Abubakar Malami, SAN, the attorney-general of the federation (AGF) and minister of justice, has been summoned to appear before a Federal High Court in Abuja for alleged abuse of office.
The case also involves Ms. Asabe Waziri, a civil servant and employee of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited.
The lawsuit was filed by Mr. Cecil Osakwe, an international businessman and property developer.
Background
A property worth N130m in Abuja’s Maitama District, at the centre of the case, is alleged to have been purchased by Ms. Waziri.
The property in question, two units of 3-bedroom flats, was sold to Ms Waziri by Abeh Signature Ltd, a company owned by Mr Osakwe who sought the cancellation of the sales transaction.
He approached the High Court of Justice of the Federal Capital Territory, seeking the cancellation of the sales transaction due to suspicions of suspicious transactions under the Special Control Unit Against Money Laundering (SCUML).
He claimed Malami used charges against him to arm-twist him into giving two units of 3-bedroom flats in one of his properties to Ms Waziri, against a valid court order.
The AGF’s office is alleged to have supervised the harassment of Mr. Osakwe by the Nigerian police on civil matters related to the sale of the property, according to Mr. Osakwe’s lawyer.
This made him approach the court seeking N1b damages against the AGF for acting with malice and abusing his office by raising charges against Mr. Osakwe.
The AGF also claimed that he was aware that Ms. Waziri had lived in the property for over eight months before a lawful court order terminated the sales transaction.
The case is expected to be heard in court, with the AGF expected to defend himself and his office.
Ms Waziri is said to have a similar case in Lagos, where she has been in a long legal battle with the owner of a property on Banana Island.
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