Nigerian AGF, Malami Knocks Down Buhari’s Summon By NASS, Says Mr. President Won’t Expose Confidentiality Of His Operational Use Of The Armed Forces

• Says N’assembly Has No Constitutional Powers To Summon Mr. President

Nigerian Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, on Wednesday gave a savage response to the nation’s National Assembly for calling out President Muhammadu Buhari over challenging national security issues.

BIGPENNGR.COM  reports that Malami, in a statement title ‘Buhari’s Summon: NASS Operates Outside Constitutional bounds’, told the lawmakers that an invitation that seeks to put the operational use of the Armed Forces to a public interrogation is indeed taking the constitutional rights of law-making beyond bounds.

This medium had reported that there have been palpable levels of anxiety over moves by lawmakers to have Buhari address a joint session of the National Assembly which was billed for Thursday,10th December, 2020.

Buhari have been dragged severally by the lawmakers to address them but he never showed up except during budget presentations.

The president is being tackled by NASS over the overstayed Services Chiefs and other matters bordering on terrorism, insurgency, banditry and of late the #EndSARS protest.

BIGPENNGR.COM had also reported that the leadership of the National Assembly has severally called on the president to relieve the Service Chiefs of their present roles following the escalation of security challenges across states in the Northern part of the country.

However, in his response to the summon, Malami, said that the National Assembly has no constitutional power to summon President Muhammadu Buhari to question his operational use of the Armed Forces, saying pointblank that Mr. President “enjoyed Constitutional privileges attached to the Office of the President including exclusivity and confidentiality investiture in security operational matters, which remains sacrosanct”.

The AGF said, “National Assembly has no constitutional power to envisage or contemplate a situation where the president would be summoned by the national assembly on the operational use of the armed forces.”

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He also noted the right of the President to engage the National Assembly and appear before it is “inherently discretionary in the President and not at the behest of the National Assembly.”

Malami statement is reproduced in full below:

Buhari’s Summon: NASS Operates Outside Constitutional bounds

President Muhammadu Buhari of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has recorded tremendous success in containing the hitherto incessant bombing, colossal killings, wanton destruction of lives and property that bedeviled the country before attaining the helm of affairs of the country in 2015.

The confidentiality of strategies employed by the President as the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is not open for public exposure in view of security implications in the probable undermining of the war against terror.

The fact that President Muhammadu Buhari was instrumental to the reclaiming of over 14 Local Governments previously controlled by Boko Haram in the North East is an open secret, the strategies for such achievement are not open for public expose.

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While condoling the bereaved and sympathizing with the victims of the associated insecurity in the country, Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN maintained that national security is not about publicity and the nation’s security architecture cannot be exposed for the sake of getting publicity.

He said Mr. President has enjoyed Constitutional privileges attached to the Office of the President including exclusivity and confidentiality investiture in security operational matters, which remains sacrosanct.

Malami added that the National Assembly has no Constitutional Power to envisage or contemplate a situation where the President would be summoned by the National Assembly on the operational use of the Armed Forces.

The right of the President to engage the National Assembly and appear before it is inherently discretionary in the President and not at the behest of the National Assembly.

The management and control of the security sector is exclusively vested in the President by Section 218 (1) of the Constitution as the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces including the power to determine the operational use of the Armed Forces. An invitation that seeks to put the operational use of the Armed Forces to a public interrogation is indeed taking the constitutional rights of law-making beyond bounds.

As the Commander in Chief, the President has exclusivity on security and has confidentiality over security. These powers and rights he does not share. So, by summoning the President on National Security operational Matters, the House of Representatives operated outside constitutional bounds. President’s exclusivity of constitutional confidentiality investiture within the context of the constitution remains sacrosanct.

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Abubakar Malami, SAN

(Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice)

9th December 2020.