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Ex-AGF Adoke in new book, speaks about the hawks that almost pushed Jonathan to ‘shed blood’

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Ex-AGF Adoke faults Jonathan’s claim during launch of “My Transition Hours”

Mohammed Adoke, who served as the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, under President Goodluck Jonathan’s government has fingered a number of ‘hawks’ that almost pushed the former leader to take actions that would have led to shedding of blood.

He suggested, that Namadi Sambo was one of them

Sambo, who was Vice President to Jonathan, according to Adoke, was among the many hawks that never wanted Jonathan to concede defeat to President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015.

The former AGF made this revelation in his book, “Burden of service -Reminiscences of Nigeria’s former Attorney-General,” which was soon to go on sale in Nigeria.

He also in the book revealed how he was pained that Jonathan and Sambo could believe gossips that he was a supporter of Muhammadu Buhari and working for the former military ruler.

“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.

Speaking on Sambo’s role in Jonathan’s decision to concede defeat after the election, Adobe noted, “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.

Adoke in the book also opposed the demand for state police.

He said, “All factors considered, however, it is my opinion that the time for state police is not now, and that the Nigeria Police Force should continue to serve this country as envisaged by Section 214 of the constitution.

“The realities of our nascent democracy, and the learning the curve which many of our political actors are still negotiating stir a debate as to the likely uses to which they can put state police forces, as well as the need to preserve, at this time, certain institutions which emphasise our unity as a nation, such as the police force.

“These are compelling arguments to retain the existing unitary structure of the police.

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“I am of the view that the debate became necessary in the first place on account of the perceived inadequacies of our present force. Be that as it may, the challenge is to address those inadequacies within the context of the present structure rather than seeking to impose a new constitutional arrangement which could have significant negative consequences for the polity.”

He also favoured a parliamentary system of government as a better option for Nigeria than the current presidential system.

He argued that there had been complaints about the cost of running the presidential system of government since the return of democracy in Nigeria in 1999.

According to him the cost of running 109 senators, 360 House of Reps members, the President, his Vice, the Senate President, its deputy, House Speaker, its deputy and over 36 ministers was a drain on public resources.

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