Senate President, Bukola Saraki, and his Deputy, Ike Ekweremadu, have perfected strategies to ensure that the plot by the Presidency to remove the Senate leadership, through alleged forgery of Senate Standing Rule, does not see the light of the day.
In view of this, Ekweremadu, on Tuesday, June 28, wrote to the United States of America, USA, the United Kingdom, UK and European Union, EU, alleging attempts by the government of President Muhammadu Buhari, to truncate Nigeria’s democracy as Saraki was also reported to have traveled to Saudi Arabia, for “spiritual’’ consultations.
Saraki, Ekweremadu and two others were arraigned by the Federal Government on Monday, for allegedly forging the Senate Rules, that were used in the elections through which they emerged Senate President and Deputy Senate President, respectively, in June last year.
Since the news of their prosecution broke, the already fragile relationship between the Presidency and Senate, has taken a turn for the worse.
In the two-paged letter, titled “Trumped up Charges Against the Presiding Officers of the Eighth Senate: Nigerian Democracy is in Grave Danger”, Ekweremadu, insisted that Buhari’s government wants to silence him as the highest ranking opposition leader in the country, by prosecuting him for alleged forgery.
Ekweremadu, also attached to his letter, copies of the court summons and other relevant documents relating to the charge.
He urged the international community to go through the documents and determine if the trial was justifiable, or one purely borne out of political vendetta.
He insisted that neither his name, nor that of Saraki featured in the petition by members of the Senate Unity Forum, or during the investigation of the petition by the Nigeria Police.
He alleged that he was denied fair hearing in the matter, adding that the police did not interact with him before he was charged to court.
He urged the international community to determine if the trial was not politically motivated, a witch-hunt, barefaced intimidation and an attempt to emasculate him.
The letter reads in part: “I wish to forward to you the court summons containing the trumped up charges preferred against my person; the President of the Senate, His Excellency, Senator Bukola Saraki, CON; and two others.
“Moreover, the rules and principles of fair hearing have not been adhered to, because the police have not interacted with neither me, nor the President of the Senate as at the time of writing this letter.“You may also wish to judge for yourself, whether this trial orchestrated against me is not a political trial, calculated witch-hunt, barefaced intimidation, and a clear attempt to emasculate the parliament and silence me as the leader and highest ranking member of the opposition in Nigeria”.
The arraignment on Monday of Saraki and Ekweremadu, has continued to create unease among Senators in Abuja.
The fear enveloping the Senate, has forced those loyal to the Senate President and his Deputy to dig deep and come up with a strategy to counter the perceived motive of the Executive.
A Senator from the South-South geo-political zone said: “Let me be open with you, the Senate leadership and in fact, majority of the Senators are very worried about the motive of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Executive.
“But for now, the Senate is on break and the President of the Senate has traveled to Saudi Arabia for Umra (lesser Hajj)”.
The source added: “Maybe President Buhari and his gang have just realised that their plan to use the Code of Conduct Tribunal, CCT, to force a change of leadership in the Senate, would not fly. So they have decided to come up with this latest plot”.
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