ABUJA—The Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal,
will today, deliver judgment in the appeal seeking to quash the 13-count
criminal charge pending against the Senate President, Dr. Olubukola Saraki
before the Code of Conduct Tribunal, CCT.
The appellate court had earlier adjourned its verdict on the matter
indefinitely, a situation that forced the Justice Danladi Umar-led tribunal to
defer hearing on the case against Saraki till November 5, to await the outcome
of the appeal.
The tribunal took the decision to suspend full-blown hearing on the criminal
case after the Justice Moore Adumein panel of the appeal court, on October 21,
postponed its judgement without adducing any reason.
A source at the appellate court who spoke to Vanguard on ground of
anonymity that day, insisted that the “eleventh-hour deferment of judgment on
Saraki’s appeal”, was not unconnected with the just concluded screening of
Ministerial nominees that were forwarded to the Senate by the Presidency.
Saraki is in his appeal, challenging the legal propriety of the 13-count
charge that was preferred against him by the Federal Ministry of Justice.
He was among other offences, alleged to have owned and operated foreign bank
accounts while being a public officer.
However, aside challenging the charge, Saraki also queried the
constitutionality of the warrant of arrest that was initially issued against
him by Chairman of the CCT, Justice Umar.
Besides, the embattled Senate President, through his team of lawyers led by
a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Mr. J.B. Daudu, SAN,
wants the higher court to ascertain whether the Justice Umar-led panel
subscribed to the appropriate legal procedure when it ordered him to mount the
dock and enter his plea to the charge despite preliminary objections against
his trial.
He raised 12 grounds of appeal against the CCT, supported by a
16-paragraphed affidavit and four exhibits.
Saraki also deposed another 17-paragraphed affidavit of urgency, wherein he
urged the higher court to intervene and protect him from what he described as
“a politically motivated witch-hunt”.
Out of the 12-grounds, five of them are basically seeking to invalidate the
charge against Saraki.
He is begging the appellate court to suspend the proceeding of the tribunal
pending the hearing and determination of his substantive appeal against the
Justice Umar-led panel.
The appellate court had on October 8, okayed accelerated hearing on the
matter.
Meantime, the federal Government, while urging the appellate court to
dismiss the appeal, maintained that it has garnered sufficient evidence to
establish that Saraki, as a public officer, acquired several assets beyond his
legitimate earnings.
FG, through its lead prosecutor, Mr. Rotimi Jacobs, SAN, equally told the
appellate court that five witnesses it lined-up against the Senate President,
have all expressed their readiness to appear before the CCT tomorrow to testify
and tender exhibits against him.
Among those that FG billed to give oral testimony against Saraki included
the erstwhile Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and present governor of
Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai.
Specifically, El-Rufai is expected to testify that he was the one that sold
one of the assets that Saraki bought in Abuja, which the government alleged
that he failed to list among the assets he acquired while in office as the
governor of Kwara State.
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