*APPOINTMENT OF NIGERIA’S ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE FEDERATION- THE INTRIGUES*
What I found more disturbing was that there was a close friend of mine who kept coming to assure me that he was in touch with Clark, and that he had been interceding with him on my behalf. It turned out he was interceding for himself! He was not alone.
There were also some self-styled human rights activists and civil society profiteers who were interested in the position and who thought pulling me down would lift them up. The nastiest among them was a popular lawyer whose talent for hypocrisy and mischief dwarfed his diminutive frame. But he is a darling of the Nigerian media!
I could not understand what all the desperation was about. The pressure
on President Jonathan must have been so overwhelming that he contacted the Senate President, Senator David Mark, and hinted him about the possibility of withdrawing my nomination. I later received a letter inviting me to appear before the Senate for screening. I went for the screening and was asked to take a bow, after responding to questions. I must have done well, going by the demeanour of the senators.
If I thought my travails were over, however, they had only just been reloaded.
Immediately after the screening, those who did not want me to be AGF began to lobby that I should be given another portfolio. The Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Chief Godswill Akpabio, was the arrowhead of that push. His fear was that because I had acted as a lawyer for Rivers State in a matter between the state and Akwa Ibom over the location of oil wells for the determination of derivation payment, I would use the position of the AGF to the advantage of Rivers State. He didn’t disclose his prejudice to President Jonathan though. Akpabio himself confirmed his opposition to my candidacy in person. When I eventually became the Attorney-General, however, he congratulated me and offered a hand of friendship. He is actually a great human being.
Dr Jonathan, as the Acting President, had passed my CV to Alhaji Yayale Ahmed, the SGF, as soon as he received it from Justice Katsina-Alu in March, 2010.
Minus the obstacles mounted by those who did not want me to be AGF, President Jonathan had to deal with the issue of my state of origin. He thought I was from Benue State, probably owing to my relationship with Hon. Justice Katsina-Alu, who nominated me.
Mr Yomi Awoniyi had been promised the ministerial slot for Kogi State, where I also hail from. The President had a decision to make. Awoniyi lost out.
With all the intrigues and high-wire politics that went on, the whole game
eventually boiled down to the Acting President choosing between Kayode and me after the Senate confirmation. Many thought that having served as AGF for 33 days, Kayode should be allowed to continue in that position. He had very strong supporters. Some of his supporters were the President’s personal friends, including the businessman, Mr Femi Otedola, who was perhaps Kayode’s strongest promoter. The Acting President was caught between loyalty to his friends and fulfilling his promise to the CJN.
Some of my friends including Ms. Chinelo Anohu-Amazu, who was
later appointed the Director-General/CEO of National Pension Commission- also got across to Mr Otedola. I eventually met with Otedola and Oghiadomhe. Both men had been directed by the Acting President to have informal meetings with Kayode and me, separately. Otedola was brutally honest in his support for Kayode, whom he already knew. After my interaction with the two-man committee, Otedola shook my hands and said he would support my nomination.
It was, therefore, not surprising when, two days before the swearing-in of ministers, I got a phone call from Kayode congratulating me as the next Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice. That was how the matter was amicably resolved. Kayode and I remain friends till today. I admire him for his professionalism, open-mindedness and decency.
I began to look forward to the Swearing ceremony scheduled for 6 April 2010.
The ceremony was, for me, a very sober occasion. As I walked the long corridor towards the Council Chambers inside Aso Rock, Nigeria’s seat of power, Damian was by my side. He was my only guest. Damian is my life-long friend and brother. We were classmates as Law Students at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and we have remained friends ever since.
Every man needs a Damian: a friend who can tell you the tough truth and pull your ears when you are derailing.
As I was being sworn in, my only regret was that my late mother, Hajia
Safinatu, with whom I had shared my dream of becoming the AGF, was
not present.
There I was taking the oath of office as Nigeria’s 21st Attorney-General and Minister of Justice without my mother, who had passionately prayed that my dream would one day be fulfilled. It was tough, but tough times, they say, strengthen the soul.
*Mohammed Bello Adoke
The Burden of Service
Reminisces of Nigeria’s Former Attorney-General
Published in 2019 by Clink Street, London|New York
