Magodo Estate Incident: Malami Confirms Sending Police, Blasts Southwest Governors
- The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami, has tackled southwest governors over their statement on deployment of policemen to Magodo estate in Lagos
- Malami who accused the governors of ulterior motives said the police were mobilised to enforce an order of the Supreme Court
- The AGF sent a message to the southwest governors asking if they could help explain why the Lagos state government had failed to enforce the court order since 2012
FCT, Abuja - Abubakar Malami, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) has said he “takes exception” to the southwest governors' reaction to the Magodo Estate incident during the visit of the Lagos governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, to the estate.
The southwest governors had earlier reacted to what they described as a “disrespect” to their colleague, Governor Sanwo-Olu.
Source: Facebook
A chief superintendent of police officers had openly defied the order of the Lagos state governor to withdraw his colleagues who had invaded the estate.
The officer explained to the governor that he only answers to the instructions of his superiors and had yet to get an order to leave the estate from the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Usman Alkali, and the AGF, Abubakar Malami.
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Reacting, the southwest governors said they condemned in very gross terms Malami's role "in this act of gross moral turpitude,” Premium Times reported.
Southwest governors accused of having ulterior motives
Reacting, Malami, in a statement signed by his media aide, Umar Gwandu, said he was surprised by the statement from the governors.
The statement read:
“We see it as a vituperation of ulterior motives of some political class, who derived pleasure in dragging the name of Malami in the mud to achieve some sinister objectives.
“The Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice takes exception to the Southwest Governors unjustifiable insinuation of impunity against the office of the Attorney General over the execution of a judgment of the Supreme Court.
“The role of the executive is, in this respect, simply to aide the maintenance of law and order in due compliance with rule of law arising from giving effect to the judgment of the apex court of the land."
Malami also confirmed that he sent policemen to the Lagos estate to enforce the Supreme Court judgment, PM News reported.
He said the Supreme Court judgement concerning the land tussle was delivered before he was appointed.
The AGF asked if the governors could help identify why the Lagos state government had not enforced "the court order despite several attempts from 2012- 2015, as the so-called settlement initiative started in 2016."
Crisis hits mega rich Magodo as Adeyiga family threatens to retrieve land
Earlier, Legit.ng had reported that residents of Magodo and the Adeyiga family locked on in battle over land ownership.
As a result of this, the gate of the Shangisha Estate, off CMD Road, was locked as of 4am on Wednesday, December 22.
According to reports, nobody could either come in or go out as commercial activities became paralysed. Residents complained that the family threatened to pull down the houses with bulldozers.
Source: Legit.ng
