Courtroom Lagos delivered by Justice M.N. Yunusa on seventh March, 2013 in Payment No. FHC/L/09C/2007: Federal Republic of Nigeria v. Nnamani Chimaroke & 11 Ors., Mr. Peter Mbah (the 2nd accused individual in the fee) with two other accused persons, had been discharged from the total costs filed in Payment No. FHC/L/09C/2007: Federal Republic of Nigeria v. Nnamani Chimaroke & 11 Ors on the instance of the EFCC counsel.
Mbah’s attorneys subsequently petitioned the Minister of Justice and AGF over the “mischief and unhappy misconduct.”
Meanwhile, in a letter dated 28th April 2023 and titled “Re: Wilful Mischief by Officers of the Federal Ministry of Justice in FHC/ABJ/CS/2257/2022: FELIX OGWU V. PETER MBAH & Others”, the Minister of Justice admitted that the processes filed by his keep of job had been immoral, as Mbah became once never convicted at any time.
The letter addressed to Mbah’s true counsel, Onyechi Ikpeazu, and signed by Solicitor-Smartly-liked of the Federation and Everlasting Secretary, Federal Ministry of Justice, Mrs. Beatrice Jedy-Agba, on behalf of the AGF, learn, “I check with your letter dated 2nd March 2023 conveying your reservation about a course of filed on behalf of the Hon. Lawyer-Smartly-liked of the Federation in the above topic.
“This Dwelling of job has reviewed the total processes filed and notes the inadvertence main to the wrong presentation of facts on behalf of the Hon. Lawyer-Smartly-liked of the Federation in this case. A review of the originating processes and accompanying documents enact no longer advise that the 1st and 2nd Defendants had been convicted at any time. Which capacity that, the topic is being addressed thru our inner procedures while we’re in the course of of submitting correct processes forward of the court.”
Meanwhile, when the topic came up forward of Justice James Omotosho of the Federal Excessive Courtroom, Abuja on Thursday, counsel to the plaintiffs, Barrister C. Izunobi, instructed the court that she wouldn’t be in a location to on yarn of defendant’s counsel, Abdukarim Aliyu, beautiful served her with a movement, which she became once unable to answer to.
She prayed the court for a transient adjournment to enable her file a response to the movement, a prayer the court granted.
Meanwhile, it can per chance well be recalled that Mbah had moreover in January petitioned the Ideally suited Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) in opposition to George Ogara and the plaintiffs’ counsel, Ejike Obumneme, for submitting and promoting a swimsuit, which he acknowledged they knew or moderately must always know became once fraudulent and intended to deceive the court and maliciously wound his individual.
This, he acknowledged, became once a unhappy violation of the Recommendations of Expert Behavior for Ideally suited Practitioners and subsequently punishable by the foundations.