The Rule of Law and Prosecutorial Independence: A Professional Assessment of the Attorney-General’s Powers in Nigeria

The Attorney-General of the Federation occupies a constitutionally central role in Nigeria's justice system, holding both the political office of Minister of Justice and the prosecutorial functions of the chief law officer under Section 174 of the 1999 Constitution. This dual role creates structural tensions between political accountability and prosecutorial independence, as the Attorney-General's power to enter a nolle prosequi (discontinue prosecutions) can be and has been exercised to terminate politically sensitive anti-corruption prosecutions. This study professionally examines the constitutional framework of the Attorney-General's powers in Nigeria, evaluating the scope of the Section 174 nolle prosequi power, judicial interpretation of its limits, and the adequacy of accountability mechanisms governing its exercise. A doctrinal methodology is applied, reviewing Section 174 of the 1999 Constitution, the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 provisions on prosecution discontinuance, judicial decisions on nolle prosequi challenges, and comparative analysis from England and Wales and Canada, where prosecutorial independence has been institutionally protected. The study evaluates specific nolle prosequi applications in high-profile anti-corruption cases from 2015 to 2023 and the courts' response to challenges of those decisions. Available public law literature from Nigeria identifies the unchecked exercise of the nolle prosequi power and the absence of judicial review standards for its exercise as the most professionally significant accountability gap. The Prosecutorial Independence Principle and the Budapest Guidelines on the Role of Prosecutors provide the normative reference. Recommendations address statutory regulation of nolle prosequi criteria and independent prosecution review mechanisms. Keywords: prosecutorial independence, Attorney-General, nolle prosequi, constitutional law, Nigeria.