Why Buhari Signed Executive Orders- Malami

The Honourable Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), has said that Presidential Executive Orders are aimed at complementing existing legislations and ensure inter-agency coordination in the process of implementation. Speaking on Thursday at the Radio Nigeria programme “Politics Nationwide”, Malami pointed out that Executive Orders are for ensuring constitutional compliance, complementing existing legislations, ensuring and enhancing operation, enforcement and application of legal provisions as well as providing necessary supervision required for enforcement.

This is contained in a statement issued by Dr. Umar Jibrilu Gwandu, Special Assistant on Media and Public Relations, Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice on Thursday 28th May, 2020. Malami pointed out that Executive Orders are naturally intended to force constitutional compliance which in the case of Section 121(3) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria establishes the autonomy of the states’ legislature and judiciary.

He said, “The Executive Order is therefore a necessary tool for the purpose of bringing to effect such autonomy by way of assigning certain responsibilities, both institutional and otherwise necessary for the purpose of enforcing the autonomy”.

“By way of example, therefore, if the Federal Government wants to withhold the resources of a State Government that refuses to comply with the constitutional provision relating to the autonomy of State Legislatures and Judiciary then the Federal Government may require the services of the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation”.

“Similarly, if the government wants the state legislature to be part of the process relating to appropriation, for example, agreement must be reached on the need for the state legislature to be alive to their responsibility. He noted that for a coordinated institutional support, necessary and desirable for bringing to effect the operation, enforcement and application of a constitutional provision Executive Order becomes necessary”.

Malami said Executive Order No. 10 is meant to bring about the constitutionality associated with the autonomy of the state legislature and judiciary.

Furthermore, he explained that the Executive Order No- 10 was also intended to achieve supervisory role by assigning responsibilities and ensuring proper supervision desired for the purpose of enforcement and application of autonomy constitutionally granted States legislature and judiciary as contained in Section 121(3) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.