The Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami {SAN} kicks back against the National Assembly summoning President Muhammadu Buhari to speak about the insecurity issues in the country, he says the National Assembly lacks the constitutional powers to invite the President to speak about security matters of the country in public. 
The AGF Malami who is also the Minister of Justice of the country said this in a statement released titled, ‘Buhari’s Summon: NASS Operates Outside Constitutional Bounds’ on Wednesday.
The Speaker of the House o Representative, Femi Gbajabiamila had last week invited the President to speak about the rising insecurity matters in the country and the killing of over 43 farmers in Borno State.
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It was later announced by the Presidency that President Muhammadu Buhari would appear before a joint session of the National Assembly on Thursday, December 10th. However late yesterday evening Tuesday, December 8th, the Presidency announced that the president has shunned the NASS and won’t appear before the NASS anymore.
Earlier today the AGF Malami has now come out to make clarifications about the issue saying the matters of security in the country remains an exclusive preserve of the executive arm of government and the National Assembly has no constitutional right to invite the president to speak about in public. He further said the President could appear before the NASS but only at the President’s discretion but he isn’t constitutionally bound to appear when called upon issues of Insecurity.
He said,
“The management and control of the security sector is exclusively vested in the President by Section 218 (1) of the Constitution as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces including the power to determine the operational use of the Armed Forces. An invitation that seeks to put the operational use of the Armed Forces to a public interrogation is indeed taking the constitutional rights of law-making beyond bounds.
“As the Commander-in-Chief, the President has exclusivity on security and has confidentiality over security. These powers and rights he does not share. So, by summoning the President on national security operational matters, the House of Representative operated outside constitutional bounds. President’s exclusivity of constitutional confidentiality investiture within the context of the constitution remains sacrosanct.”
Malami said, “Mr. President has enjoyed Constitutional privileges attached to the Office of the President including exclusivity and confidentiality investiture in security operational matters, which remains sacrosanct.”
The AGF Malami added that the National Assembly has no “constitutional power to envisage or contemplate a situation where the President would be summoned by the National Assembly on the operational use of the Armed Forces.
“The right of the President to engage the National Assembly and appear before it is inherently discretionary in the President and not at the behest of the National Assembly.”
Photo Credit: Getty
