When Waziri Bulama recently attempted to diminish Abubakar Malami, SAN, by questioning his authority to speak for the late President Muhammadu Buhari and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) family, it exposed not Malami’s inadequacy but Bulama’s desperation. For clarity and for the records, it is important to remind Bulama — and indeed Nigerians — who Abubakar Malami is, and why he remains the undisputed voice of repute in CPC block.
Who Is Malami?
Malami is not just another political actor. He is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), elevated to that prestigious rank in 2008 at the age of 41, making him one of the youngest in Nigeria’s legal history as at the time he was elevated to the prestigious rank about 17 years and 3 years before the formation of CPC in 2011.
Before that, he had served as a State Counsel with Kebbi State Ministry of Justice, a Magistrate with Kebbi Sate Judiciary and a lecturer at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto.
His brilliance at the Bar made him a household name, especially as he stood with General Muhammadu Buhari during the legal battles that followed the 2007 and formation of CPC 2011 and coordination of eventual elections contested by CPC at a time when he was the National legal adviser of the Party.
By 2015, his loyalty and pedigree had earned him appointment as Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, a position he held for eight uninterrupted years — the longest-serving AGF in Nigeria’s history.
Beyond politics, his loyalty to Buhari in pursuit of common ideology of justice, development and integrity, — being the principles on which buhari stood further cemented his place in Buhari’s inner circle.
In case you care to know, Malami is a man whose authority to speak on Buhari and CPC is both professional and personal and these unique attributes remain unquestioned and sacrosanct without challenge for decades of their relationship.
CPC Leaders Know Their Voice
Just weeks ago, a majority of the CPC block state chairmen openly endorsed Malami, SAN, not only as their leader but as their authentic voice within the APC. This was not coerced, nor manufactured; it was the collective decision of men and women who built the CPC legacy from the ground up. Their endorsement is a rejection of opportunists who surface only when political banquets are served, rather than when the battles of principle are fought.
Bulama’s Contradictions
What makes Bulama’s attack on Malami even more laughable is his own history of contradiction. He is on record in the same interview as saying that the CPC ceased to exist after the 2013 merger that produced the APC. Yet, he shamelessly followed Senator Tanko Al-Makura to meet President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, parading himself as a representative of the same CPC block he claimed no longer exists. If CPC or CPC block no longer exists, what moral ground does Bulama have to claim a seat at the table of its legacy?
Dining by Chance, Not Recognition
Let us be frank: if not for Abubakar Malami and the desperation of certain APC elements to discredit him, Bulama would never have been invited to dine with President Tinubu. The current APC leadership has long dumped them, seeing no electoral or moral value in their pretenses.
Malami’s stature, however, continues to attract attention — even from his critics. Those who rode on his name to find their way into photo opportunities with the President must not now turn around to insult him.
Malami Towers Above
The comparison between Malami and Bulama is, at best, a joke. One is an accomplished lawyer, judicial officer,State Counsel, a lecturer, SAN at 41, AGF for eight years, and Buhari trusted Attorney General. The other is a professional architect who briefly served in a controversial manner as acting secretary of the APC and now survives on recycled rhetoric. Malami has achieved national and international recognition by saving Nigeria as a State from economic ruins associated with P&ID case among others. His contributions were nationally acknowledged by an investiture of an award of honor “CON”. Bulama remains a local political journeyman struggling to find his voice.
Final Words
In the end, Waziri Bulama’s attempt to belittle Malami only underscores his own pettiness. Malami does not need to shout to be heard — his record speaks for itself. The CPC block knows its leader. The APC knows its history. And Nigerians know the truth: Abubakar Malami, SAN, remains the voice, the leader, and the legacy-bearer of the CPC tradition rooted in established principles of integrity, service and development as legacies with which Buhari is known and for which Malami is proudly associated with in service.
I rest my case!
So, dear Bulama, before you ask “Who is Malami?” again — take a long look at the mirror of your contradictions.
Mohammed Bello Doka is the special assistant on Media to Abubakar Malami SAN.
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Opinion
You nailed him wlh.
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