No cause for alarm – Adebanjo, Afenifere chieftain
The National Conscience Party has condemned the acquittal of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, by the Code of Conduct Tribunal.
The CCT had on Wednesday in Abuja upheld the no-case submission of the embattled Senate President, discharging and acquitting him of all the 18 charges of false asset declaration and other related offences preferred against him.
The CCT two-man panel, led by its Chairman, Danladi Umar, unanimously upheld the no-case submission, filed by Saraki after the prosecution closed its case tendering 48 exhibits and having taken the testimonies of the fourth and the last prosecution witness on May 4, 2017.
But the NCP National Chairman, Alhaji Tanko Yinusa, said in an exclusive chat with our correspondent that Saraki’s acquittal by the CCT had a heavy political undertone.
Yinusa said that the outcome of the CCT trial of the Senate President must have been largely influenced by some powerful political forces, who had interest in the matter.
He added that letting Saraki off the hook by the CCT was done to suit the whims and caprices of some people in the ruling All Progressives Congress, adding that his trial by the tribunal was part of the strategies to deceive unsuspecting Nigerians.
He, however, expressed fears that the development was a clear indication that the nation’s democracy was now in jeopardy.
“It is unfortunate that all of these things are political. If you are charging someone for corruption and you cannot prove beyond reasonable doubt, it is a shame. What they are saying is that the whole charges at the beginning were political, and now Saraki is politically discharged. So, as far as we are concerned, they are all deceiving Nigerians,” Yinusa said.
Speaking in the same vein, the NCP presidential candidate in the 2015 election, Chief Martin Onovo, said Saraki’s acquittal by the CCT was a clear revelation that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration lacked the determination to fight corruption.
Onovo stated that the anticorruption crusade for which the Buhari administration had been claiming credit was not genuine.
“We have been insisting that the current administration lacks the moral attitude to fight corruption because it was founded on corruption. We have also been insisting that the current administration lacks the capacity to improve security, fight corruption, and also lack the capacity to solve the economic problem. And this is the manifestation, because as many lies that they made, the result will always confirm the true position,” he said.
But human rights lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome, said that there were clear indications that Saraki’s trial at the CCT would get nowhere because the prosecutor lacked clear evidence.
Afenifere chieftain and elder statesman, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, said that there should be no cause for alarm over the CCT’s acquittal of the Senate President since the court had done its constitutional duty and had delivered its judgment on the matter.
“There is no cause for alarm over Saraki’s discharge. The man has been discharged and I believe the court must have done a thorough work. They said there is no clear evidence and that is all. The case has already ended unless the prosecutor wants to appeal. The occasion has proven our judiciary to be worthy. Of course, people can complain about delay in justice, but now that the judgement has been well given, what next?” Adebanjo said.
We have been insisting that this administration lacks the moral attitude to fight corruption
