President Muhammadu Buhari and the
President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki,
on Monday kicked off an open war of
words following the arraignment in
court of the senate president and his
deputy, Ike Ekweremadu, for alleged
forgery of the rules of the upper
legislative chamber.
Messrs Saraki and Ekweremadu were
charged for alleged conspiracy and
forgery of Senate Standing Rules with
which the Senate presiding officers
were elected and inaugurated on June
9, 2015.
Also charged were the former Clerk to
the National Assembly, Salisu
Maikasuwa and his deputy, Ben
Efeturi.
All four were granted bail by Justice
Yusuf Haliru of the FCT High Court
after meeting the conditions.
Mr. Saraki was the first to fire a salvo
at the presidency when he, shortly
after leaving court, alleged that “a
government within government,” had
effectively taken control of the Buhari
administration.
Before the open confrontation both the
president and the senate president had
largely used proxies in the titanic
political battle that has dragged on for
over a year now.
In a statement he personally signed,
Mr. Saraki said the charges of forgery
pressed against him and other alleged
conspirators represented “another
phase in the relentless persecution of
the leadership of the Senate.”
He said there had been some forces
who had hijacked the apparatus of Mr.
Buhari’s executive power to pursue
“nefarious agenda”.
“This misguided action by the Attorney General begs
the question, how does this promote the public
interest and benefit the nation?” he said.
“At a time when the whole of government should be
working together to meet Nigeria’s many challenges,
we are once again distracted by the Executive
Branch’s inability to move beyond a leadership
election among Senate peers. It was not an election
of Senate peers and Executive Branch participants.”
The embattled senate president said over the years,
the senate had worked to foster good relationship
with the executive branch and that was informed by
the collective interests of all to put aside divisions
and get on with the nation’s business.
“We risk alienating and losing the support of the
very people who have entrusted their national
leaders to seek new and creative ways to promote a
secure and prosperous Nigeria,” Mr. saraki said.
“As leaders and patriots, it is time to rise above
partisanship and to move forward together.
“However, what has become clear is that there is
now a government within the government of
President Buhari who have seized the apparatus of
Executive powers to pursue their nefarious agenda.
According to him, “This latest onslaught on the
legislature represents a clear and present danger to
the democracy Nigerians fought hard to win and
preserve.
“The suit filed on behalf of the Federal government
suggests that perhaps some forces in the Federal
Republic have not fully embraced the fact that the
Senate’s rules and procedures govern how the
legislative body adjudicates and resolves its own
disputes. ”
Stating further, Mr. Saraki said he was confidence of
survival, adding that he was ready to be jailed as a
price for his “refusal to surrender to the subversion
of our democracy and the desecration of the Senate.”
He added, “Let it be abundantly clear, both as a
citizen and as a foremost Legislator, I will continue
to rise above all the persecution and distraction that
have been visited on me.
“In the words of Martin Luther King Junior ‘the
ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in
moments of comfort and convenience, but where he
stands at a time of challenge and controversy”.
The senate president said he would remain
committed to the responsibilities that his citizenship
and his office imposed on him.
He said, “I will remain true and committed to the
responsibilities that my citizenship and my office
impose on me. Without doubt, the highest of those
responsibilities is the steadfast refusal to surrender
to the subversion of our democracy and the
desecration of the Senate.
“This is a cross I am prepared to carry. If yielding to
the nefarious agenda of a few individuals who are
bent in undermining our democracy and
destabilising the Federal government to satisfy their
selfish interests is the alternative to losing my
personal freedom, let the doors of jails be thrown
open and I shall be a happy guest.”
It’s worthless fiction perhaps caused waking from
a troubled sleep – Buhari
In his reaction, Mr. Buhari said he regarded Mr.
Saraki’s claim of a “government within
government” as nothing but calling him a stooge.
“This claim by Senator Saraki would have been more
worth the while, if it had been backed with more
information,” the president said in a statement
entitled “Saraki and the Cabal,” by his Special
Adviser, Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina.
“If he had proceeded to identify those who
constitute the “government within the government,”
it would have taken the issue beyond the realm of
fiction and mere conjecture.
“But as it stands, the allegation is not even worth the
paper on which it was written, as anybody can wake
from a troubled sleep, and say anything.”
Stating that the Attorney-General of the Federation is
the Chief Law Officer of the state, the statement said
it was within his constitutional powers to determine
who had infringed upon the law, and who had not.
“Pretending to carry an imaginary cross is mere
obfuscation, if, indeed, a criminal act has been
committed. But we leave the courts to judge.
“To claim that President Buhari is anybody’s stooge
is not only ridiculous, but also preposterous. It is
not in the character of our President.”
Forgery Trial: Democracy not military rule –
Ekweremadu
Also in a statement by his media aide, Uche
Anichukwu, on Monday, Mr. Ekweremadu urged
those in power not to use the law as an instrument
to “bludgeon innocent citizens into submitting to
the untamed wishes and caprices of witch-hunters.”
According to him, his trial would afford Nigerians to
see clearly that the charges preferred against him
were “nothing but meretricious thrash”, adding that
democracy was not military rule.
In an unveiled declaration of his innocence and
certainty of victory over his persecutors, the deputy
senate president said, “For me, I find great comfort
in the immortal words of late Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe
who said that history will vindicate the just and the
wicked will not go unpunished.”
Insisting that his trial is political and puts
democracy in grave danger, he further said: “Let us
make no mistake about this: it is not Senator Ike
Ekweremadu or Senator Bukola Saraki or the other
accused persons that are on trial; rather the
hallowed democratic principles of separation of
powers, rule of law, the legislature, and indeed
democracy itself are on a ridiculous trial.
“Mere anarchy is unleashed upon the land, but our
courage must not fall apart. No condition is
permanent and nothing lasts forever.”
The Deputy President of the Senate said as a law-
abiding citizen and a firm believer in the rule of law
and all the rights and privileges it advertises.
“It is only in my place not to commit crime, but way
out of my reach not to be accused of one, especially
when instruments of power become apparatuses for
oppression of the innocent and voices of
opposition.”
He added, “Indeed, I, in no way or fashion, claim to
be above the law, just that I believe that the law
should not be used as an instrument to bludgeon
innocent citizens into submitting to the untamed
wishes and caprices of witch-hunters.
“However, I put my trust in God, the court, and the
overwhelming solidarity of the good people of
Nigeria. When the dust settles, Nigerians will see
clearly that this charge is nothing but meretricious
thrash. Time, occasions, and provocations like this
will teach their own lessons.
“I hope that one chief lesson will be that democracy
differs markedly from military rule and that public
officer should never subvert the foundations of
democracy by prioritizing the rule of man over the
rule of law.”
But before today’s arraignment, the Senate had fired
blistering remarks at the Presidency, accusing the
Buhari Administration of plotting to muzzle the
legislature effect and leadership change in the
National Assembly and constituting imminent
danger to democracy.
It also halted the process of screening ambassadorial
nominees, accusing the executive arm of
irregularities.
The senate subsequently summoned the Secretary to
the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal,
and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama,
to explain the said irregularities.
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