The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), has said President Muhammadu Buhari acted in conformity with with the law when he extended the tenure of the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu.
The Minister who spoke on Wednesday on Channels TV’s Politics Today maintained that the president acted within the period alowed by the constitution and exercised his powers to appoint persons into offices subject to confirmation by the Senate.
The decision of the president to extend by three months, the tenure of the IGP had stirred controversy as many lawyers alleged a breach of Sections 215 and 216 of the 1999 Constitution and Section 7 of the Nigerian Police Act 2020, and over alleged breach of the country’s constitution.
Adamu, who enlisted into the police on February 4, 1986, was due for retirement on February 4, 2021, having spent 35 years in service as stipulated by law.
But Malami said the argument of the lawyers were not based on facts available to the president.
“What I am saying in essence is that within the context of official records, within the context of the action taken by Mr President in terms of extension of tenure, the necessary compliance of with the law has been consummated, and the president was and indeed acted within the context of the law,” he said.
On the Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index of 2020, which ranked Nigeria low as 149 out of 180 countries, Malami faulted the ranking as misplaced because it did not take into account, the various recoveries and convictions by the administration.
He said the president was still studying the report of the Judicial Inquiry into the activities of suspended acting chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Magu.
