Abubakar Malami, former attorney-general of the federation, has asked the federal high court in Abuja to set aside the interim forfeiture of properties seized by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
On January 6, Emema Nwite, judge of the federal high court, ordered the interim forfeiture of 57 assets allegedly linked to Abubakar Malami and his sons, Abdulaziz Malami and Abiru Rahman Malami, which the EFCC valued at N213.2 billion.
The judge, ruling on an ex parte application, held that the assets were reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities and directed the EFCC to publish the order and invite interested parties to show cause within 14 days why a final forfeiture should not be made.
In a motion on notice filed on January 27 and marked FHC/ABJ/CS/20/2026, Malami, through Joseph Daudu, accused the EFCC of suppressing material facts and misrepresentation.
Malami urged the court to dismiss the action to avoid “conflicting outcomes duplicative litigation”, arguing that it violates his rights to property, presumption of innocence and family life.
He specifically challenged the forfeiture of three properties listed as numbers 9, 18 and 48, including a Kano property at Plot 157, Lamido Crescent; a Wuse II duplex acquired for N150 million; and the ADC Kadi Malami Foundation Building bought for N56 million.
Malami said one of the properties is held in trust for the estate of his late father, Kadi Malami, and asked the court to restrain the EFCC from interfering with his ownership.
Daudu argued that the assets were declared to the Code of Conduct Bureau in 2019 and 2023 and are not linked to any offence.
“These assets, their value and their root of title have been clearly stated and specifically demonstrated in the various asset declaration forms spanning from 2019 to 2023,” he said.
“The declaration above is prima facie evidence of the legitimacy of the acquisition and ownership of the properties.”
Daudu listed Malami’s declared income, including salaries, allowances, asset disposals, business turnover, loans, traditional gifts and N509,880,000 from a book launch, insisting the forfeiture order was obtained “by suppression of material facts and misrepresentation”.
