The Federal Government has tightened the noose on Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, who is standing trial over false declaration of assets before the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), sitting in Abuja.
This is as the prosecution yesterday said it has enough evidence that can lead to the conviction of the Senate president. The tribunal had fixed March 10 for the trial, which is expected to be completed within one week.
Impeccable sources told New Telegraph that some powerful forces in the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led government are pulling the necessary strings to ensure that Saraki is convicted by the tribunal.
Vital documents that would assist the prosecution are being handed over to government’s lawyers. Saraki, who emerged the Senate president on June 9, 2015, against the wishes of his party and the Presidency, had made several attempts to please President Muhammadu Buhari.
He ensured that all the 36 ministerial nominees and other appointees were cleared by the Senate despite opposition from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). But this peace move seems not enough to atone for his ‘sin’.
As such, he must be booted out by all means. An inside source at the tribunal, who prefers anonymity, told New Telegraph that the major work will be in the hand of the prosecution team to prove its case against Saraki beyond reasonable doubt.
Also, a member of the prosecution team who also prefers anonymity because he is not authorised to speak on the issue, said that the prosecution has put everything in place to prosecute the Senate president. ”
I can tell you that we on this side are fully ready for the prosecution; all the documents needed are already in place. We are not going to tolerate any delay tactic from the defence team. As you can see, the Supreme Court said that the trial should go on. ”
Though the defence had tried everything they could to stop the trial, but the law has taken its course. We are sure that the law will take its course fully on the matter,” he stated. Another source in the know also told New Telegraph that part of the documents needed in the trial of Saraki had been handed over by some agencies of the central government to the prosecution team.
The source, who prefers anonymity, further told New Telegraph that the Chairman of the tribunal, Danladi Umar, is under close watch to ensure that he did not compromise in handling the matter. ”
All the documents that prosecution needed have been given to them, where the prosecution even has issues, all of such have been sorted out. The prosecution has all the evidence to prosecute the case and establish the guilt of the Senate president. ”
We are sure the chairman of the tribunal cannot compromise in the trial, because he also has a case and have been indicted. I can tell you that at every sitting of the tribunal, secret detectives were always deployed to the venue of the tribunal to ensure that there is no compromise,” he stated.
However, if the Senate president is found guilty of the charge, the punishment that is likely to be imposed by the CCT includes any of the following as stated in Section 23(2) (a), (b) and (c) of the CCB & T Act and Section 18 of the 5th Schedule of the Constitution, 1999: (1) vacate his office as president of the Senate; (2) disqualification from membership of the Senate for a period of not more than 10 years; and (3) seizure and forfeiture of property.
In addition to the foregoing, the CCT can also impose penal punishment under Section 18(3) of the 5th Schedule of the Constitution where it finds that the offences committed by Saraki are also of criminal nature.
There is also a right of appeal at both the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court. Checks in the camp of the Senate president, however, revealed that Saraki had beefed up his legal team to give him a sound defence, which will see him through the trial.
A source close to Saraki told New Telegraph that the Senate president had been holding series of meetings with his legal team with additional hands to strengthen the team. The Federal Government had earlier arraigned Saraki before the tribunal over false declaration of assets.
He had pleaded not guilty to the charge. Saraki had approached the Court of Appeal and the apex court to challenge the trial on grounds that the tribunal lacked the jurisdiction to try him, and secondly that the panel was not properly constituted.
The apex court had, however, last week gave a leeway to the tribunal to go ahead to entertain the suit against Saraki, just at it held that the tribunal was properly constituted, even with members on the panel.
The judgement of the apex court had, however, raised issues as to the legality of the Senate president occupying the seat while his trial lasts. Two Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs), Chief Mike Ozekhome and Chief Mike Ahamba are among the lawyers who yesterday said that no law mandates Saraki to step down from his office while he faces trial over alleged false assets declaration before the CCT.
Ozekhome said that there is no law that says the Senate president should step down from his office while his trial continues. “No law says because you are an accused person, you must step aside, it can only be argued on the basis of morality.
The Nigerian criminal justice system provides that if anyone is accused of any crime, he is presumed innocent until proven guilty as provided by Section 36 of the Constitution. “That is why we say you can look at that and if anyone does not like it, they can amend the constitution. Our criminal justice system is accusatorial, it is not the French model, which is inquisitorial where your guilty is presumed and you are mandated to prove your innocence.
If we were to go by mere accusation, then virtually every person in this country will be guilty, because they are, at one time or the other, have an accusation levelled against them. “The House of Representatives Chairman on FCT, Mr. Ihembe, was ac-cused and charged to court for collecting esctacode unlawfully, which he did not use.
He was tried in the public domain by the media and government, but he was later exonerated. How many people knew that he was never convicted, after his reputation was badly damaged and dented?
The former Speaker of the House, Dimeji Bankole, the EFCC laid siege on his house for three days, as they also did to Buruji Kashamu and smoked him out of his house in chains and he was tried in the public domain, always going through trial by ordeal.
At the end of the day, he was discharged and acquitted of the allegation. How many Nigerians are aware of that? “The same thing happened in the case of Wabara, the former Senate president. How many Nigerians are aware of that?
The same thing happened in the case of the former Minister of Health and Iyabo Obasanjo, who faced offences for which they were tried and later, discharged. So, it is not enough to trap and convict them in the media.
If everyone is being forced to step down because of accusation, virtually every minister, governor and even the president himself will be affected. And this will mean that nobody should be in the office today. ”
I think we should allow the normal cause of justice to take its place. Because justice simulated and hurried and harried is even worse than justice delayed.” Supporting Ozekhome’s submission, Ahamba said: ”
I am not aware of any such law. A lot of people in Nigeria say theoretical things; that is the problem we have here. Everybody tends to be an expert.” Another lawyer, Kayode Ajulo, noted that: “Saraki’s resignation lies in the hands of two people, either his colleagues or he himself. Any other person’s opinion does not count, especially when there is no law to that effect,” he stated.
President of Public Interest Lawyers’ League, Abdul Mahmud, said that those who call for the resignation of Saraki as president of the Senate merely make a moral call. “While I concede that the law possesses a moral character, it should not be forgotten this moral character can only be established jurisprudential and philosophical inquires. ”
No pronouncement of guilt has been made by the Code of Conduct Tribunal as yet, so I find the call for Saraki’s resignation from office as a pronouncement of guilt, even before the commencement of his trial.”.