SENATE President, Dr Bukola Saraki has a date with with history today. The outcome of the day’s event will determine, substantially, the shape and tenor his political life will assume.
Will he be arraigned today by the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) or will the Appeal Court intervene in his favour? This is certainly what most Nigerians will focus their attention on today. One thing is obvious:What happens today will determine the course of Saraki’s Senate presidency .
The tribunal last weekend issued a warrant of arrest on the Senate President for failing to appear before it last Friday . His invitation to appear before the tribunal is sequel to his being slammed of a 13 point charge bordering on corruption by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) last week.
The Bureau in charge number ABT/01/15, dated September 11 and filed before CCT accused the Senate President of engaging in anticipatory declaration of assets. It also alleged that he made false declaration of assets in forms he filed before the Code of Conduct Bureau during his days as governor of Kwara state.
the bureau in its charge sheet claimed that Saraki with-held some of his assets while declaring his assets in 2003 .
Apart from that it accused the senate president of acquiring assets beyond his legitimate earnings while in office as governor and operating foreign accounts both at the time he served as governor and during his time in the senate .
The body declared that the above offences violated sections of the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, as amended.
In addition to that CCB alleged that the Senate President Saraki breached Section 2 of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act and punishable under paragraph 9 of the said Fifth Schedule of the Constitution.
A deputy director in the office of the Attorney General of the Federation Mr M.S. Hassan,prepared the charge . At first, the whole thing was dismissed with a wave of the hand by many. But Saraki did not . His office quickly issued a statement lambasting the Bureau and pointing fingers to those he felt was behind the new onslaught .
His statement read “The attention of Dr.Bukola Saraki, President of the Senate, has been drawn to a charge sheet being widely circulated on the online media, upon which he is expected to be tried at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT).
“ It should be noted that at the time of writing this statement (10.00am on September 16, 2015), Dr. Saraki has not been served the court process. However, we recognise that as a public officer, he owes members of the public explanation on the allegations contained in the charge sheet.
“We therefore state as follows: That all the claims contained in the charge sheet are false, incorrect and untrue. That Dr. Saraki has consistently declared his assets as required by law at every point before resuming any political office and that of 2015 is not an exception. It is surprising that the alleged charges is now referring his asset declaration made in 2003 while in office as Governor of Kwara State to formulate their charges. They therefore ignored the recent declaration for which they last week issued an acknowledgement.
“ That we believe that the Code of Conduct Bureau following their processes in which after a declaration is submitted to the bureau they ought to have carried out their verification of the assets and ascertain the claims made and not wait till 12 years later to be pointing out an alleged inconsistencies in a document submitted to it in 2003.
“This is why we are of the opinion that present effort is a desperate move initiated due to external influence and interference.”
The statement continued “ It should also be noted that contrary to the procedure indicated in the law setting up the CCB, the bureau never wrote to Dr. Saraki to complain of any inconsistency in his asset declaration forms.
“ It should also be noted that Dr. Saraki as Governor of Kwara State never operated a foreign account. That some of the issues contained in the charge sheet are subjects of earlier decided and on-going Court cases. We therefore believe those behind filing of these charges are engaging in forum-shopping.
It should be noted that we do not know on whose authority these charges are filed when the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act clearly indicate that any prosecution must be authorised by an Attorney General and we know the nation last had an AG in May 2015. This is another clear indication that the CCT is acting under influence from outside its domain and therefore ready to bend the rules to achieve this obnoxious objective.
“We therefore conclude that this is not an anti corruption driven case and cannot be part of the moves aimed at fighting corruption. It is simply a pure malicious and politically motivated prosecution aimed at undermining the person and office of the Senate President.
“That those behind this plot will definitely meet Dr. Saraki in court as this case which is based on outright fabrication and mischief will not and cannot stand the test of justice.
“It should be noted that throughout his career as a public official democratically elected to high public service, Dr Saraki has always held himself, to global standards of transparency and accountability, to a far higher standard of diligence, disclosure, and compliance, than required or even requested by Nigeria’s Code Of Conduct protocols. Thus, Dr Saraki has always, lawfully and accountably, declared his assets, both directly owned, and in which he may derive any historical and on-going degree of beneficial interest.”
The statement concluded “In view of the above, Senator Saraki hereby affirms his belief in the justice system and that when the proposed case comes to the tribunal, he will diligently state his case. He is also ready to co-operate with the Tribunal and other lawful government agencies in the bid to genuinely fight corruption and eliminate impunity in our public affairs.
“We also note that anytime you try to fight corruption or insist that the right thing should be done, the system will always come after you. This is another case of desperation to fight Dr. Saraki because of his recent stance on national issues.”
Not surprisingly CCB did not join issues with the Senate President in the public domain. But that did not stop it from forging ahead with its plans to arraign him. The body asked to appear before it last weekend.
Saraki got the message clearly and rushed to the Federal High Court to stop it. The court somehow yielded to his request as it ordered the maintenance of a status quo until today. He felt relieved by the order. But he got a shocker few hours after. The CCT brushed aside the order and asked the Inspector General of Police to arrest and produce the Senate President today for arraignment.
Justice Danladi Umar, head of the tribunal who is presiding over the matter, issued a bench warrant against Saraki . He hinged the decision on the refusal of Saraki to appear before the tribunal last Friday.
Anticipating a likely negative reaction from the public , the prosecution counsel , Muslim Hassan, explained that the brushing aside of the High Court order was based on the fact that both the tribunal and the high court had parallel jurisdiction .
That Saraki was stupefied by the decision of the tribunal was well captured in a statement signed on his behalf by his media aide ,Yusuph Olaniyonu .
The statement read “The Federal High Court on Thursday, September 17, 2015, therefore ordered that all parties in the case should appear before it on Monday, September 21, 2015. The implication of this ruling by a court of competent jurisdiction is that the sitting today has been overtaken by events. It is for this reason that Dr. Saraki chose to go about with his normal official schedule”.
Before the statement was issued .Counsel to Saraki Joseph Daudu had fought hard to stop the tribunal from issuing the arrest warrant on his principal but his effort was futile. The tribunal stuck to its gun. Part of Dauda’s pleas to the tribunal was to adjourn the case until after the Federal High Court sitting on Monday.
But the tribunal chairman granted the prayer of the prosecutor, Hassan who sought that an arrest warrant should be issued against the senate president.
What the Constitution says:
As would be expected , the Senate President is clutching on everything in a bid to wriggle out of the current noose on his neck. The debate has shifted to the constitutionality or otherwise of the ongoing move by CCT. The law clearly specify that that the Attorney General of the Federation or anybody he mandates is vested with the power to initiate the prosecution of offenders.
Saraki is cashing in on this provision to squeeze himself out of the tight situation. He is of the opinion that the insistence on his prosecution by the bureau runs foul of the law since the country does not have an attorney general at the moment . His position enjoys the backing of some lawyers . But even those who have sympathy for him on that believe that the best platform to push such argument is at the tribunal itself.Ironically he does not want his foot to step into the tribunal. “ I think there is no reason to be afraid of appearing before the tribunal, he should go there and argue the constitutionality or otherwise of his prosecution” Tunde Rauf, a lawyer said . He continued “I believe the law is clear on the processes that must be followed. We don’t have an attorney general right now and some of these things cannot be brushed aside. But he must go to the tribunal and argue it”.
Alleged motives
The move against Saraki has, understandably, left on its trail a huge buzz in diverse circles . It is the dominant issue in the nation’s political space today. Expectedly, a lot are being spinned, many are hazarding a guess as to why the tribunal suddenly remembered Saraki and garnered an unusual gut to go after him 13 years after.
The Senate President himself has pointed fingers at some forces as being behind him. But, either for lack of courage or self restraint he did not name those forces .
For some, the whole thing is in line with plots to oust Saraki as the Senate President . Those who feel this way easily point their fingers at the presidency and key leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who have not hidden their stand that they are opposed to the man calling the shot at the senate . It is possible that such claim has some truths . It is also not impossible that it is baseless and a mere figment of the imagination of some day dreamers .
There is equally another version that claims that the leadership of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is behind the current onslaught on the Senate President. Those who peddle this rumour claim that the Chairman of the Commission, Ibrahim Larmode,is out to humiliate Saraki for endorsing his probe by the senate. They claim the CCT Chairman is merely acting out the bidding of Larmode on this . Again it is possible that the claim is rooted in falsehood or has some facts .
What is obvious is that Saraki and Larmode are not enjoying the best of amity . The Senate President did not pretend that he was incensed by the recent invitation and investigation of his wife, Toyin, by EFCC. Senate initiated investigation of Larmode soon after that incident.
EFCC has since retaliated. Just last week, it declared the former managing director of the now rested Societe Generale Bank (SGB), the firm of Saraki’s family, Kennedy Izuagbe wanted. May be the whole thing is in line with the anti-corruption stance of the incumbent administration. It may also be part of the plots to unleash an unbearable heat on him and yank him off the number three seat.
Implication of Saraki’s prosecution:
The planned docking of the Senate President by the tribunal, on the surface connotes little or nothing but informed Nigerians know that it bears deeper meaning that meets the eye. It will be the highest humiliation Saraki’s political career has suffered .
That the man is fighting to stave off the arraignment is an effort to save his political career. Many Nigerians are likely to join the clamour that he quits his office and face his case if he is arraigned.
It would have been a bit tolerable for Saraki if it was accepted that his counsel should stand in the dock in his place . The insistence of the tribunal that he must appear is synonymous to drilling a hole on his political image.And that is exactly what his political foes want.
When the former Lagos state governor , Bola Ahmed Tinubu suffered the same treatment some years ago, some of his political opponents danced in the streets. But the luck he had was that he was not holding any public office. People erased it from their mind soon after it happened.
It is a different scenario with Saraki. The current move could cost him his plum office . If he survives , it may colour his perception of President Muhammadu Buhari’s war on corruption. He made an oblique reference to that when he declared that the move against him was not in tandem with the fight against corruption but a mere witch-hunt.
For sure , those who helped the Senate President to come to office may not be happy with the unfolding events.They are likely to fight back, albeit in a different way. And that would mean that the crevices in the APC fold would be widened . Certainly the battle has just begun. The outcome of today’s legal duel will not only tell Saraki’s next political move but will test the independence of the nation’s judiciary .
Culled from The Sun
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