Saraki jitters over impeachment move

Senate President Bukola Saraki is putting up maradonic moves to avert the clandestine moves by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to effect his removal should the Senate reconvened on Tuesday, August 14, a move that has again been thwarted.

National Daily gathered from sources within the Senate that Saraki and his loyalists are a step ahead of the plot, and have therefore refused to reconvene the Senate for the proposed consideration of INEC N242 billion for the 2019 elections.

In a statement on Tuesday, Yusuph Olaniyonu and Turaki Hassan, media aides of Saraki and Dogara, quoted their principals as saying there was no report to consider because the committees handling the president’s request had not met.

The principal officers said it would be irresponsible to recall members from recess when there is nothing to consider.

“The senate president, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki and Speaker, House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, have directed that we inform all Senators, Honorable members and the public that a date has not been set for the reconvening of the Senate and the house of representatives to consider the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) 2019 elections budget request forwarded by President Muhammadu Buhari on July 17, 2018,” the statement read.

The leadership of the two chambers had met and agreed to reconvene to consider the proposal this week before which a meeting between the joint senate and House of Representatives committees on electoral matters and officials of the INEC must have held on or before Monday August 13, 2018.

The lawmakers embarked on their annual recess on July 24 and are expected to resume on September 25.

Meanwhile, National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, has insisted that Saraki must vacate his seat or be impeached at all cost.
Oshiomhole, who stated this at a press briefing in Abuja said that the impeachment must happen at all cost while lamenting that the Senate President had frustrated infrastructural development through the passage of appropriation bill.

According to Oshiomhole, it will be wrong for people to be discussing the lawful or unlawful impeachment of the Senate President when the act had not been carried out, insisting that allowing Saraki to continue as the Senate President would amount to allowing the minority to lead the majority in the Senate.

He said this would be a repeat of what happened in President Goodluck Jonathan administration, where 16 governors were taken to be more than 19 governors under Nigerian Governors Forum election.

He said: “There is the futile attempt he has made to suggest that the Tuesday’s incidence was an attempt to carry out an illegal impeachment. How can a presiding office arrive at such a conclusion that there was a plan to carry out an illegal impeachment? Until an action takes place, you cannot determine the outcome, if impeachment itself is unlawful, then you can understand where he is coming from.