Malami said this was necessary, in view of the onerous responsibility bestowed on the Ministry of Justice as the Federal Government’s primary institution for the administration of justice, adding that the 2017 budget appropriation to the Ministry was grossly inadequate. The AGF in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Comrade Salihu Othman Isah, also assured that the Justice Ministry would remain committed to the promotion and defence of constitutional values and principles in the nation’s governance. Isah disclosed that the AGF expressed these views in his presentation at the 2017 budget defence session last week when he appeared before the House Committee on Legal Matters at the National Assembly Complex, Abuja. He said Malami informed the House that the total allocation to the Justice Ministry in the 2017 Appropriation Bill, amounting to N6.914 billion, was inadequate to execute the Ministry’s programmes for 2017, following the enormous additional responsibilities on the Ministry. He quoted the AGF as saying that this arose due to the passage of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015 as well as the increase in the quantum of other activities currently being pursued by the Ministry. “This amount is undeniably, grossly inadequate, and will unfortunately stretch my Ministry’s capacity to cope to the maximum in the light of prevailing realities,”, he stressed. Under the Capital Expenditure Proposal, Malami appealed to the House Committee to increase upward the sum of N689,108,794:00 allocated to the Ministry, explaining that the proposal, if implemented, would greatly enhance capacity for effectiveness and improved service delivery.]]>