- Abubakar Malami, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and justice minister, had been reported to have said Yemi Osinbajo was on his own
- In a reaction in the evening of Thursday, July 6, Malami said Buhari and Osinbajo are the presidency and thus cannot disown themselves
The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and justice minister, Abubakar Malami, has spoken out for the first time hours after he was alleged to have disowned Acting President Yemi Osinbajo.
A section of the media had reported on Wednesday, July 5 that Malami, who spoke after the Federal Executive Council (FEC), reportedly said the endorsement by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo of the continuous stay of Ibrahim Magu as the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was not a collective decision.
Malami, in a statement late Thursday, July 6, 2017, said: “It has come to my notice that a number of media organisations have been distorting and misreporting the proceedings of yesterday’s (July 5, 2017) Federal Executive Council (FEC) press briefing, and suggesting that the Presidency ‘disowned’ the Acting President on a matter relating to a presidential nomination.”
READ ALSO: Magu will EFCC chairman as long as I remain in office - Buhari (video)
In the statement obtained by NAIJ.com, Malami said as the Chief Law Officer of the Federation, he knows that “the president - and in this case the acting president - is the presidency, and therefore cannot be disowned by the presidency.
“All matters relating to presidential appointments and nominations are strictly a matter for the presidency to handle.
“They are not for the Federal Executive Council, and are therefore not discussed at FEC level.
“This was the point I made yesterday at the press briefing, and which was unfortunately distorted by the media.
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“I would like to appeal to the media to take seriously its responsibility to inform the public honestly and accurately, to refrain from distorting or sensationalizing the news, and to seek clarification when in doubt.”
NAIJ.com had reported that the presidency faulted an online publication quoting the minister of justice, Abubakar Malami, as saying that Acting President Yemi Osinbajo should be held responsible for a statement credited to him by the Senate.
"The endorsement by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo of the continuous stay of Ibrahim Magu as EFCC chairman was not a collective decision,” Premium Times had quoted the minister of justice, Abubakar Malami as saying on Wednesday, July 5.
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