Tag: Saraki

Senate President Bukola Saraki has commiserated with the government and people of Edo State over the death of the Oba of Benin, Omo n’Oba n’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Erediauwa, saying the country had lost a people’s monarch.

In a statement yesterday by his media adviser, Yusuph Olaniyonu, Saraki described the late Oba as just, fair-minded, courageous and benevolent who lived his entire life in the service of his people.

He added that the late monarch’s reputation soared at various periods as a prince, a bureaucrat and diplomat.

The Senate President said he received the news of Oba Erediauwa’s transition with great shock.

According to him: ” My grief stricken heart goes out to the immediate family of the Oba, the Benin Traditional Council, the people and Government of Edo State, over the glorious but yet sad exit of the Omo n’Oba n’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Erediauwa – our highly revered king.

“He was a fearless and pious monarch – attributes that distinguished him among other monarchs in the country.

“As we mourn the departure of our highly revered and benevolent patriarch, I can only enjoin his immediate family and the people of Edo State to take solace in the long, peaceful, enigmatic life of the departed which was full of exemplary service to his subjects and the entire country”, the statement said.

Saraki said the country will surely miss the late monarch because he was an embodiment of peace, culture and tradition of the Benin Kingdom in particular, Edo State and Nigeria in general throughout the time of his reign.

Senate President Bukola Saraki was yesterday re-arraigned at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) on an enlarged 16-count charge.

He had pleaded to a 13-count charge of false assets declaration, which the prosecution enlarged yesterday, adding three more counts.

In the new counts, he was accused of abusing his office as Kwara State governor between October 2006 and May 2007, when he obtained a loan from Guaranty Trust Bank, to acquire two property at No 17A and 17B McDonald, Ikoyi, Lagos, for N497,200,000 and repaid the loan with public funds.

He was accused of failing to declare his interest in a property at No. 42 Remi Fani Kayode Street, Ikeja, Lagos, which he allegedly acquired through his company, Skyview Properties Limited, from First Finance Trust Ltd, on December 12, 1996.

Saraki was also accused of receiving salaries or emoluments as governor, while serving as a senator.

He pleaded not guilty to the 16 counts when they were read to him yesterday.

Although Saraki’s lawyer Paul Usoro (SAN) objected to the amended charge, the tribunal upheld the argument by prosecution and overruled Usoro.

Tribunal Chairman Danladi Umar held that contrary to Usoro’s contention, the prosecution, under Section 216(1) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015, argued that the prosecution was not required to file a motion to give reasons for the amendment before it could be accepted by the tribunal.

The tribunal also dismissed Saraki’s motion that the tribunal chairman  disqualify himself from  the trial.

Saraki argued in his motion that it was impossible for Umar to be fair and ensure justice in the case because he was allegedly being investigated for bribery allegation by the prosecuting agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Saraki’s lawyer Ajibola Oluyede, while arguing the motion on Wednesday, contended  that Umar would not be independent, but was likely to be manipulated by the EFCC.

The tribunal, in its ruling yesterday, held that Saraki’s motion was without merit.

Umar upheld the argument by prosecution lawyer Rotimi Jacobs (SAN) that contrary to Oluyede’s claim, the EFCC cleared the tribunal chair of the bribery allegation.

He noted that the EFCC commenced the prosecution of the suspect that was found to be culpable.

Umar said the EFCC, by its letter of March 5, 2015,  through its ex-Chairman, Ibrahim Lamorde, to the former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Mohammed Adoke,  cleared him of the alleged crime.

He believed that the March 5, 2015, letter in which the EFCC showed that the allegation against him was a mere suspicion and that it did not constitute sufficient evidence to prosecute him, superseded the report by the anti-graft agency, on June 24, 2014.

On the applicant’s reference to the June 24, 2014, report of the EFCC, bearing a directive by Adoke that the EFCC should prosecute those involved in the bribery allegation, Umar said the AGF cannot dictate to the EFCC to prosecute an individual against who it had insufficient evidence.

“The AGF cannot prosecute without sufficient evidence from investigative agencies,” Umar said.

He said the current AGF, Abubakar Malami, confirmed before a House of Representatives’ committee, which was petitioned with respect to the bribery allegation, that he (Umar) was cleared of the allegation.

The CCT chairman noted that Malami told the committee that he (the AGF) stood by the March 5, 2015, letter of EFCC to Adoke, showing there was no sufficient evidence to prosecute him (Umar).

“The issue of having a case to answer before the EFCC is over. The application lacks absolute merit and it is hereby dismissed,” Umar said.

Saraki has appealed the ruling.

Acting through his lawyers, Oluyede and Babs Akinwumi, the Senate president wrote the tribunal for prompt release of its records of proceedings, to prevent delay in processing the appeal.

 In the three-ground notice of appeal filed before the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal, Oluyede argued in the appeal that the ruling amounted to miscarriage of justice, adding that the CCT erred in law by allowing Umar “to single-handedly decide that the application for refusal (disqualification) lacks absolute merit”.

Oluyede said by so doing , the CCT “essentially” allowed Umar to be a judge in his own case.

In the first ground, he argued that the situation led to the CCT’s ruling “that was essentially a tirade against the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation, which had, in reaction to the “investigation report” of June 24, 2014, forwarded to him by the EFCC seeking his “further directives”, instructed the EFCC to prosecute Justice Umar on circumstantial evidence.

Oluyede contended in the second ground that the CCT erred in law, “when it decided that the application lacks absolute merit, merely because Justice Umar is of the opinion that the attorney-general of the federation has no constitutional right to investigate and lacked authority, therefore, to give instructions to the EFCC to prosecute him”.

He argued in the third ground that the CCT erred in law “when it abandoned the main purport of the refusal (disqualification) and ignored the submissions of counsel thereon only to begin to write a ruling comprised of facts and arguments that were only known to Justice Umar and not raised or introduced by any parties in order to arrive at a conclusion not urged upon him by any of the parties concerning the constitutional and statutory relationship between the AGF and the EFCC”.

Although Saraki’s lawyers sought a three-week adjournment, Umar adjourned to May 10 for continuation of trial.

The Federal Government yesterday queried the moral right of Senate President Bukola Saraki to question the integrity of Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) Chair Danladi Umar and to ask him to disqualify himself from his (Saraki’s) trial for false assets declaration.

Lead prosecution lawyer Rotimi Jacobs, said it was laughable that Saraki, who is on trial will choose to hold on to office as a Senator and Senate President, but demands that Umar, who was merely investigated and freed, to vacate office.

“This motion is absurd. The defendant (Saraki), who has been charged to court, is still performing his statutory duty as a senator till today, saying that the Constitution guarantees him presumption of innocence.

“He is saying that he remains a senator. He is saying that he will continue to be Senate President and he will continue to perform his duties. But he is saying that your lordship (Umar), who was merely investigated, should not be allowed to enjoy the presumption of innocence and that your lordship should not be allowed to continue to perform his duties.

“Your lordship has not been charged before any court. No charge has been filed against your lordship. That is the absurdity in their motion. This application is only filed to achieve one purpose; to embarrass the tribunal,” Jacobs said while responding to a motion by Saraki, asking the tribunal Chairman to disqualify himself from the trial on the grounds that he was investigated for bribery allegation.

Jacobs said the motion was filed to malign the tribunal chairman, adding that the investigation of the bribery allegation had been concluded and the person found to be culpable had since last year been charged to court by the EFCC.

“If investigation has been concluded and someone is already facing trial, will the defendant be right to say that the tribunal chairman is involved in on-going investigation. He cannot be right. The investigation has been concluded since March 2015.

“This is stated in our counter-affidavit which was never challenged. That is what led to the charge he referred to. The person on trial is the only one recommended for prosecution.

“The letter did not recommend your lordship for prosecution. That is not what the letter says. The letter clearly stated with overwhelming evidence the person to be prosecuted. We should fear God, we are counsel,” Jacobs said.

He noted that contrary to Saraki’s claim, the EFCC was not a party to the case, but that it was the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) that issued him (Jacobs) the fiat to prosecute the defendant.

He insisted that the case was filed through the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and not the EFCC as claimed by Oluyede.

He said by virtue of Section 349(7), of Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015, Saraki’s lawyer, Ajibola Oluyede, could not have validly filed the motion without the  consent of the lead defence lawyer, Kanu Agabi (SAN), who was still in the case.

He reminded the tribunal that the issue of who filed the charges against Saraki, had been argued by Agabi in a motion challenging the tribunal’s jurisdiction.

 Jacobs said the issue had become part of the subjects of appeal filed by Agabi against the tribunal’s ruling and urged the judge not to make findings on it in order not to run foul of usurping the duties of the appeal court.

Oluyede, moving the motion, insisted that Umar must disqualify himself from the trial. He argued that the June 24, 2014 letter by the then EFCC chairman, Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde and which was addressed to the then AGF, Bello Adoke, did not exonerate him of the bribery allegation.

Oluyede contended that the then AGF had directed the EFCC to proceed to prosecute the tribunal chairman and the other suspects. He added that the other report of investigation issued in March 2015 did not also clear the tribunal chairman.

Oluyede said it would require the AGF office to issue another letter overriding the earlier directive to the EFCC to go ahead with the prosecution of Umar and his co-suspect, before the tribunal chairman could be said to have been cleared.

He insisted that in as much as there was no fresh letter by the AGF expressly stating that Umar had been cleared of the allegation, “the legitimacy of the proceedings (Saraki’s trial) is in question”.

On claim by Jacobs that Agabi was not part of the motion, Oluyede noted that “Paragraph 15 of the further affidavit confirms that it was, in fact the lead counsel, Agabi,that advised the defendant to bring this application before the tribunal in the interest of justice.

“The submission of counsel, no matter how esteem that counsel is, does not and is not allowed to be considered as constituting evidence.

“Even if it was true that the lead counsel was not aware or did not even consent or approve it for reasons of conflict, it is immaterial because any counsel that is briefed by a party to a proceeding is entitled to act in accordance to the instruction of his client,” Oluyede said.

Before Oluyede moved the motion, Agabi excused himself from the proceedings. He appealed to parties in the case, including the tribunal members to allow peace to reign.

As against the claim by Oluyede, Agabi, before exiting the proceedings, admitted that he only became aware of the motion after Oluyede had filed it. Agabi said he had no problem with the motion, being moved on behalf of the defence team.

Shortly after Oluyede moved his motion, Umar said he has been cleared of the allegation by both the EFCC and the AGF.

He recalled that upon a petition filed against him before the House of Representatives over the bribery allegation, the AGF (Malami) appeared before a committee of the House and told the members of the committee that he (Umar) had been cleared.

Umar said: “A group called Anti-Corruption Network wrote a petition against me at the House of Representatives.

“The House committee invited me and I went there three times but the petitioner did not come. The committee asked me what I think should be done and I said, if it were to be court, when the person who filed a case refuses to come, the court will strike it out. But the chairman said, let’s give them another time.

“Why did he not strike it out and decided to continue to wait for the petitioner? I went there just because of the respect I have for the institution. I am a law-abiding citizen. That is why I went there three times, abandoning all my work here.

“They invited the AGF. He went with a copy of the letter of EFCC and he said by virtue of that letter, nobody could compel him to prosecute me on the basis of that letter, which stated that the allegation was based on mere suspicion.

“On the basis of that, he (the AGF) said he will not prosecute me. As the chief law officer, he decides who to prosecute and when to stop to prosecute anybody.”

The tribunal will rule today on the motion.

Senate President Bukola Saraki yesterday condoled with the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) over the death of six medical doctors in an accident on the Abuja/Kaduna Expressway.

The doctors were on their way to attend the NMA’s 56th Annual Conference and General Delegates meeting in Sokoto.

Saraki, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Yusuph Olaniyonu, in Abuja, commiserated with the government and people of Ekiti State, the national leadership of the NMA, the Ekiti State chapter of the body and the families of the deceased.

He said the six doctors and the driver lost their lives in active service to humanity and noted that their contributions to the wellbeing of mankind and commitment towards a healthy society will not be forgotten.

Saraki said: “The tragic demise of these noble citizens is no doubt a big blow to the medical profession.

“As a medical doctor, I am particularly pained that six of my colleagues died at once. This is one mishap too many.”

The Senate President prayed God to grant speedy recovery to the injured doctors and fortitude for the bereaved families.”