Saraki and the gathering storm

There is nothing as distressing as making a burial arrangement of a man and talking about how his estates will be shared when he is yet to kick the bucket. Even when there is a medical report and advice that the man may likely lose the battle to a particular illness, it is not natural for his immediate family to begin burial arrangement. Plans on how his estates would be shared are never considered.

The Anecdote above aptly captures the fight at the Senate of the National Assembly where the issue seems to have gone beyond whether Bukola Saraki will be eased out of his position as the president of the Senate or not. Many analysts said the Senate President may likely lose his position as his case before the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) appears (likely) not to favour him.

Those who expressed the view pointed to the “undue” interest of certain influential elements in the present government who may have sworn to make Saraki stew in his own juice.

Saraki has been under trial before the CCT over allegation of false assets declaration. Efforts by his lawyers to halt his trial could not fail flat.

In a move that indicated that Saraki’s fall from his current exalted position is a matter of time, his colleagues in the red-chamber, who are of the PDP, may have read the handwriting on the wall and had also begun to strategise to take over the seat. They were said to have met last week “to take a final decision on the issue”.

Peter Nwaoboshi, chairman, Senate committee on Niger Delta, a member of the PDP, who spoke in line with the agenda of the meeting, said his party would produce the Senate president if Saraki leaves.

Naturally, and in line with the Constitution and the National Assembly rules, in the event of the resignation of the Senate President or impeachment, his deputy takes over. But it appears that in the Saraki’s case, in the event he steps down or forced to relinquish the position, Ike Ekweremadu, deputy Senate president, may be prevailed upon to step down in solidarity with his boss, paving the way for a fresh election.

The APC senators are also plotting. They equally held a meeting last week which was said to have touched on the issue.

Saraki has since last year continued to go in and out of courts over the case. The case will continue this month.

Saraki has been in the eye of the storm since, contrary to the choice of his party leadership, he emerged the Senate president.

He was seen as flaunting his rich political pedigree and determined to dare the powers that be in the APC. It is common knowledge that because of the circumstances of his mergence there has been a cold war between the executive and legislative arms of the government, a situation that has continued to negatively impact on the overall governance of the APC-led government.

Only three days ago, a national leader of the party – warned the APC to be careful how it pursues the “destroy Saraki agenda”, as such a “vindictive” programme has its consequences.

Recently, Timi Frank, deputy national publicity secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), accused his party leaders of being behind Saraki’s ordeals, and wondered why the number three person in the country should be persecuted for no just cause.

Frank said: “I sincerely hold that the current trial of Saraki is not only underserved, but amounts to paying a good man with evil. I also want to say that the leaders of our great party have unfortunately remained quiet in the face of evil.”

According to him, “I don’t believe we have forgotten that the victory of the APC during the last general elections could not have been possible without courageous strategists like Saraki who lent their political weight in favour of the APC at the risk of their own lives and personal survival.”

“I don’t think we have forgotten how Saraki as a Senator in the 7th Senate brought the attention of Nigerians to the fraud perpetrated by the last administration in the name of fuel subsidy.”
Frank wondered how Saraki’s case was being treated differently at the CCT, which in 2011 struck out the case against one of the national leaders of the party.

Frank further said: “Already the Senate President has told the world that the trial has nothing to do with corruption but that he is being persecuted for emerging as the Senate President. To me, the ominous silence of our leaders since the day he was arraigned up till now serves to validate the claims of the Senate President that he is being persecuted.

“Or where else in the world will the number three citizen of a country be hurled before a tribunal over alleged irregularities in his asset declaration forms 13 years ago, and the hierarchy of the ruling to which he is a bonafide member will not come out to show solidarity or defend him?”

Saraki was first docked at the Code of Conduct Tribunal on Tuesday, September 22, 2015 over 13-count charges of false assets declaration after failed attempts at getting an injunction to stop his arraignment.

Over 150 media houses from broadcast, print and online media organisations covered the high-profile trial on the first day of his arraignment before Danladi Umar, the tribunal chairman.
It would be recalled that his absence at the tribunal had made Umar to issue bench warrant for his arrest on two occasions, which was complicated by his failed attempts to secure ex-parte injunctions at the Federal High Court and Appeal Court.

So, on his first appearance in court, he didn’t take chances as he arrived the Tribunal around 9:30am, beating by 30 minutes the 10am deadline the judge had set for the Inspector General of Police to provide him.

An analyst, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the replacement of Saraki may likely drag the APC into pieces.

“APC is already in tatters. All is not well with the party. Signs of crack began to show very early in its life. There is no way the party will survive a fresh election at the Senate. Don’t forget that the party’s rating in the country has fallen so low that people feel disturbed when they hear about APC. The impression people have now of the party is that it should quit the political space. So, whether ten Sarakis are kicked out of their positions is nobody’s headache. APC is already down, Saraki’s fall may complete the cycle of a drowning party,” the pundit said.