—159 CSOs want counsel sanctioned
By Abdulrahman Abdulrauf and Bode Olagoke, Abuja
Ahead of next month’s trial of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, by the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) over corruption and false declaration of assets
, mixed reactions have continued to trail the conduct of the exercise since its commencement.
The latest of such is coming from civil society groups who are insisting that necessary disciplinary actions should be taken against his lead counsel, Joseph B. Daudu and Mahmud Magaji, both Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), by the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA)’s Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee, for allegedly misleading their client.
The group under the aegis of Civil Society Network Against Corruption (CSNAC) also insisted that the lead counsel erred by asking Saraki to shun the tribunal.
The coalition, with over 150 CSOs, posited that the tribunal had summoned Saraki to answer a 13-count charge of fraudulent acquisition and declaration of assets while in office as the governor of Kwara state between 2003 and 2011.
Faulting the lawyers’ conduct in a statement by its chairman, Olanrewaju Suraj, CSNAC said the accused person did not appear at the Tribunal scheduled to commence on Friday, September18, 2015 because the senior advocates were looking for an ex-parte order to prevent the Tribunal from sitting.
They said: “Instead of advising his client to honour the summons, Mr. Magaji headed for the Federal High Court where he unsuccessfully sought an order ex-parte to restrain the Tribunal from hearing the criminal case.
“On his part, although Daudu had undertaken to produce his client on Monday, September 21, 2015 he rushed to the Court of Appeal where he unsuccessfully sought an ex parte order to prevent the Tribunal from sitting. On that same day, the Federal High Court refused to stop the Tribunal from sitting. Once again, the accused person did not appear at the Tribunal.”
The group, which believed that the advice from the lawyers was responsible for Saraki’s initial absence from the tribunal, also said, “In defending his action for treating the Code of Conduct with contempt in the circumstance, the Senate President disclosed to Nigerians that he did not appear at the tribunal on the advice of his lawyers.”
“Having betrayed their Oath as senior advocates by advising their client to treat the Code of Conduct Tribunal with disdain, they ought to be sanctioned to serve as a deterrent to other lawyers in the country.
“We are, therefore, compelled to request the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee to sanction the senior advocates, who have been indicted, having led their client to defy the summons of the Code of Conduct Tribunal we urge the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee to sanction Messrs. Daudu and Magaji as their conduct is a total betrayal of the Oath taken by them as legal practitioners.
“The discipline of the two Senior Advocates of Nigeria will serve as a deterrent to other legal practitioners who are in the habit of advising their clients to treat court orders with disdain,” the group said.
The coalition therefore said, “Having betrayed their Oath as senior advocates by advising their client to treat the Code of Conduct Tribunal with disdain, they ought to be sanctioned to serve as a deterrent to other lawyers in the country.
“We are therefore compelled to request the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee to sanction the senior advocates who have been indicted by the senate president.
“Having led their client to defy the summons of the Code of Conduct Tribunal, we urge the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee to sanction Messrs. Daudu and Magaji as their conduct is a total betrayal of the Oath taken by them as legal practitioners.
“The discipline of the two senior advocates of Nigeria will serve as a deterrent to other legal practitioners who are in the habit of advising their clients to treat court orders with disdain,” the group said.
Meanwhile, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has summoned an emergency meeting to address multiple crises rocking the party, it was learnt yesterday.
Top among the issues to be discussed in the meeting are the Bayelsa governorship primary crisis, ministerial list, power rift between the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo and Kaduna state governor, Nasir El-Rufai, as well as the current travails of the Senate President, Bukola Saraki. El-Rufai is perceived by some people as the “unofficial vice president,” said our sources.
The crises within the APC, Blueprint learnt, forced the national chairman of the party, Chief John Oyegun to summon the emergency meeting of the National Working Committee (NWC), today in Abuja.
The meeting is expected to hold before President Muhammadu Buhari submits his list of the ministerial nominees to the Senate tomorrow or next.
According to inside sources, the crisis within the party, especially over the management of the party’s success at the March 28 Presidential and National Assembly and the April 11 governorship elections, are causing members of the party sleepless nights, and affecting the smooth running of governance with Nigerians at the receiving ends.
A top member of the NWC that spoke under anonymity over the crisis, cited the ministerial list that had put the party against President Buhari, who seems not to be interested in consulting party officials, as well as the power rift between the former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former governor of Osun state, Bisi Akande and the national leader of the party, Bola Tinubu.
The simmering crisis among various levels of party leaders has, among others, stalled the inauguration of the APC’s Board of Trustees (BoT) and the non summoning of its NEC meeting.
Similarly, the power tussle between the Vice President Osinbajo and Governor el-rufai, who is perceived as the ‘unofficial vice president’, is expected to be part of the meeting’s agenda.
It was gathered that El-Rufai made an uncomplimentary remark on the Vice President, to which Osinbajo protested and eventually walked out on President Buhari at the said meeting.
Before he left the meeting, Osinbajo reportedly told Buhari that “I am an elected Vice President and would not sit down here and allow a governor to insult me.”
On the Senate president’s travails, the source which pointed accusing finger at Tinubu queried: “Why must there be preferential treatment and separate rules, whereas, Tinubu was acquitted for non compliance with section 3 (D), the chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) is insisting on Dr. Abubakar Saraki standing trial for an issue that the former Lagos state governor was acquitted and the suit struck out.”
Another crisis that the APC’s NWC is billed to discuss is the face-off between Oyegun and Tinubu. It was gathered that since the botched attempt by Tinubu to remove Oyegun, relationship between the two has turned sour.
Also listed for discussion is the Bayelsa primary which the party cancelled, even though Timipre Sylva still holds on to victory.
Another crisis rocking the party also centres around the choice of Wale Edun , a former commissioner in Lagos state, whom Tinubu allegedly picked as a ministerial nominee from Ogun state.
But on the contrary, former President Olusegun Obasanjo and the Ogun state governor, Ibikunle Amosun, are said to be pushing for former national auditor of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), Chief Bode Mustapha as their nominee.
“It seems we have a monster in our hands and if not properly handled, could spell doom for us. The crisis between Tinubu and former governor, Raji Fashola, is one of the issues that we are going to handle before darkness comes. It is true that Nigerians voted for APC overwhelmingly, but we must manage this success well before the power struggle therein consumes us.
“There is also the power rift between Governor Ambode and Fashola. Washing their dirty linens in public will not help good governance in the state that is traditionally seen as a progressives state since 1999. Something must be done and this is why the Monday’s NWC is crucial to us. To win election is one thing and to settle down to good governance is another,” concluded our sources.
