Malami Fires Back, Calls EFCC Allegations a “Political Witch-Hunt”

Malami Fires Back, Calls EFCC Allegations a “Political Witch-Hunt”

Former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), has responded to allegations from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) that he duplicated the recovery of repatriated Abacha loot, labeling the claims as “baseless, illogical and wholly devoid of substance.”

Malami, in a statement issued on Sunday by his media aide, Mohammed Doka, confirmed receiving and honouring an EFCC invitation on November 28, 2025, concerning allegations of abuse of office and money laundering. He asserted that the accusations could not withstand scrutiny.

Regarding the core allegation of duplicating a recovery finalized by Swiss lawyer Enrico Monfrini before 2015, Malami stated, “This allegation collapses immediately when subjected to facts and elementary logic.”

He clarified that a recovery is only complete when funds are lodged into the Federation Account, which had not occurred by 2016. “As at 2016, there was no lodgement of any such funds into the Federation Account. There was therefore no completed recovery in existence, and nothing whatsoever to duplicate,” he said.

To bolster his defense, Malami revealed that Monfrini himself applied in December 2016 to be re-engaged for the recovery. “It is entirely illogical for a lawyer to apply in December 2016 to be engaged to recover funds he purportedly recovered two years earlier,” he argued. “That singular fact exposes the internal contradiction and absurdity of the EFCC’s narrative.”

He detailed that Monfrini’s proposed terms, a $5 million deposit and a 40% success fee, were rejected. Instead, a Nigerian firm was engaged at a 5% fee, which Malami said “saved the country between 15 and 35 per cent of the recovered funds,” amounting to significant savings for the state. “These are concrete, measurable benefits to the Nigerian state,” he added.

Malami further distinguished between separate tranches of recovered Abacha loot he oversaw, including $322.5 million from Switzerland and about $321 million from Jersey, allocated to specific social and infrastructure projects. “Any attempt to conflate these distinct recoveries or to portray a lawful, cost-saving recovery process as duplication is misleading,” he stated.

He maintained that his actions were within his constitutional powers and exercised “strictly in the public interest.” “In the circumstances of this case, that discretion was exercised transparently and responsibly,” Malami said. “Any claim suggesting abuse of office or money laundering is not rooted in any reasonable ground for suspicion.”

Characterizing the probe as a “political witch-hunt,” he expressed gratitude to his supporters, declaring, “Together we shall continue to stand firm, and together we shall triumph against every form of political witch-hunt and intimidation.”

He concluded with confidence in his vindication, reiterating, “The allegations remain baseless, illogical and entirely devoid of substance. I remain confident that truth, law and reason will ultimately prevail.”

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