…. Says Saraki Does Not Deserve to be Nigeria’s Senate President
By Francis Sadhere
A Legal practitioner in Delta State, Barr. Robinson Ariyo has called for the immediate impeachment of the Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki for lying to Nigerians that he had no prior knowledge about the charges brought against him by the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) before he was docked.
Barr. Ariyo, who is also a human rights activists and social affairs commentator, said Senator Saraki shot himself on the foot when he denied knowing about the charges filed against him by the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT).
Barr. Ariyor, who spoke to our correspondent at his Chambers in Warri yesterday, said Senator Saraki ought to have resigned as the Senate President of the country to save the face of the hallowed chambers.
He stressed that for Saraki to have lied while on oath in the dock, was enough reason for the Senate to impeach him, stressing that such a person is not fit to be the Senate President of Nigeria.
He said: “Once again, I think that is where he was not honest. Every right thinking person knew that he was telling lies. One, he forgot that he deposed to an affidavit in support of his attempt to stop these proceedings. He said, ‘I, Senator Saraki do make oath and state as follows; one, that this charge amounts to persecution.’ So how could he have said that if he does not know about the charges? What he did not know is that once you tell one lie, you have to tell another ninety-nine lies to defend the one you told earlier. The application he brought before the Federal High Court was supported by an affidavit which was deposed to by himself, and an affidavit is a collection of facts which supports the prayers that you are seeking.
“So he carefully deposed to each and every paragraph of the affidavit, stating the content of the charges. It is like you want to complain that something is oppressive, but if you do not know the content, you cannot complain. If I bring the affidavit to you now you will see that he has just messed up and told a lie again. In civilized countries, for the fact that he entered that dock to tell lies is enough for him to resign. So he is making many more mistakes. He forgot that at a point he was reported as saying that ‘I swear on oath that this particular charge which was done several years ago’ and part of his ground was that the time which he did it was too long. So how can you know the time you did. Lawyers do not depose to affidavits. It is the person that does that. So when he was saying that he does not know the charges, that was when I concluded that that this man is not honest because he has just shot himself on the foot. He does not deserve to be President of the Senate because he has just given us a very bad image of himself.
“As a normal human being in the ordinary course of human event, who will hear that a charge was filed against him, and is filing to stop that charge and will not want to see the charge? It is ridiculous and unintelligent. Ordinarily curiosity will make you to get that charge and see it for yourself. So Saraki, saw this charges earlier and so he should not say that he did not see them.”
Barr. Ariyo said the impeachment of Senator Saraki is necessary if the House must concentrate on its duty of legislation for the country, noting that in the next few months, Saraki will be busy defending himself at the tribunal and will have no time to preside over proceedings at the house.
He urged the House to act fast and save itself from imminent embarrassment that will follow if Senator Saraki decides not to resign.
While stressing that Senator Saraki must defend himself in court, Barr. Ariyo also noted that what is happening to Saraki might have political undertone.
He faulted the way Saraki was singled out by the CCT to face charges concerning his alleged false declaration of assets, saying that if the government really wants to fight corruption, it must drag more people into its net.
Barr. Ariyo said that picking out a single individual out of more than a thousand individuals does not make the fight of corruption credible, advising the government to fight corruption holistically.
He said: ” But what I think is not fair is that I believe that Saraki is not the only person who is guilty of this kind of offence. One of the fundamental process of law is that everybody should be equal before the law. Some should not be more equal than others because this is not animal farm.
“I agree with you that there should be a starting point. But the issue is that, I understand that there are one thousand five hundred petitions before the Code of Conduct Tribunal, and if we have had twenty or thirty to start with, I will say that is a starting point. But if according to what we here that you have one thousand five hundred petitions and you start with one, then I am a little bit reluctant. I am not saying that you should not start from somewhere. But in a country of about one hundred and fifty million and where you have one thousand and five hundred petitions in the Code of Conduct Tribunal and you pick one, I do not think it is a starting point. Today we hear that a lot of people are reluctant to present themselves for chairmanship positions in committees because they are afraid that the nemesis that has caught up with Saraki will catch up with them and that is because a lot of them know what they have done. I can tell you that about 75% of those in the National Assembly made false declaration – that is my suspicion.”
