Kanu Godwin Agabi

Kanu Godwin Agabi, SAN, is a Nigerian lawyer and politician who was a Senator, and was twice Attorney General and Minister of Justice of the federation during the presidency of Olusegun Obasanjo.

Kanu Godwin Agabi
SAN
Minister of Justice
In office
June 1999 – January 2000
Preceded byAbdullahi Ibrahim
Succeeded byBola Ige
In office
2002–2003
Preceded byBola Ige
Succeeded byBayo Ojo
Minister of Solid Minerals Development
In office
January 2000 – 2002
Preceded byMusa Gwadabe
Personal details
Born1946 (age 76–77)
British Nigeria

Agabi was appointed a Senior Advocate of Nigeria on 15 September 1997.[1] In the April 1999 elections, Agabi ran for governor of Cross River State, but was defeated by Donald Duke. He was said to be a candidate for the same position in the 2003 elections.[2]

Minister of Justice

In March 2002, Agabi wrote in a letter to Nigerian state governors that the application of strict Islamic or Sharia law was unconstitutional, since some judgments passed under Sharia discriminated against Muslims.[3] That month, Amina Lawal, a young Nigerian woman accused of giving birth to a child out of wedlock was sentenced to death by stoning, a punishment that was confirmed in August 2002 by a Shari'ah court of appeals in Funtua, Katsina State. Agabi came under pressure from Amnesty International to abolish the death penalty in Nigeria.[4]

In May 2003, the Attorney General urged a Federal High Court in Abuja to order the arrest of the National Assembly leadership, and to imprison them for contempt of the court. He appealed to the court to set aside the anti-graft bill which the National Assembly had passed into law despite a presidential veto.[5]

Later career

In June 2007, Agabi represented the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in a suit filed by General Muhammadu Buhari, the Presidential candidate of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), seeking to jail the INEC Chairman Professor Maurice Iwu for refusing to allow Buhari's lawyers access to electoral materials.[6]

In May 2009, Agabi was counsel for the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Power, Nicholas Ugbane, who had been charged by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of complicity in defrauding the government of about N5.2 billion earmarked for rural electrification.[7]

References
  1. "SENIOR ADVOCATES OF NIGERIA" (PDF). The Nigerian Law Guru. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
  2. Joseph Ushigiale (4 October 2002). "Cross River: As the 2003 Battle Rages". ThisDay. Archived from the original on 2005-11-14. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
  3. "NIGERIA: Justice minister says Sharia against constitution" (PDF). IAW Newsletter. International Alliance of Women. March–April 2002. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-10-02. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
  4. "Death by Stoning Upheld in the Case of Nigerian Woman Amina Lawal". EXODUS On-line. 21 August 2002. Archived from the original on 2008-11-20. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
  5. "The Revenge of Aremu!:Agabi Wants Anyim, Na'Abba Imprisoned". BNW News. 15 May 2003. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
  6. Funso Muraina (15 June 2007). "Contempt - Court Rules On Iwu June 21". ThisDay. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
  7. Lemmy Ughegbe (19 May 2009). "Court remands Ugbane, Elumelu others in Kuje Prison". Guardian. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
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