The Special Assistant on Public Communications for Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar, Phrank Shuaibu, has called the guidance provided by the late Gani Fawehinmi to Festus Keyamo, the former Minister of State for Labour and Employment, “a shame” following his defeat on Monday at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Prior to the 2023 general elections, Keyamo petitioned the EFCC, the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), and other anti-graft organisations to detain and prosecute Atiku on the basis of baseless and unfounded claims.
Additionally, he went ahead and filed a lawsuit in order to get the agencies to move more quickly on his petition.
However, Justice James Omotosho dismissed Keyamo’s lawsuit on Monday, June 5, 2023, and imposed a N10 million punishment on Keyamo.
Shuaibu responded to the court’s ruling by saying that Keyamo’s defeat was unfortunate and a confirmation of his incapacity as a lawyer who worked for the late Gani Fawehinmi.
The statement reads: “Keyamo’s incompetence has been confirmed by Justice Omotosho. One wonders how he was elevated to the rank of senior advocate. Despite several clarifications that the allegations levelled against Atiku were trumped up, Keyamo refused to listen to reason.
“Rather than act like a refined lawyer as expected of a senior advocate, he decided to act like a political jobber. Now, he has been disgraced before the entire world. This was a man who served under the legendary, Chief Gani Fawehinmi. What a shame!”
He added that having lost many high-profile cases in court while serving as an EFCC prosecutor, Keyamo’s defeat did not come as a surprise to him.
“When the jobless former minister was filing the frivolous case, we informed Nigerians that he would lose. The prediction was in line with his antecedents as a failed EFCC prosecutor. Today, we have been justified.
“He was the EFCC prosecutor against Governor Timipre Sylva, but he lost the case. He represented the EFCC against Femi Fani-Kayode and also lost.
“Even the case he instituted against the Lagos State House of Assembly during the Tinubu certificate scandal, marked ID/639M/99, Keyamo didn’t do better. In the case of former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole, in which Keyamo was the lead prosecutor, it also ended in another abysmal failure.
“Keyamo made a name for himself by constantly filing frivolous suits in order to entertain the media. He needs to throw his law certificate into the dustbin so he can face his job as a social media influencer.”
