THE TRIALS OF DASUKI AND MALAMI — A STUDY IN NEMESIS: WHAT YOU DO UNTO OTHERS - By Yushau A Shuaib

Some call it the law of karma. I prefer the older formulation: what you do unto others shall, in time, be done unto you. Nigeria’s recent political history offers few more instructive illustrations of this truth than the parallel fates of Sambo Dasuki and Abubakar Malami.

Those expressing sympathy for former Attorney‑General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, over his current ordeal with the EFCC and the DSS may have conveniently forgotten what befell former National Security Adviser (NSA), retired Colonel Sambo Dasuki—arrested barely a day after handing over office. His story remains one of the most troubling indictments of executive overreach in Nigeria’s democratic era: a case study in how personal vendetta, political score‑settling, and institutional disregard for judicial authority can be disguised as the pursuit of justice.

THE ROOTS OF BITTER FEUD

The roots of the Dasuki saga run deep into Nigeria’s military past. Dasuki played a significant role in financing and facilitating the 1983 coup that brought General Muhammadu Buhari to power according to retired Colonel Mustapha Jokolo, Buhari’s former ADC. He was also involved in the 1985 countercoup that removed Buhari and installed General Ibrahim Babangida, though he was not among those who physically arrested Buhari. Colonel Abdulmumini Aminu, who led that operation, confirmed that he and three others actually carried out the arrest without Dasuki. These historical details matter because the bitterness they produced never fully disappeared.

Dasuki was arrested in late 2015 and charged with money laundering over the alleged diversion of arms‑procurement funds during the Jonathan administration. What his accusers refused to acknowledge, however, was that during his tenure as NSA dozens of towns were successfully reclaimed from terrorists. It was also a period when banditry had not yet taken root in the Northwest or North‑Central—an insecurity trend that escalated only later under the Buhari administration.

While the allegations against Dasuki appeared serious on paper, what followed was far worse: a systematic assault on the rule of law.

Multiple courts granted him bail. He met every condition. Yet each time, he was immediately re‑arrested without any new charges. This cycle continued until he became the only public official in Nigerian history to remain in detention despite bail orders from four different courts, including the ECOWAS Court.

MEDIA TRIALS AND INSTITUTIONAL IMPUNITY

In a particularly troubling twist, Malami falsely claimed in a VOA interview that Dasuki had killed 100,000 people and justified his continued detention—despite multiple bail orders—on national‑security grounds. This misinformation and media‑trial posture led to his summons before the LPDC in 2019, where he eventually recanted.

President Buhari later made the administration’s stance explicit during a televised media chat, declaring that Dasuki would not be released regardless of court orders and describing him as a security risk. It was a rare moment when executive contempt for judicial authority was openly acknowledged.

Beyond the physical detention, the Buhari era normalised media trials—where citizens were convicted in the court of public opinion long before any judge had ruled. The EFCC and the DSS were the most notorious instruments of this strategy.

The case of Colonel Nicholas Ashinze illustrates this vividly. Ashinze, a military intelligence officer who played a key role with technical partners in operations that reclaimed territories from Boko Haram, found himself facing charges even as the EFCC issued a statement so inaccurate that it provoked a rare judicial rebuke.

Justice Gabriel Kolawole condemned the EFCC’s conduct, describing its statement against Ashinze as “scandalous and prejudicial to fair trial.” He ordered the agency to apologise publicly to the officer and suspended the trial. The EFCC complied, attributing the falsehoods to an internal “mix‑up.”

Similarly, the arms probe panel under ONSA, chaired by one Air Vice Marshal Jon Odeh, was disbanded after members were themselves indicted for receiving bribes from individuals they were investigating. These episodes underscored the institutional impunity that characterised the period.

SULTAN WHO DIED WITHOUT SEEING HIS SON AND ELRUFAI’S ORDEAL

Perhaps the most heartbreaking dimension of Dasuki’s ordeal was the treatment of his father, the late Alhaji Ibrahim Dasuki—former Sultan of Sokoto and one of Nigeria’s most revered traditional and Islamic leaders. Despite repeated appeals, he was denied permission to visit his son in detention. He died without seeing him.

This act was widely condemned as unnecessary cruelty—an example of how political rivalry had crossed into something far more callous.

By contrast, when the current administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu detained former Kaduna Governor Nasir el-Rufai over corruption charges, he was immediately released following his mother’s death. I welcomed the gesture, while wishing that the mercy had come earlier and that no public official should spend more than a month in custody merely awaiting trial. The standard of decency we apply must be consistent, regardless of who occupies the dock.

Dasuki was eventually released on Christmas Eve 2019, after Buhari’s re‑election. His freedom—coming after more than four years in detention—felt less like justice and more like a political calculation that had finally run its course.

MALAMI: THE ARCHITECT MEETS HIS OWN ARCHITECTURE

Contrast this with the treatment of Abubakar Malami, who served as Attorney‑General and Minister of Justice from 2015 to 2023. In 2025, Malami was arrested by the EFCC on allegations ranging from corruption and acquisition of exotic properties to terrorism‑related offences and illegal possession of firearms.

The irony is unmistakable. Malami was the chief law officer who authorised and supervised the prosecution of Dasuki. He wielded the machinery of state prosecution against perceived opponents for eight years. Now he sits where they once sat—on the receiving end of the same system he helped to shape.

Yet there is a crucial difference. Within two months, Malami was granted bail by both the EFCC and the DSS. There were no sensational media trials. No re‑arrests after meeting bail conditions. No presidential declarations that he would remain detained regardless of court orders. Whatever one thinks of the current administration’s handling of the matter, the contrast with the Dasuki precedent is stark.

THE MILITARY VICTIMS OF EXECUTIVE OVERREACH

The Buhari administration’s disregard for due process extended beyond political opponents. On June 9, 2016, the Nigerian Army summarily retired 38 senior officers—nine major generals, eleven brigadier generals, seven colonels, and eleven lieutenant colonels. They learned of their retirement through the media. Despite vague allegations of “professional corruption,” none was formally accused, charged, or tried under military law.

These were decorated officers. Colonel Mohammed Suleiman had foiled a Boko Haram attack on Aso Rock. Colonel Danladi Hassan had led troops in reclaiming territories, while Lt. Colonel Mohammed Abdulfatai commanded a special counterinsurgency operation in Konduga that resulted in the elimination of more than 200 terrorists in December 2014. Yet they were dismissed without the dignity of a fair hearing.

The National Industrial Court ruled six times that the retirements were unlawful and ordered reinstatement with full benefits. The Senate and House of Representatives reached the same conclusion. The Army ignored them all. One officer, Ojebo Ochankpa, died in 2017 still awaiting justice.

Nearly a decade later, most remain unreinstated—vindicated by every court, yet denied the justice those courts prescribed.

A MOMENT FOR REFLECTION

This is the legacy of the administration that Malami served and defended. By any honest measure, it was one of the most lawless periods in Nigeria’s democratic history.

While we must insist that Malami receive the fair trial that Dasuki was denied, we must also demand accountability for those who orchestrated the abuses of the past—not through fresh lawlessness, but through the very institutions they once undermined.

What you do unto others shall be done unto you. The real question is whether, this time, we will do it better.

Yushau A. Shuaib is the author of "An Encounter with the Spymaster" Email: yashuaib@yashuaib.com

Shugaba Buhari Yace, Bai Umarci Atoni Janar Da Gwamnan CBN Kan Kin Bin Umarnin Kotu Ba Dangane Batun Tsofaffin Kudi

 

Fadar shugaban kasa na son mayar da martani kan wasu damuwar da jama’a ke ciki na cewa shugaban kasa Muhammadu Buhari bai mayar da martani ga hukuncin da kotun koli ta yanke kan batun kudin tsohon naira 500 da naira 1,000 ba, kuma ta bayyana a nan karara da cewa babu wani lokaci da ya umurci Babban Lauyan gwamnati da Gwamnan CBN su bijirewa duk wani umarnin kotu da ya shafi gwamnati da sauran bangarorin.

A sanarwar da babban mataimaki na musamman ga shugaban kasa kan harkokin yada labarai, Malam Garba Shehu ya fitar, ta ce, tunda aka rantsar da shugaban kasa a shekarar 2015, bai taba umurtar kowa da ya bijirewa umarnin kotu ba, bisa akidar cewa ba za mu iya gudanar da mulkin dimokuradiyya ba tare da bin doka da oda ba, kuma jajircewar gwamnatinsa kan wannan ka’ida ba ta canja ba.

Bayan zazzafar muhawarar da ake ta yi game da bin doka da oda dangane da halaccin tsohon takardun kudin, don haka fadar shugaban kasar na son bayyana karara cewa Shugaba Buhari bai yi wani abu da gangan ba na tsoma baki ko kawo cikas ga gudanar da shari'a.

Shugaban kasa ba karamin Shugaba ba ne, don haka ba zai hana babban lauyan gwamnati da gwamnan babban bankin kasar CBN yin cikakken bayanin ayyukansu kamar yadda doka ta tanada ba. A kowane hali. ana tafka muhawara a wannan lokaci idan aka samu hujjar kin amincewa da gangan da su biyun suka yi bisa umarnin kotun koli.

Umarnin shugaban kasa, bayan taron majalisar jiha. shi ne dole ne Bankin ya samar da duk kudaden da ake buƙata don rarrabawa kuma babu abin da ya faru da ya canza matsayi.

Tabbatacciyar hujja ce cewa

 Shugaban kasa cikakken mai mutunta tsarin shari'a ne da ikon kotuna. Babu wani abu da ya yi a cikin shekaru takwas ko fiye da suka gabata don yin ta kowace hanya don kawo cikas ga gudanar da shari'a, haifar da rashin amincewa da gudanar da shari'a, ko yin katsalandan ko lalata kotuna kuma babu wani dalilin da zai sa ya yi. don haka yanzu lokacin yana shirin barin ofis.

Mummunan yakin neman zabe da hare-haren da ‘yan adawa ke kaiwa shugaban kasa da duk wani nau’in masu sharhi ba daidai ba ne da kuma rashin adalci, domin babu wani umarnin kotu a kowane mataki da aka ba shi ko kuma aka ba shi umarni.

Dangane da tsarin rashin kudi da CBN ya kuduri aniyar samar da shi, sanannen abu ne cewa da yawa daga cikin ‘yan kasar da ke fama da wahalhalun da ake fama da su, abin mamaki suna goyon bayan manufar ganin cewa matakin zai dakile cin hanci da rashawa, da yaki da ta’addanci. gina yanayi na gaskiya da kuma karfafa jagoranci marar lalacewa na shugaban kasa.

Don haka ya dace a dora wa Shugaban kasa alhakin cece-kucen da ake fama da shi a halin yanzu kan karancin kudi, duk kuwa da hukuncin da Kotun Koli ta yanke. CBN ba ta da dalilin kin bin umarnin kotu bisa uzurin jiran umarni daga shugaban kasa.

Shugaba Buhari ya kuma yi watsi da ra'ayin cewa ba shi da tausayi, yana mai cewa "babu wata gwamnati a tarihinmu na baya-bayan nan da ta bullo da tsare-tsare don taimakawa masu rajin tattalin arziki da marasa galihu kamar wannan gwamnati mai ci."

 

Canjin Kudi Ya Rage Satar Mutane Da Karbar Rashawa —Malami

Ministan Shari’a kuma Antoni-Janar na Tarayya, Abubakar Malami (SAN), ya bayyana cewa canjin kudi ta Babban Bankin Najeriya (CBN) ya yi ya taimaka wajen rage aikata ayyukan garkuwa da mutane.

Malami, ya bayyana haka ne cikin wata hira da ya yi da Gidan Rediyon Tarayya da ke Kaduna, inda ya ce jama’a ba sa ganin nasara da tsarin ya haifar.

Da yake bayyana hakan a ranar Juma’a, Malami ya ce: “Na fada muku maganar tana gaban kotu, ba za mu bijire wa kotu ba, za mu bi umarnin kotu amma muna da ’yancin fada wa kotu alfanun da tsarin ya haifar.

“Idan ba ku ga amfanin tsarin ba, ya kamata kuma a gefe daya ku ga alfanunsa.

“Idan wadancan gwamnonin sun bayyana wa kotu wahalar da ake sha saboda tsarin, ya kamata kuma a fahimci cewa tsarin a gefe daya yana warware wasu matsalolin.

“Na ba ku misali da matsalar tsaro; Tun bayan da aka kaddamar da wannan tsarin garkuwa da mutane ya ragu.

“Sannan ya rage yawan cin hanci da rashawa, don haka muna da ’yancin zuwa mu bayyana wa kotu amfanin da tsarin ya haifar.

“Kotun ta yanke hukunci ba tare da sauraron bangaren gwamnati ba, amma ta sanya 15 ga Fabrairu a matsayin ranar da za ta saurari tsagin gwamnati.

Kowa ya san dalilin da aka zabi Shugaban Kasa Muhammadu Buhari, saboda ya yaki cin hanci da matsalar tsaro ya kuma bunkasa tattalin arziki. Don haka za mu bukaci kotu ta kalli kowane bangare.”

Idan ba a manta ba a satin da ya wuce ne gwamnatocin jihohin Kaduna, Zamfara da Kogi suka maka Gwamnatin Tarayya a Kotun Koli inda suka bukaci kotun da dakatar da hana amfani da tsofaffin takardun kudi.

Wannan dai na zuwa ne bayan wahala da talakawa suka shiga sakamakon canjin kudi da CBN ya yi, wanda hakan ya sa kasuwancin wasu ke neman durkushewa.

Malamai Da Tsofaffin Soji Ba Sa Kwazo A Jagoranci —Obasanjo

Tsohon Shugaban Kasa, Cif Olusegun Obasanjo, ya ce galibi ba a samun wani ci gaba na a zo a gani a jihohin da suka kasance karkashin jagorancin malamai ko tsofaffin soji.

Obasanjo ya ce babu wani ci gaban da aka samu a jihohin kasar nan da ke karkashin jagorancin mutane masu rike da matsayin Farfesa ko Dakta da tsoffin sojoji, har ma da malaman makarantu.

Tsohon Shugaban na Najeriya na wannan furuci a jawabinsa yayin wani taro kan zurfafa al’adun dimokuradiyya da aka gudanar ranar Alhamis a Fatakwal, babban birnin Jihar Ribas.

Obasanjo ya ce duk da yake an samu wasu jajirtattun shugabannin da ba su da yawa, akasarinsu ba sa iya mulki mai kyau saboda rashin samun mataimaka na gari, abin da ke hana su jagorancin da ake bukata.

A cewarsa, rashin tattaunawa tsakanin shugabannin da masu taimaka musu, kan haifar da gibi wajen musayar ra’ayi, matakin da ke hana samun fahimtar juna da hadin-kai wajen cimma manufar ci gaba da ake bukata.

Obasanjo ya ce, bayan kwashe shekaru 60 da samun ‘yancin kan Najeriya, har yanzu shugabannin kasar sun kasa samar da yanayin shugabanci mai inganci wanda zai samar wa kasar ci gaba da kuma magance banbance-banbancen da ake samu na kabilanci da addini da kuma shiya.

Obasanjo ya ce, yadda ake tafiyar da dimokuradiyyar Najeriya ya haifar da rabe-raben kawuna da mummunar alaka da rashin amince wa juna da kuma rashin kishin kasa a tsakanin jama’a da kuma al’umma a sassan kasar.

Obasanjo ya ce, abin takaici ne yadda karya da zage-zage da son kai suka mamaye yakin neman zaben da ake gudanarwa yanzu haka, maimakon gabatar da shirin da ake da shi na gina kasa.

A halin yanzu dai jihohin Borno da Cross Rivers ne kawai ke da masu rike da mukamin Farfesa da ke jagorancin su a matsayin gwamnoni, yayin da ake da wasu masu mukamin Dakta.

AMINIYA