Ekiti govt. dares Justice minister to prosecute Governor

The Ekiti state Commissioner for Justice, Mr Owoseni Ajayi in an open letter to the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Alhaji Abubakar Malami (SAN), said the military panel report on the governorship election cannot be used to prosecute Fayose or any other politician in the state.

This is coming on the heels of alleged plans to prosecute the Governor and some members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ekiti state.

An excerpt of the letter obtained from Vanguard reads “Therefore, unless an alleged criminal act constitutes an offence under a federal enactment, the Attorney General of the Federation will definitely be acting ultra vires by any purported move to prosecute an alleged offender before any state or federal court in Nigeria without a fiat by the Attorney General of the respective state, vested with constitutional jurisdiction to prosecute criminal matters under the state law.

“Although the Electoral Act 2010 is a federal enactment, which creates several offences triable only in the magistrate or high court of a state in which the offence is committed, prosecution of such offences can only be undertaken by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), upon a recommendation made to it by an Election Petition Tribunal for the prosecution of any person or individual disclosed in an election petition or upon findings, after thorough investigation by the police.”

The Ekiti law officer also advised the AGF to respect the principles of federalism and adhere to judicial processes.

Meanwhile, undefinedto attend the 119th China Import and Export Fair.

President Buhari is also in China for an official visit.

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