It is no longer news that the Code of Conduct Tribunal, CCT, sitting in Abuja, has ordered the arrest of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki following his refusal to appear in court to face a 13-count criminal charge that was preferred against him by the federal government. What is news is that the Senate president Bukola Saraki has alleged that the CCT charge is politically motivated.
According to him, ” they are seeking to achieve through the back door what some people cannot get through democratic process”.
Saraki in a statement said his ongoing trial was not a war against corruption but rather the deployment of state institutions to fight a political enemy.
According to Saraki, given the way the CCT had handled the matter so far, it was clear that he could not get justice before it adding that in asmuch as he had resolved to be law abiding, he also had the right to seek protection from the judiciary.
He added that it was dangerous to be walking towards the destruction of democracy in a bid to fight an enemy.
The tribunal which is headed by Justice Danladi Umar, directed the Inspector General of Police, IGP, Mr. Solomon Arase and other relevant security agencies in the country to arrest the Senate President and produce him in court on Monday for arraignment.
The CCT commenced the trial of Saraki despite a Federal High Court ordering the chairmen of CCB, CCT and a Deputy Director in the Federal Ministry of Justice, Musiliu Hassan to appear before it on Monday to show cause why Saraki’s ex-parte application should not be granted.
Saraki had gone to court seeking to restrain the Federal Government, Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and Tribunal from arraigning him.
The trial judge at the Abuja High Court, Justice A.R Mohammed had in his ruling on Thursday, summoned the CCT and CCB chiefs. But yesterday, the CCT ruled that the President of the Senate must be available to take plea in the 13 count charge slammed on him by the Federal Government over alleged false declaration of assets.
The Senate president through his attorney insisted that the trial tribunal erred in law and also acted without jurisdiction by countenancing and assuming jurisdiction over his criminal trial/ prosecution for a charge that is being challenged at the FHC Abuja in suit No FHC/ABJ/CS/775/2015, between him and the Ministry of Justice and 3 Ors.
He argued that the tribunal acted in disobedience to the order the FHC made on Thursday. Listing the particulars of error by the tribunal, Saraki, told the appellate court that “as at the time the lower tribunal overruled the appellant’s application to discharge the order for bench warrant for his arrest by the respondent, there existed an order of the FHC, Abuja, dated September 17, which was served in the lower tribunal, who were party to the suit”.
It was his argument that having filed an application challenging the jurisdiction of the tribunal to adjudicate on the charge before it, he needed not to be present in court yesterday.
