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Former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami has come under fire from the North-Central All Progressives Congress, APC, Forum, for opposing former Nasarawa State Governor Tanko Al-Makura’s assertion that a political bloc made up of members of the now-defunct Congress for Progressives Change, CPC, would not join the coalition that former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar was forming.

During the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari, Malami, who was the AGF and justice minister, had refuted a claim that the CPC bloc in the APC, led by Al-Makura, declared its loyalty to President Bola Tinubu.

Malami maintained that the Buhari camp of the CPC bloc, of which he is a member, should have the final say on whether or not to join the opposition coalition, rather than Al-Makura’s group, in a statement released by his media adviser, Muhammad Bello Doka.

But in a statement released Friday in response to the former minister’s remarks, the North-Central APC Forum claimed Malami lacked the authority to represent the CPC caucus.

The North-Central APC Forum had already praised the CPC bloc led by Al-Makura for turning down the opposition alliance.

Alhaji Saleh Zazzaga, the Forum’s chairman and a member of the APC campaign committee for the 2023 election, signed the statement. It stated that Malami’s actions during the Buhari administration have left him with a lot of baggage and that Nigerians are not interested in hearing his thoughts.

The Forum claims that Malami is ineligible to speak on behalf of any respectable organization due to his past. The APC Forum further emphasized that Malami was a key player in a number of impunity incidents that were documented under the Buhari government.

“Abubakar Malami is behind the failure of the Buhari government due to the bad advice he offered the former President. Nigerians don’t want to hear from Malami again because they are yet to recover from the effects of the impunities he perpetrated when he served as the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice in Buhari’s government.

“It is public knowledge that Malami was at the centre of most of the things that went wrong during the Buhari administration. He undermined the fight against corruption with his undue influence over the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). He single-handedly imposed Abdulrasheed Bawa as the EFCC chairman. During the period the anti-corruption campaign was derailed as high profile corruption cases were compromised,” the statement said.

The North-Central APC Forum went on to say that Malami was largely responsible for the Buhari administration’s “obnoxious” policies, like the Naira redesign policy, which caused a cash shortage nationwide and caused Nigerians to endure unspeakable agony.

Similarly, Malami did not back Tinubu in the 2023 election, according to the APC Forum.

APC stakeholders said that Malami is collaborating with individuals who oppose Tinubu’s administration, despite his denial of rumors that he would defect to the SDP, following El-Rufai’s example.

The statement added, “It is not a surprise that Malami is leaning towards the opposition coalition – during the last election he and others in former President Muhammadu Buhari’s camp did not support the APC presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu.

“Now that he is not part of the government, as his expectations in the election were not met, he is supporting those who are working against President Tinubu’s administration.

“Nigerians should see the rantings of Malami and his co-travellers for what they are – self-centered politicians who are only out to advance their selfish interests. Like former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Kaduna State governor Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, who are leading the said coalition, Malami is angry that he lost out in the 2023 election, and is not part of the present government.”

The Forum emphasized that Tinubu does not need Malami and those he represents to win in 2027.

“We should not forget that President Bola Tinubu still won the 2023 election even though APC lost in Kebbi State. We know for a fact that Malami and his people worked against Tibubu in the election, so we are not surprised at what he is doing now,” the APC Forum noted.

Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, candidate Atiku Abubakar won in Kebbi at the 2023 election. In Kebbi, the APC received 248,088 votes, while the PDP received 285,175.

The APC Forum went on to say that Al-Makura, a widely regarded politician whose integrity is untarnished, cannot be compared to the former AGF and justice minister.

“Former Governor Tanko Al-Makura has remained a committed progressive with integrity, and it did not come as a surprise when he led like-minded personalities to distance the CPC bloc from the gang of self-serving politicians masquerading as opposition coalition,” the statement said.

The APC Forum further stated that Malami is unable to speak for the CPC bloc, pointing out that, in contrast to Al-Makura, Malami was not heavily involved in discussions between the CPC and other parties prior to the APC’s formation.

“Tanko Al-Makura, as governor of Nasarawa State, was the only CPC governor at that time and he was a key player in the merger talks, unlike Malami. Even former President could not produce a governor for CPC in his state, Katsina.

“It is obvious that Malami cannot stand with Al-Makura on issues concerning the CPC bloc. We advise Malami to work on his battered image as Nigerians have not forgotten how he and his associates mishandled the country for eight years,” the Forum said.

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