Power Is Temporary, Conscience Is Eternal: Lessons from the Abubakar Malami Case

 

Towards the end of last year, one story quietly shook me and forced a deep personal reflection. It was the news that the former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, and his son had been remanded in custody while facing trial over alleged acts of corruption said to have been committed during his time in office. While the courts alone will determine guilt or innocence, the moment itself carries a solemn lesson;one that transcends personalities and speaks directly to the human condition.

This is not merely a story about a former public officer. It is a story about power, privilege, and the moral choices we make when authority is placed in our hands.

Power is not confined to government. It lives in offices and boardrooms, churches and mosques, homes and families. It exists wherever one person can decide another’s fate,whether through policy, influence, silence, or action. Wherever privilege exists, conscience must follow.

Public office, like every position of advantage, is not a right; it is a temporary trust. History teaches us that power can be overwhelming in the moment, intoxicating even, but it is always fleeting. No title is permanent. No influence is eternal.

During the Buhari administration, Abubakar Malami was widely regarded as one of the most powerful men within the Nigerian justice system. Under his tenure as Attorney-General, the nation witnessed the controversial suspension and eventual removal of the then Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, an event many legal minds considered a grave moment in Nigeria’s judicial history. And later , Ibrahim Magu, then Chairman of the EFCC, was suspended and later removed following prolonged institutional conflict, with Malami playing a central and visible role.

In those days, power appeared absolute. The prevailing perception was that the machinery of justice bent easily under executive influence. Judges who resisted were seen as vulnerable. Institutions meant to protect the rule of law appeared weakened. In that season, Malami seemed untouchable firmly seated at the summit of authority.

But seasons change.

Today, that era has passed. He now stands, like every other citizen, before the law. The same justice system once accused of being subdued now carries the responsibility of judging him fairly. The irony is both sobering and instructive: those we diminish today may be the ones whose mercy or fairness we need tomorrow.

This reality confronts us with a truth we often ignore, NOTHING LAST FOREVER . Power fades. Influence dissolves. Applause goes silent. What remains is character, memory, and consequence.

This lesson is deeply personal and universally applicable. It speaks to the managing director who intimidates subordinates, the pastor who abuses spiritual authority, the parent who rules by fear, the supervisor who humiliates staff, and the leader who crushes. The privilege person whose words are believed by those in authority but lies against others who have no voice or opportunity to defend themselves. Wherever power is exercised without compassion, humility, and conscience, harm is done and harm has a way of returning.

Power should be used to heal, not wound; to correct, not destroy; to lift, not oppress. When authority is used to break others, it fractures the moral foundation upon which leadership stands. And even when consequences do not arrive immediately, they often find their way through our children, our families, or our legacy.

Those entrusted with privilege must therefore lead with self-awareness and humility, always remembering that today’s authority-holder may be tomorrow’s dependent. True leadership is measured not by how many people one can silence, but by how many one can uplift.

The lesson is simple, yet profound: use power well, because tomorrow is uncertain and the wheel of power turns for everyone. As the Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius reminds us:

“The best revenge is to be unlike him who performed the injustice”

By Barr Felix Osemwengie Isere Esq. Cnarb.