Tonye Jaja, a lawyer, has filed a suit against Abubakar Malami, the former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), and five others before the Federal High Court in Abuja over alleged violations of his fundamental rights.
In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/125/2026, Jaja is seeking N1
trillion in damages, a public apology, and several declaratory reliefs against
Malami, Dayo Apata, former solicitor-general of the federal government, the
office of the attorney-general of the federation, the Nigeria Police Force
(NPF), and the Department of State Services (DSS).
The lawyer accused the defendants, particularly Malami, of
facilitating his unlawful removal as chairman of the governing board of the
Nigerian Copyright Commission (NPC).
According to court documents, Jaja was appointed chairman of
the governing board of the NPC on May 13, 2019, for a four-year term.
Jaja told the court that while serving in that capacity, he
lodged a complaint against the director-general of the commission and formally
reported the matter to Malami, then the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice.
In the suit’s grounds, Jaja said he personally met Malami in
his office and “gave the 1st respondent details of his complaint against the
director-general of the Nigerian Copyright Commission.”
However, while waiting for the former minister to act on the
complaint, Jaja alleged that events took a different turn.
“While waiting for the 1st respondent to act on the
applicant’s complaint against the director-general of Nigerian Copyright
Commission, the 1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th respondents sacked the applicant as
chairman of the governing board of Copyright Commission, without any query and
without giving the applicant opportunity to be heard,” part of the suit reads.
Jaja said his sack was formalised in a letter dated October
15, 2020, authored by Apata, informing him that he had been removed as the
board chairman, adding that he “was not given an opportunity to be heard”
Jaja further alleged that after his removal, Malami “paid
N2,000,000 for television announcement” of his sack.
Beyond the loss of office, Jaja alleged that he was
subjected to intimidation by security agencies.
He told the court that Malami sent some police officers to
invite him, noting that when he honoured the invitation, the officers told him
“that they have seen that his hands are clean,” but that “the 1st respondent
paid them to deal with and torment the applicant.”
Jaja said the police officers later told him “to go and that
they would eat the money of the 1st respondent for the job.”
He also alleged DSS involvement, stating that he honoured
another invitation from the secret police and that “the DSS told him it was the
1st respondent that instructed them to deal with him” before telling him, “that
they have seen that he is innocent and that he should go.”
Following his removal, Jaja said he wrote to the president
seeking reinstatement but “to no avail”.
He added that several individuals and institutions also
wrote letters calling for his reinstatement, including the office of the
secretary to the government of the federation (OSGF), the Nigerian Bar
Association (NBA), Garki branch, senior lawyers, and civil service groups,
noting that all efforts failed.
He also claimed that he helped the EFCC in “exposing” Malami
and one Mr Ubani, “which led to both of them scheming to deal with the
applicant.”
On the basis of these events, Jaja is asking the court to
declare that his removal without a hearing violated his constitutional rights
and to order “payment of one trillion naira jointly and severally by the
respondents as compensation for the breach of the applicant’s fundamental
rights.”
He is also seeking a public apology in two national
newspapers and N5 million as the cost of the suit.
The court is yet to fix a hearing date.
Malami is standing trial alongside his son and wife over
allegations bordering on money laundering.
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