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How I Was Accused of Being ‘Buhari’s Boy’, Ex-AGF, Adoke Makes Startling Revelations in New Book
A former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke, has expressed regrets that in the course of carrying out his duties as required of him as the country’s Chief Law Officer, former President Goodluck Jonathan and his deputy, Namadi Sambo had reasons to believe gossips that he was working for President Muhammadu Buhari.
Adoke, who was Jonathan’s AGF from 2010 t0 2015, made his position known in his book, “Burden of service -Reminiscences of Nigeria’s former Attorney-General,” due to be available for sale in Nigeria on Monday.
He said he found the allegation of him being a ‘Buhari boy’ very ridiculous and he was devastated when Jonathan confronted him with the allegation.
He said, “On May 12, 2015, we held the last National Security Council meeting under the Jonathan administration. After the meeting, the President asked me to see him in his office.
“There, he confronted me with the accusation that he was told I had prevailed on him to withdraw his assent to the amendments to the constitution because I was a ‘Buhari boy.’
“I found the allegation ridiculous. I was being accused of disloyalty by the very President to whom I had given my total and unalloyed loyalty! I was devastated and sad.”
He said he felt humiliated by Jonathan’s words because that encounter came after he had earlier suffered the indignity of being accused of disloyalty by the former President’s wife, Patience.
He said he, however, assured the former President that he was not Buhari’s boy and that all that he did were done in his (Jonathan’s) best interest.
Adoke said he had earlier learnt from the then Minister of National Planning, Prof Abubakar Suleiman, that Sambo told him that he (Adoke) “was an APC (All Progressives Congress) man and was the arrowhead of those who prevailed on the President to hastily concede defeat.”
He said he knew that Sambo was among those who did not want Jonathan to concede defeat to Buhari in 2015.
“It was obvious that the VP did not want the President to concede at that time.
“The room, to put it frankly, was full of hawks. They were playing on the emotions of the President and trying to dissuade him from following the path he had carved for himself five years earlier on the mantra that nobody’s blood was worth his ambition,” he said.
The Chief Judge of Rivers State, Justice Simeon Amadi, has declined to set up a judicial panel to investigate Governor Siminalayi Fubara, citing a court order.
The Rivers State House of Assembly had requested that Amadi set up a seven-member panel to probe Fubara and his deputy, Ngozi Odu, over allegations of gross misconduct.
However, in a letter dated January 20 and addressed to the Speaker of the House, Martins Amaewhule, the chief judge cited two court orders barring him from receiving, forwarding, or considering any requests to form such a panel.
The judge stated that the orders were served on his office on January 16, 2026 and remain in force.
The chief judge emphasised that constitutionalism and the rule of law require all authorities to obey subsisting court orders, irrespective of their perception of the orders’ validity.
He referenced legal precedents, noting that in a similar case in 2007, the Chief Judge of Kwara State was condemned for ignoring a restraining court order when setting up an investigative panel, a decision later voided by the Court of Appeal.
Justice Amadi further observed that the Speaker has already filed an appeal against the court orders at the Court of Appeal, adding another layer to the ongoing legal proceedings surrounding the allegations.
“By the doctrine of ‘lis pendens’, parties and the court have to await the outcome of the appeal,” he said.
Justice Amadi further stated that the existence of the injunctions and the pending appeal had effectively tied his hands.
“In view of the foregoing, my hand is fettered, as there are subsisting interim orders of injunction and appeal against the said orders. I am therefore legally disabled at this point from exercising my duties under Section 188(5) of the Constitution in the instant,” he said.
The chief judge appealed to the lawmakers to recognise the legal constraints surrounding the matter.
Justice Amadi, therefore, urged the state assembly to be “magnanimous enough to appreciate the legal position of the matter.”
The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has reportedly affirmed the removal of Julius Abure as the national chairman of the Labour Party, LP.
The Court also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to recognize the Senator Nenadi Usman-led National Caretaker Committee as the party’s lawful leadership.
The development was disclosed by human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, in a post on X, where he said he was present at the Federal High Court when the judgment was delivered in a related case.
Effiong stated that Justice Lifu delivering judgment on Wednesday, upheld the Nenadi Usman-led committee as the only valid and lawful leadership of the Labour Party, reaffirming that Abure’s tenure had elapsed in line with an earlier Supreme Court judgment.
The court consequently directed INEC to immediately recognize Nenadi Usman as the party’s leader.
He wrote: “I am currently before the Federal High Court in Abuja for a case. I listened to judgement delivered in an another case.
“Honourable Justice Lifu has just upheld Senator Nnadi Esther Usman-led National Caretaker Committee as the only valid and lawful leadership of the Labour Party.
“The Judge reaffirmed that by the Supreme Court’s judgement, Julius Abure’s tenure had since elapsed.
The Super Eagles of Nigeria defeated Egypt 4-2 on penalties to win the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 third-place playoff on Saturday.
Goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali proved the hero of the night with two crucial saves during the shootout, including one from Egyptian star Mohamed Salah.
Ademola Lookman then calmly converted the decisive penalty to secure the bronze medal —Nigeria’s ninth third-place finish in AFCON history.
With neither side able to break the deadlock in a cagey second half, the game ended 0-0, sending the contest directly to penalties.
Despite Fisayo Dele-Bashiru missing Nigeria’s first kick, Nwabali’s immediate saved from Egypt’s first two attempts shifted the momentum.
