Strong indications emerged yesterday that the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar, has begun a probe into allegations of incompetence and abuse of office levelled against the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN) by rights activist and Executive Secretary of Anti-Corruption Network, Otunba Dino Melaye. Melaye had, in a letter entitled “Reporting a case of flagrant abuse of power vested in the office of the AGF by Mr. Mohammed Adoke,” accused the AGF of refusing to produce 14 witnesses that were to testify in the $180m Haliburton bribery scandal, which led to the striking out of the suit by Justice Abubarkar Umar of an Abuja High Court He had also alleged that, “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.
He claimed that the prosecution of the officials of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission was also withdrawn against public interest.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, a case of N10bn money laundering, was struck out by Justice Charles Achibong on the grounds that the prosecution was shoddy, yet the case is yet to be revisited by the AGF. “It is also laughable that the federal government of a country declared the chairman of the dissolved Pension Reforms Task Team wanted; yet the AGF did not file any charge against him.”
According to Melaye, the AGF had also not shown any seriousness in the prison decongestion exercise, despite the huge amount of money earmarked for it.
Already, the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar, had invited Melaye to the Police X Squad to assist the Nigerian Police in the investigation of the chief law officer over the various allegations he made against him.
The invitation was contained in a letter from the Office of the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar, signed by Ali Amodu, a Commissioner of Police in charge of X Squad. The letter specifically stated that a full scale investigation was being conducted by the police on the matter and would need his assistance for the probe.
The letter reads in part: “This office is investigating a case of alleged corruption, abuse of office and incompetence leveled against the current Honorable Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation (Mohammed Bello Adoke) by your organisation.
“In view of this, the Inspector- General of Police, has directed that a full scale investigation be conducted into the allegations by this office. “Consequently, you are invited to meet the undersigned on Friday (yesterday) May 10, 2013 by 1000 hrs prompt in Room 1C – 053 First Floor, Police Headquatres, Louis Edet House, Central Area, Abuja.”
Emerging feelers had, earlier, pointed to the direction of the Presidency as being behind the probe. But the Attorney General of the Federation, Mr. Adoke (SAN) confirmed yesterday, vide a statement, that the police had begun the probe of the litany of allegations made against him by Melaye.
He however clarified yesterday that rather than the Presidency being behind the probe, he said it was he who wrote the police to invite Melaye to substantiate his allegation against him since he had nothing to hide.
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