Politics
We have no hand in Saraki’s travails, says Presidency
The presidency has said that it is not in any way connected with the legal battle between the Senate president, Bukola Saraki, and the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB).
The Bureau has dragged the Senate president before the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) over false declaration of asset.
But rumours are flying in the air that the CCB and CCT are acting on external influence, prompting the presidency to come up with a statement dissociating itself from the case.
Read also: Olubukola Saraki, and the trials of Brother Jero
Senior Special Assistant to the president on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, said in the statement “that there is no place in law that the Bureau and the tribunal should take instructions from any quarters,” stressing that the courts as a separate arm of the government under the judiciary have their duties to perform.
He therefore warned that the presidency would not tolerate any claim linking it with the matter.
“As an independent institution equal to any superior court of record, the tribunal is set up by the constitution to determine the issue of default, false declaration or forgery in assets declaration”, he said.
He added that there was no way President Muhammadu Buhari could interfere with the judicial process by stopping the Judge and therefore advised that affected parties should use the courts to acquit themselves of the allegations.
“If anyone has an axe to grind with what they are doing, they should do it in a judicial manner by challenging those actions in a proper court of law. Let them hire a good team of lawyers to prove their innocence.
“Government has no desire to persecute anybody. The President has vowed to respect the rule of law and this is what he is doing by staying out of this matter. He has said times without number that the war against corruption has no sacred cows.
“Even if the President wants to help, there is no way he can do anything. Is he going to ask the judge to stop the trial?
“It is purely a judicial process, the type of which are routinely dealt with by the CCB and the CCT. There are many cases like this that are going on.
“The President has sworn to an oath to protect the constitution and will not violate that oath”, Shehu said in the statement.
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JIL
September 22, 2015 at 7:48 am
It will take a million witnesses, who are at least 80years old (each of them) with both parents alive to convince some of us that indeed, the presidency (and by extension. APC) has no hands in the unfolding drama. Be that as it may, it is good for our democracy and fight against corruption. One will only feel concerned if the issue of false declaration of assets ends with the Senate president alone: Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu,….. and even PMB should also be investigated to ensure if they actually declared their assets correctly. I also strongly feel we should ammend the necessary aspect(s) of our Constitution so that asset declarations should include spouse(s) and adult children. There are some of our leaders who are having less than a million (or 30million) in their accounts but their wives are worth some billions of naira and even 18, 19 other twenty something years old children who have never worked or managed any known business(es) are stinkinly rich.