Former Senate President Bukola Saraki has petitioned the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) over the proposed elevation of the Kwara State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Senior Sulyman Ibrahim, to the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).
The Chief Justice of Nigeria chairs the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC), the body responsible for conferring the SAN rank.
In the petition dated May 2026, Saraki argued that Ibrahim’s official conduct fell short of the standards of integrity, honour and professional ethics expected of a legal practitioner seeking admission into the Inner Bar.
The former Kwara State governor accused the attorney-general of using the state’s prosecutorial powers to pursue politically motivated charges against him.
According to Saraki, Ibrahim had brought the legal profession into disrepute by initiating charges that allegedly lacked a proper legal foundation.
Saraki said his petition was based on two principal allegations: malicious prosecution and abuse of constitutional powers, as well as the filing of what he described as frivolous charges under the Penal Code in violation of due process.
He alleged that the Kwara attorney-general filed charges against him and two others in connection with the 2018 Offa robbery despite an earlier decision by the Federal Government’s Department of Public Prosecutions (DPP) clearing him.
The former Senate President claimed the charges were deliberately timed to embarrass him, damage his reputation and weaken him politically.
“The charges were deliberately timed and designed to cause grave public embarrassment, inflict reputational damage and maliciously de-market me politically,” Saraki alleged.
He also claimed he was neither invited by the police for questioning nor confronted with any allegation before the charges were filed.
“Crucially, prior to the filing of this charge, I was neither invited by the police for questioning nor confronted with any allegations whatsoever,” the petition read.
“I only became aware of the proceedings when the court processes were pasted on the gate at my residence in Ilorin, commanding my appearance in court on June 10, 2026.”
Saraki urged the CJN and the LPPC to closely examine Ibrahim’s conduct before deciding whether to confer the rank on him.
“It is against this backdrop, and the applicant’s recurrent instances of gross abuse of power, that I respectfully urge you to thoroughly scrutinise his candidacy and consider his suitability before conferring such a revered privilege upon him,” he stated.
The former Senate President argued that the SAN rank should be reserved for lawyers who had demonstrated exemplary character, respect for the rule of law and commitment to the proper administration of justice.
“The rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria is reserved exclusively for legal practitioners who have demonstrated exemplary character, absolute fidelity to the rule of law and an unyielding commitment to the due administration of justice,” he said.
“It must never be conferred upon a practitioner who uses state prosecutorial machinery to wage personal or political vendettas.”
Saraki further alleged that Ibrahim lacked the impartiality and fairness expected of a chief law officer.
“By weaponising the criminal justice system for ulterior motives, Sulyman Ibrahim, Esq., has brought disrepute to the legal profession and shown that he lacks the emotional detachment, fairness and ministerial integrity expected of a minister in the temple of justice,” he added.
The former Senate President also deposed to an affidavit before the Kwara State High Court in support of the petition.
The Kwara State Government had in April filed a 20-count charge against Saraki and a former governor of the state, Abdulfatah Ahmed, over allegations of arming suspects convicted in connection with the Offa robbery.
Other defendants are a former Chief of Staff to Ahmed, Yusuf Abdulwahab, and another former aide, Alabi Olalekan.
The defendants have not been convicted of the allegations.
