A fresh controversy has engulfed the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) following the appointment of Dr. Nazifi Yunus as interim manager of the Al-Manar Education and Development Foundation.
Critics said that the move exposes serious regulatory overreach by the CAC Registrar-General, Ishaq Husaini Magaji, SAN.The development comes at a sensitive time for Nigeria, as the administration of President Bola Tinubu seeks to project institutional discipline amid heightened international scrutiny.
Instead, the CAC has become the focus of renewed allegations bordering on abuse of office, conflict of interest, and disregard for due process.Court documents filed at the Federal High Court reveal that the CAC, acting under Magaji’s authority, issued a letter dated 10 September 2025 suspending the entire board of trustees of Al-Manar, an incorporated religious trust, and replacing them with interim managers selected by the commission.
According to the filings, the trustees were removed without prior notice, without a hearing, and despite their tenure not having expired. “This was a unilateral action taken in total violation of natural justice,” one source familiar with the case said, describing the move as “regulatory power exercised without process.
”More troubling allegations emerged shortly after the suspension, with sworn affidavits claiming that letters were sent to Al-Manar’s banks seeking to alter account signatories. The documents alleged that access to the foundation’s funds was redirected toward an individual described as a family associate of the Registrar-General.
Legal observers said that such actions, if proven, would exceed the CAC’s supervisory role. “That is not regulation; that is control,” a senior lawyer following the case remarked.
“No regulator has the authority to take over bank accounts without a court order.” The appointment of Dr. Nazifi Yunus has drawn the sharpest criticism. Public records show that Yunus was arrested and prosecuted by Nigerian security agencies between 2013 and 2014 over alleged links to Boko Haram, though no public conviction or formal exoneration is on record.At the time, civil society groups criticised what they described as indiscriminate arrests of Islamic scholars, and Yunus denied the allegations.
However, security analysts argue that his past alone should have triggered caution. “This is about risk assessment and perception,” one analyst said. “You don’t place someone once accused of terror links in charge of a mosque’s finances.”Community leaders linked to Al-Manar said that they were neither consulted nor informed before the appointment.
“This was imposed on us,” one trustee said. “It disregarded our autonomy, our faith, and our right to manage our own institution.”Court filings further allege that Dr. Yunus has close family ties to Magaji, raising questions about conflict of interest. While personal relationships are not illegal, governance experts warn that public office demands distance.
“The appearance of impropriety here is overwhelming,” a former regulator noted.The controversy has intensified amid reports that the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation had earlier intervened in related matters involving the CAC.
Despite this, Magaji reportedly granted media interviews defending his actions, a stance critics described as defiant.“This is not about Al-Manar alone anymore,” a constitutional lawyer said. “It goes to the heart of how regulatory power is exercised and whether officials believe they are bound by the same laws as everyone else.”
The CAC has not formally responded to the specific allegations contained in the court filings. However, insiders said that the matter is already damaging the commission’s credibility and reinforcing perceptions of institutional recklessness.
As the case proceeds, observers stressed that no findings of guilt have yet been made and that the courts will ultimately determine the legality of the CAC’s actions.
Still, many argued that the pattern revealed by the documents points to a deeper governance problem.“For a country struggling to rebuild trust in public institutions, this is a dangerous signal,” one civil society advocate warned. “Power without restraint is not regulation, it is capture.”