Buhari orders military to crush new Niger Delta militant group

President Muhammadu Buhari

Fidelis Soriwei, Olalekan Adetayo and Bayo Akinloye

President Muhammadu Buhari has given a fresh order to the military to crack down on a new militant group, the Niger Delta Avengers, which has been attacking oil installations.

SUNDAY PUNCH gathered on Saturday that the President gave the directive on Friday, following the group’s attack on Chevron’s platform in Warri, Delta State, on Thursday and its blowing up of pipelines linking Warri and Kaduna refineries on Friday.

Following the attack on the Okan offshore production platform on Wednesday by the militants, Chevron said it had lost about 105,000 barrels of oil production in three days.

The oil major said the incident had affected about 35,000 barrels per day of its own net crude production, or about 15 per cent of its output in the country.

“Approximately 35,000 bpd of Chevron’s net crude oil production in Nigeria are impacted,” AFP quoted a Chevron’s spokeswoman, Isabel Ordonez, as saying in a statement.

The General Manager, Policy, Government and Public Affairs, Chevron Nigeria Limited, Mr. Deji Haastrup, confirmed the figure.

He said, “This is a very difficult time for the country because it needs the revenue it can get from oil production. Incidents such as this have the potential to impact that. We do hope that it does not seriously affect the country.”

Workers on the pipelines told one of our correspondents that before the attack, they had pumped 28,000 barrels from the Escravos terminal on Thursday.

“Both Warri and Kaduna refineries also got a delivery rate of 903,000 barrels just before the attacks,” the workers who spoke on condition of anonymity said.

The workers said following the attacks, they counted about 10 military air patrols over the pipelines on Saturday.

They also added that it had been difficult for fire fighters to quench the fire from the bombed pipelines.

“The fire is still on and it’s going to be hard to stop it because it’s huge,” the workers said on Saturday night.

It was learnt that following the attacks, which has the potential of adversely affecting the revenue of the country,  the President instructed the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Navy and the Nigerian Air Force to stop the activities of the new group.

A presidential aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said, “The President gave special instruction to the military, especially to the Chief of Naval Staff, that this ugly development of vandals in the Niger Delta should end immediately.”

It was learnt that the President also ordered the Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, to ensure that all waterways and platforms were protected against further attacks by the militants.

The Acting Director, Defence Information, Brig. -Gen. Rabe Abubakar, in an interview with one of our correspondents on Saturday, confirmed that the military had gotten the directive.

He said, “We have the order from the President and we are monitoring the activities of the new group.  All efforts will be made to bring out those behind it.

“The suspects who perpetrated the first vandalism were apprehended and paraded the day before yesterday (Thursday).

“These ones are not going to be different. We are going out on our operation to stop and apprehend them in accordance with the presidential directive.”

Abubakar was not specific about what measures would be taken to address the current situation.

“We are not deterred; nobody is happy about it but we are not deterred from doing what we are doing. And more proactive measures would be put in place.

“What they are doing is complete economic sabotage; it is economic terrorism,” he said.

Buhari had in April threatened that his administration would descend heavily on oil and gas pipelines vandals as well as other saboteurs the same way the nation’s Armed Forces were dealing with members of the Boko Haram sect.

The President who spoke in Beijing during a meeting he had with members of the Nigerian community in China, warned vandals and saboteurs blowing up oil and gas installations in Nigeria to desist immediately or face the  same drastic action being taken against Boko Haram  by the Armed Forces.

PUNCH.

Edo 2016: Oshiomhole, Odubu must not set Edo on fire- Onaiwu

 By Simon Ebegbulem, 

 They call him the ‘Solution’ but his real name is Earl Osaro Onaiwu. He is the Director General of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Governors’ Forum as well as governorship aspirant of the PDP in the forthcoming September 10 election. In this interview with Saturday Vanguard, Onaiwu declares his preparedness to take over the mantle of leadership in Osadebey Avenue after Governor Adams Oshiomhole’s tenure. He also condemned the recent violence that occurred at Auchi when the Deputy Governor of the state, Dr Pius Odubu visited the area to meet with delegates of the party.

 Excerpts:

 We learnt that PDP governorship aspirants were screened last Sunday, how was it? • Earl Osaro Onaiwu

We went for interactive session, it was a family affair. I believe that the four of us are qualified to govern this state but we cannot be candidates at the same time. As for me, I believe I am well equipped to govern the state because I have been involved in practicals in leadership, accountability, transparency and good governance. What I mean by that is I have had working relationships with serving governors. I can tell you that I know how governor Emmanuel Uduaghan built the Airport in Asaba, I know how he built the roads in Delta state. I can also tell you, I know how Governor Mimiko performed in Ondo state, how he built mega hospitals, beautiful roads, street lights. In Jigawa state, I was there when Governor Yuguda built the state stadium, the airport, new schools and many other projects. I can also tell you about Gombe. I have been involved in those things in the past nine years. I am therefore coming to bring that experience back home. I am not coming home to learn. I already have the experience. There are things we do which we call minimal impact and maximum output. I have learnt from my practical how to spend little money and achieve maximum output. I believe that the party will not make the mistake, but will look at the four of us and choose the right person to do the job. And because of the experience I have in working with governors, taking the youths off the street and empowering the women, the elderly, if I have been able to serve PDP governors for eight years, coming to serve our people is not to make money. It is about service, it is about loyalty, I want to come and give to our people what they gave to me. I am going to improve on what the present administration in Edo has done. 

 Do you think you have the structure to pick the ticket of the PDP?

 Party is the structure, a party that is strong, that is not weak is the structure. PDP is the only party that formed a government without any coalition, without agreement and it is in every local Government and every unit in this country. The party has been a strong structure since 1999. The only governor that was able to win election outside PDP was Mimiko because we had these new parties now. If there is anybody who believes that he has the structures as they claim, he should go and try in another party and see if he will win. After Mimiko did it and he won, any body who says he is a super star should try his popularity. I have been a faithful party man, I have been serving the party since 1999. PDP is the structure and anybody who has another structure should test it by running for the governorship under the umbrella of another party and test his popularity. For instance, we have over eight governorship aspirants in the APC and it is because the APC has formed government here, but if those aspirants feel they are popular let them try another political party and test their popularity. So PDP is the structure not the individual.

 In what areas do you think that Oshiomhole has not done well which you will want to do? 

 People criticize governors, not just Oshiomhole. Governance is a thankless job, people will always criticize you no matter what you have done. I can tell you for example that Jigawa state governor, while he was in office, lived in a three bedroom bungalow. In Abuja he stayed in Garki, he did not live in Asokoro or Maitama but people still criticized him. He transformed Jigawa state, but people still wrote petitions against him and he was dragged before the EFCC. Look at Bauchi state governor, when he took over in Bauchi, the civil servants were using Keke Napep, but by the time he left Bauchi every civil servant was riding a car and they built houses. He turned Bauchi around but people still say negative things about him. When you are a governor, no matter how hard you try, people will criticize you. Do you know that some people criticized Ogbemudia, despite all he did for the old Bende state? Are you trying to tell me that there is nothing Lucky Igbinedion administration did in Edo state, but you saw how they treated him. People have started criticizing Oshiomhole already and they will criticize him more when he leaves office.

 Odubu-Oshiomhole 

For me, the APC government in the state has done their best, we have seen their eight years, the PDP government which I will form by the special grace of God, will improve on what Oshiomhole has done and we will bring the PDP manifesto into play. The only area I frowned at by this government in Edo state is increasing the minimum wage at the tail end of the administration when we know that things are really bad with the economy. Though we know they have done well in boosting the IGR of the state but I believe the timing was not proper. I don’t believe in condemning a government out rightly or cancelling projects a previous government initiated unless they are not in the best interest of the people. I cannot say this man has failed or this one has failed because even at home, our wives complain about us, our children complain about us, no body is perfect. But when we form government, we will look at their policies and see what they have done wrong or right. The things they did wrong we will correct them while the good ones will be perfected. If they are building roads or schools they could not compete we will complete them because those things do not belong to Oshiomhole, they belong to the state. 

 Edo people cried for change after PDP ruled here for ten years and that brought Oshiomhole, do you think the people will vote for PDP this time around seeing what Oshiomhole has done? 

 I will not agree with you that the years of PDP were completely wasted. Don’t forget that that was the beginning of our democracy, we were testing democracy then so you should expect many mistakes. Governors who came at that time had that problem. Like I said earlier, government job is a thankless job, so people must talk. But for me, governance is about continuity and we must look at what is on ground so we can make progress. If I am sworn in as governor, if I don’t continue with Oshiomhole’s project people will say he failed but that may not be the case. But if you continue with those projects no body will say that governor failed. If Oshiomhole had continued with the projects inherited from the PDP people will not say PDP failed woefully. Whatever a previous government has done a new government should complete it as long as it is a project that will improve the lives of our people. For me, there is no benchmark to qualify the PDP’s ten years and APC’s eight years because it is about continuity. And whether the PDP will get the state back, yes we can. Because I am talking to market women, our youths, students, everybody. We are very optimistic that we will win in this state particularly when the APC at the center has not done well. The APC here does not have anything thing to campaign with that they have done at the Federal level so when we get into the elections we will have a lot to say about them. Buhari said he is fighting corruption but you know there are countries who give amnesty to corruption. If you say I have stolen money, charge me to court, not crucifying me in the papers. We hear every day that they have recovered money from people, let them publicly name the people they recovered money from and where the money is kept. The APC government as at today is anti people, look at it today everything has gone up, the price of food has gone up, so I don’t know what they will campaign with in the coming election in Edo state. 

Will there be free and fair PDP primary?

 We have insisted on transparent primaries, we have all agreed that we want to go to primaries. I have said that if we go for free and fair primaries and I am defeated, although I know I will not be defeated, I will embrace whoever is the winner. I know I am going to win so I will expect other aspirants to embrace me when I win the nomination. I am very optimistic because of my stability in the party, my sincerity of purpose, my dedication and service to the party. I know I will win the primaries and win for the party. People are already talking that I have no baggage so if I win the APC will find it difficult to campaign against me. Because we really do not need candidates that will create more problem for the party, that will be suicidal.

 How do you see the burning ing issues between Oshiomhole and his deputy? 

 I condemn that incident. Edo state is not known to be a violent state. Both of them must not set Edo on fire. I have asked the Commissioner of Police to please call a meeting of political parties and all the aspirants so that we can talk because some of the aspirants are moving around with thugs and it is not good. Edo is not a state of hooliganism but the level of hooliganism that we are witnessing already when the election has not come is scaring. We cannot go into a general election with this kind of tension, we must reduce the tension because if you want to be governor, you will be governor of the people so when you kill everybody how will you govern. Development cannot come when there is no peace in a state. I believe in peace, I am an apostle of peace. Even though we heard conflicting reports as to what really happened in Auchi but it is totally unacceptable to see that level of violence. We heard that the deputy wanted to go and intimidate Oshiomhole in his domain but Oshiomhole’s people chased him away. But the Deputy’s people said the attack was masterminded against the Deputy, so we don’t really know the truth but that is their own in-house problem. Whoever caused that violence, I condemned it totally. we don’t need violence in the state. What creates such tension is when politicians are desperate, giving money to thugs to go and cause mayhem. If you look at my campaign, each time I travel to a place you will never see thugs around me, I am a peaceful person and that is why everybody around me wears white, meaning purity. You cannot see my people shooting gun to scare any body and that I believe created the problem in Auchi. But both the governor and his deputy must not drag Edo people into their problem.

Vanguard

MY CANDID LETTER TO THE SENATE PRESIDENT

PENDULUM By DELE MOMODU

Your Excellency, I’m convinced the time has come to write you this letter despite the fact that I have some measure of access to you. I decided to do this in order to tackle the mischief makers who believe I’m your very close friend and as such must be a rabid supporter of yours. I have been accused of all sorts of garbage including being paid heavy sums of money from your bottomless pocket. I’m aware that most of these guys can never believe that anyone could stand up for principle without pecuniary gains. But before I go into the meat of this letter, I need to state my background briefly as I’m sure you don’t even know me well enough to understand and appreciate my socio-political trajectory.

I have read all sorts about you and I and it is necessary sometimes to put the records straight for the sake of doubting Thomases who can never see anything good in others. You were a Governor for eight years and I can’t remember ever meeting you one on one. The only time I believe we exchanged physical pleasantries would have been at the 70^th birthday dinner hosted in honour of your mother-in-law, Erelu Ojuolape Ojora at The Eko Hotel and Suites in Lagos some years back. I remember seeing and greeting you and a few of the former and current Governors present including Olusegun Osoba, James Ibori, Babatunde Fashola and others.

I would later see one of the pictures I took at the party and read many years after that I was busy drinking champagne with James Ibori who was being wanted for several cases of corruption and so on. I could not believe my eyes because the picture showed clearly that I was chatting with Chief Olusegun Osoba while Ibori minding his business behind me but someone needed to rubbish me for reasons I could never fathom. Not just that, Ibori was still a Governor and would I run away from a function or refuse to greet people so as not to be accused of hobnobbing with corrupt leaders?

The next time I interfaced with you was after you employed Mr Bamikole Omishore who was my American campaign coordinator in Washington DC, when I joined the Presidential race from 2010-2011. I was happy that you got such a brilliant young man to manage your social media. But you and I got closer for only one reason in the past one year plus because we both campaigned vigorously for Major General Muhammadu Buhari and you and Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi were the best of pals and he has been my friend long before he became Governor of Rivers State. I loved the way you, Amaechi, Kwankwaso, Wamako, Tambuwal, Atiku Abubakar, and others took the bold decision that would change the course of Nigerian history for better or for worse when you abandoned PDP despite threats and harassments. I must have met you about twice in your Lagos home to strategise and was particularly impressed with your ability to rally the likes of Aliko Dangote, Femi Otedola, Wale Tinubu and others who ordinarily would have felt a need to support the government in power. I was informed you were able to raise some stupendous amount of money during and after the APC primaries. We talked more on phone and you assured me constantly that everything was on course. The rest is history.

However trouble started as soon as victory came. I knew you had only one ambition and that was to become the Senate President. I thought that was a legitimate dream but did not envisage that it would turn out to be your albatross. Politics in Africa, and probably elsewhere, is a deadly game. You’ve fought several battles in your life but I doubt if you ever bargained for this one. It all started like a joke. Your party apparatchik was obviously opposed to your candidacy. You were equally determined to realise your life ambition. One of the rumours then was that you could not be trusted with power and that in the next four years you would have become unstoppable if you decide to go headlong for the Presidency. I’m not a member of your party so I could not understand what the hullabaloo was all about. The manner you emerged caught everyone unawares. The biggest problem was the fact that you sought and got the unequivocal support of members of the PDP in the Senate and even did a deal that made it possible for one of them to become your deputy. That was the hara-kiri you committed and your enemies would never forgive you for that.

One thing led to another, and things fell apart and the centre could no longer hold. You probably underestimated the resolve of your enemies to cut you down to size. The next we saw were allegations of impropriety levelled against you at the Code of Conduct Bureau. You were said to have been dodgy in your assets declaration forms. Anyway, it seemed you had touched the tiger by the tail and it remained to be seen how you would wriggle out of the monumental trouble you had inadvertently courted by your rebelliousness and bellicosity. I was personally irked that we were back to the Nuhu Ribadu days and I voiced my opinion openly. I was not defending you but defending the rights of man. I had thought naively that APC knew what it was getting into with an ill-assorted assemblage of different characters from varied backgrounds. I presumed there was an accord that all sinners became saints once they migrated and amalgamated with APC. The deluge of immigrants from PDP convinced me that President Buhari would have to sanctify the pollutants if any in the new party. Not once did I hear of any objection to the proliferation so I assumed all was well.

I never said you should not be prosecuted but that we should discourage a situation where every successive government uses anti-corruption camouflage to punish its enemies. This position was not meant to protect you but to discourage a perpetuation of such tradition. I wrote copiously against the harassment of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu when he went on similar trial. I had demonstrated publicly against the Yar’Adua cabal when they tried to stop Dr Goodluck Jonathan from assuming power when his boss was terminally ill. I remember also when I wrote an open letter to Mallam Nuhu Ribadu in 2007 and how I was viciously attacked by his supporters. But what happened after? Nuhu himself was forced into exile as a victim of impunity. Mallam Nasir El-Rufai and The Emir of Kano Muhammadu Sanusi, formerly known as Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, became veritable victims of impunity and I was vehemently opposed to their ordeals.

I needed to state this background very well as a way of documenting my modest contribution to the discouragement of impunity as a former victim myself under the military regimes. Now that it seems many Nigerians are comfortable with setting fire to an entire village in order to catch some rats, I will not belabour the issue further.  Please, permit me to now address the case at hand. I want you to know that no matter what you do henceforth, the case against you will go on. The earlier you resign yourself to fate the better. You have done all you can to prevent this from happening and the time has come for you to defend yourself as best as you can. I understand the psychological trauma you are under. You are in utter shock that a party you laboured with others to build and nurture has decided to treat you as a pariah. You are stupefied at the sudden turn of events.

But let me advise you, the Judiciary is still the best arbiter and if you’re truly innocent, you will be vindicated but if you are found guilty after exhausting all legal options available in the land you must take a bow and accept the judgment with equanimity. Even if the APC decides to sweep this under the carpet, someone may still bring it up tomorrow. It is in your best interest to face the bullet and hope for a miracle. I’m not one of those who have written off the Nigerian Judiciary. I will also not join those who have already convicted you in the court of public opinion. I’m a Christian and I know none of us can cast the first stone and we should be careful not to gloat over anyone’s misfortune.

Please, note that you must do nothing to pervert the course of justice by enacting hurriedly-packaged laws ostensibly meant to block your trial. It will further diminish you and make your sympathisers recoil in shame. To whom much is given, much is expected. God has been very kind to you and as a Muslim you must submit yourself only to the will of Allah, the only one who can forgive our sins. Who knows what the outcome may be at the end of the day?

I beg you in the name of God to take courage. Stand like a man and carry your heavy cross.

A TOAST TO FOLUKE ABDUL-RASAQ AT 60

One of the very quiet but powerful achievers in Nigeria today is a lady I admire and respect so much, Mrs Foluke Kafayat Abdul-Rasaq who is marking her 60^th birthday today. I was stunned beyond words when I came across her resume recently. It is noteworthy that despite her intimidating credentials, she remains humble and focussed.

Mrs Abdul-Rasaq holds a Master of Science in Banking and Finance from the University of Ibadan and is an alumnus of the Harvard Business School, Boston, USA. She is a non-Executive Director of Africa’s global bank UBA and has been the Chairman of the bank’s Board Credit Committee. As far back as 1997, she was Commissioner for Finance in Lagos State. She later served as an Executive Director of ML Securities, a stock brokerage firm.

A passionate lover of education, she set up the famous Bridge House College in Ikoyi, Lagos, an independent private sixth form co-educational institution. She is happily married with children and grandchildren.

Please, help me raise a toast to this virtuous woman.  ​

ThisDay

A CANDID RESPONSE FROM SENATE PRESIDENT TO PENDULUM

RIGHT OF REPLY

PENDULUM BY DELE MOMODU

By DR ABUBAKAR BUKOLA SARAKI

My dear brother Dele, let me thank you most sincerely for your article last weekend, “My Candid Letter to Saraki.” I take everything you said in that article to heart and I must commend you for your candidness indeed and the sincerity of your intentions.

As you said in your article, you are someone I have known more by reputation than by any personal relationship, until recently when we struck up some personal acquaintance based on our shared political interests, especially during the last presidential election.  However, I understand why you had to sound so defensive for knowing me at all and had to publicly map the boundaries of our relationship. We have got to that point in our country when we no longer believe that anyone could stand for anything based on principles and convictions alone. Moreover, in the growing culture of media crucifixion and presumed guilt; it is rare to find a voice like yours that calls for fairness and justice.

I would have simply sent you a text message or call you up for your candid advice to me, which I take seriously. But I feel the need to make some clarifications on some of the issues you raised. One of them was that in seeking to be Senate President, I struck a deal with the PDP and made it possible for one of them to be the Deputy Senate President. I know this is the dominant narrative out there, but it is far from the truth.

I did not do any deal with the PDP. I did not have to because even before the PDP Senators as a group took the decision to support my candidature on the eve of the inauguration of the 8th Senate, 22 PDP Senators had already written a letter supporting me. What I did not envisage was a situation where some members of my party would not be in the chambers that day, especially when the clerk had already received a proclamation from the President authorizing the inauguration of the Senate. Pray, if a team refused to turn up for a scheduled match and was consequently walked over, would it be fair to blame the team that turned up and claimed victory? I believe those that made it possible for PDP to claim the DSP position were those who decided to hold a meeting with APC senators elsewhere at the time they ought to be in the chambers. What the PDP Senators did was to take advantage of their numerical strength at the material time. They simply lined up behind Senator Ike Ikweremadu while those of us from APC voted for Senator Ali Ndume. It was a game of numbers, and we were hopelessly outnumbered. If the PDP had nominated their own candidate for the Senate Presidency position that day, they would have won. It was as simple as that.

Secondly, I don’t know if you were aware that in the build up to Senate inauguration, the National Working Committee of the APC sent two signals. The first signal specified how leadership positions in the National Assembly have been zoned. While we were trying to give effect to this decision, the second signal came, which contained names of people to which these zoned position had been allocated. What was not acknowledged was that the President of the Senate is not an executive president. He is primarily one of 109 senators. Therefore, I cannot decide by myself who gets what in the Senate. Therefore, when they said I defied party directive in the choice of principal officers, they are invariably ascribing to me the power that I did not have.

My dear brother, most people talk about the Senate Presidency position, but this was not my only offence. I have also been accused of helping to frustrate some people’s opportunity to emerge as President Muhammadu  Buhari’s running mate. But I have no problem with anybody. My concern was that it would not be politically smart of us to run with a Muslim-Muslim ticket. I doubt if we would have won the election if we had done this, especially after the PDP had successfully framed us a Muslim party. I felt we were no longer in 1993. Perhaps, more than ever before, Nigerians are more sensitive to issues of religious balancing. This, my brother, was my original sin. What they say to themselves, among other things, was that if he could conspire against our ambition, then he must not realize his own ambition as well. For me however, I have no regrets about this. I only stood for what I believed was in the best interest of the party and in the best interest of Nigeria.

Now to the substantive issue of my trial. As you rightly noted, this trial is not about corruption. And I am happy that since my trial started, people who have followed the proceedings have now understood better what the whole thing is about. I have had opportunity to declare my assets four times since 2003. Over those years, the Code of Conduct Bureau had examined my claims. There was no time that they raised any issues with me on any item contained in my declarations over those twelve years. This is why you should be surprised that while I am being tried by the Code of Conduct Tribunal, the witness and the evidence supplied against me were all from EFCC.

Like you, I have an abiding faith in the judiciary. May God forbid the day that we would give up on our judicial system. However, the onus is not on me to prove that I have confidence in the judiciary; the burden is on my prosecutors to prove to the world that justice is done in my case. If the process of fighting corruption is itself corrupt, then whatever victory is recorded would remain tainted and puerile!

Some people have wondered, why has Saraki been “jumping” from one court to another instead of facing his trial? To those people, I would say that I have only gone to those courts in search of justice. Strange things have happened, and they are still happening. For example, Section 3(d) of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act states that the Bureau shall refer any breach or non-compliance to the Tribunal. However, where the person concerned makes a written admission of the breach, no reference to the Tribunal shall be necessary. It was on this basis that the case against Asiwaju Bola Tinubu was dismissed in 2011, by this same judge in this same Tribunal on the grounds that he was not given an opportunity to deny or admit to any breach before he was brought before the tribunal. This was the ruling that I relied on in making my case. But what did the judge say? That he had judged in error in 2011 and he had since realized his error and departed from it. My question is whether a Tribunal of first instance has the power to reverse itself. I should expect that everyone would be worried if justice is applied differently to different people. However, in spite of my fears, I remain hopeful. Why? Because the judiciary does not end with this Tribunal.

Do you know the genesis of my real problems with President Goodluck Jonathan? I have had a touchy relationship with him, but the turning point was in September 2011 when I moved a motion on the floor of the Senate that exposed the N2.3 trillion fuel subsidy racket. I remain proud that I was the Senator that blew the lid on the most elaborate corruption scheme ever in this country. But after that I became a marked man. My security was withdrawn. I was invited and re-invited by the EFCC and the Special Fraud Unit. I was even declared wanted at a point. I believe I am still one of the most investigated former governors in this country. I have no doubt that if the Jonathan government was able to find anything against me, they would not have allowed me to go unpunished.

Let me make this point clearly. I do not expect to be shielded from prosecution because of my contribution to APC, if there was genuine basis for such action to be taken against me. But I have every reason to expect not to be persecuted by the party that I contributed so much to build. The New PDP may not have given APC victory in 2015, but it was an important factor in the dynamics that produced that victory. And with all sense of modesty, I was an important factor in the formation of New PDP; in leading that group to the APC; in ensuring our group’s support for the candidate during the primaries and in mobilizing substantial resources for the election. For these, I have not expected any special compensation. Rather, I only expect to be treated like every loyal party member and accorded the right to freely aspire!

Some people have complained that I have been taken Senators with me to my trial. But I did not force them to follow me. The Senators have freely accompanied me to the Tribunal not because they are loyal to me as Abubakar Bukola Saraki, but because they are committed to the principle that produced me as the President of the Senate. The same principle that produced Ike Ekweremadu as Deputy Senate President and produced Ali Ndume as Majority Leader. They see all of us in the Senate leadership as manifestation of their jealously guarded right to freely choose their own leaders. Because they know they made us their leaders without any external interference; they are confident that they retain the power to remove us whenever they so wish. They also know what this trial is all about. They believe I am being victimized because they have expressed their right to choose their own leadership. This is why I am not in any way perturbed by my absence in the chambers during this trial. Because I was not imposed on the Senate, I feel confident that the Senate will protect its own choice whether I am present or not. It is never about me. It is about the independence of the legislature. It has always been so since 1999. It is so today and it would be so in 2019, it would be so in 2023, and as long as we practice a democracy that operates on the principle of separation of powers.

My dear brother, let me end by observing that I am not alone in this trial. On trial with me in this process is the entire judicial system. On trial with me are our entire anti-corruption institutions and our avowed commitment to honestly fight corruption. On trial with me is our party’s promise to depart from the ways of the past, a promise that Nigerians voted for. And I dare say, on trial with me is our media; and their ethical commitment to report fairly and objectively. In the end, it is my earnest hope that whatever we do will ultimately ennoble our country.

Dr. Saraki  is President of the Senate, Federal Republic of Nigeria

ThisDay

Saraki: My Original Sin Was Opposing Muslim/Muslim Ticket in the APC

  I have every reason to expect not to be persecuted by the party I contributed so much to build

By Yemi Adebowale

The President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki has, for the first time, opened up on the intrigues of his ongoing trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal over asset declaration issues and the role of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), saying that his refusal to support a Muslim/Muslim ticket for the APC in the 2015 presidential election is largely responsible for his ordeal.

Saraki who wrote a reply to an earlier article published last Saturday by Dele Momodu in his Pendulum column said the position he took on the running mate issue was his “original sin” and those whose ambition were truncated by the position had been doing everything possible to frustrate him.

He said: “I have also been accused of helping to frustrate some people’s opportunity to emerge as President Muhammadu  Buhari’s running mate. But I have no problem with anybody. My concern was that it would not be politically smart of us to run with a Muslim-Muslim ticket. I doubt if we would have won the election if we had done this, especially after the PDP had successfully framed us a Muslim party. I felt we were no longer in 1993. Perhaps, more than ever before, Nigerians are more sensitive to issues of religious balancing. This was my original sin.

“What they say to themselves, among other things, was that ‘if he could conspire against our ambition, then he must not realise his own ambition as well.’ For me however, I have no regrets about this. I only stood for what I believed was in the best interest of the party and in the best interest of Nigeria. We have got to that point in our country when we no longer believe that anyone could stand for anything based on principles and convictions alone. Moreover, in the growing culture of media crucifixion and presumed guilt; it is rare to find a voice like yours that calls for fairness and justice.”

Saraki also chided his party for the role it has played so far in his trial. He said: “Let me make this point clearly. I do not expect to be shielded from prosecution because of my contribution to APC, if there was genuine basis for such action to be taken against me. But I have every reason to expect not to be persecuted by the party that I contributed so much to build. The New PDP may not have given APC victory in 2015, but it was an important factor in the dynamics that produced that victory.

“And with all sense of modesty, I was an important factor in the formation of New PDP; in leading that group to the APC; in ensuring our group’s support for the candidate during the primaries and in mobilising substantial resources for the election. For these, I have not expected any special compensation. Rather, I only expect to be treated like every loyal party member and accorded the right to freely aspire.”

On allegations that in seeking to be Senate President, he struck a deal with the PDP and made it possible for one of them to be the Deputy Senate President, Saraki said he knew it was the dominant narrative across the nation, but it was far from the truth.

He continued: “I did not do any deal with the PDP. I did not have to because even before the PDP Senators as a group took the decision to support my candidature on the eve of the inauguration of the 8th Senate, 22 PDP Senators had already written a letter supporting me. What I did not envisage was a situation where some members of my party would not be in the chambers that day, especially when the clerk had already received a proclamation from the President authorising the inauguration of the Senate.

“Pray, if a team refused to turn up for a scheduled match and was consequently walked over, would it be fair to blame the team that turned up and claimed victory? I believe those that made it possible for PDP to claim the Deputy Senate President position were those who decided to hold a meeting with APC senators elsewhere at the time they ought to be in the chambers. What the PDP Senators did was to take advantage of their numerical strength at the material time. They simply lined up behind Senator Ike Ikweremadu while those of us from APC voted for Senator Ali Ndume. It was a game of numbers, and we were hopelessly outnumbered. If the PDP had nominated their own candidate for the Senate Presidency position that day, they would have won. It was as simple as that.”

He said further that his ongoing trial was not about corruption: “I am happy that since my trial started, people who have followed the proceedings have now understood better what the whole thing is about. I have had opportunity to declare my assets four times since 2003. Over those years, the Code of Conduct Bureau had examined my claims. There was no time that they raised any issues with me on any item contained in my declarations over those twelve years. This is why you should be surprised that while I am being tried by the Code of Conduct Tribunal, the witness and the evidence supplied against me were all from the EFCC.

“Like you, I have an abiding faith in the judiciary. May God forbid the day that we would give up on our judicial system. However, the onus is not on me to prove that I have confidence in the judiciary; the burden is on my prosecutors to prove to the world that justice is done in my case. If the process of fighting corruption is itself corrupt, then whatever victory is recorded would remain tainted and puerile.

“Let me end by observing that I am not alone in this trial. On trial with me in this process is the entire judicial system. On trial with me is our entire anti-corruption institutions and our avowed commitment to honestly fight corruption. On trial with me is our party’s promise to depart from the ways of the past, a promise that Nigerians voted for. And I dare say, on trial with me is our media and their ethical commitment to report fairly and objectively. In the end, it is my earnest hope that whatever we do will ultimately ennoble our country.”

ThisDay

Twist in Senate peace moves as senators form G77

*To remove EFCC from presidency control

*Vow to back Saraki

*To confront older senators over juicy committees

 By Henry Umoru.

 STRONG indications emerged early yesterday of a hardening of position by senators who have coalesced into a Group of 77 drawn from various parties and camps to protect what they have dubbed as the integrity of the Senate.Senate5The new G77 which had its maiden meeting on Thursday night has meanwhile launched moves to extricate the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC from the control of the presidency in the light of claims by the senators that it had become a tool of the administration.The G77 comprising mostly of new senators it was gathered, also up in arms against older senators who they claim have monopolised the juicy committees of the Senate to the detriment of the newer ones. The maiden meeting of the G77 was hosted by Senate Minority Leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio who incidentally was not at home at the beginning of the meeting. The meeting monitored by Saturday Vanguard commenced shortly after 7.00 p.m. on Thursday and ended just before midnight following which some senators also broke up into groups. 36 senators were physically present at the meeting which inside sources disclosed has a membership roll of 77, almost all of them new senators. Remarkably, the group is also putting forward itself as a bulwark for the embattled Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki with members vowing to defend him against what they alleged as the persecution of the executive branch of government. The formation of the new group came barely 24 hours after senators resolved in a closed session on Wednesday to put aside all acrimonies and project the institution as one. In that light the senators it was learnt resolved to withdraw all cases against the election of Saraki as the Senate President. It was also resolved that as a sop to critics that the Senate would withdraw the amendment bill to the Code of Conduct Tribunal Act. However, that agreement ran into trouble at the G77 meeting on Thursday as senators in the group resolved to push forward an amendment bill to the law establishing the EFCC to among other things remove the president’s right as appointing power and transfer same to the National Judicial Council, NJC. Besides, the amendment aims to ensure that the minimum qualification for the office of executive chairman of the EFCC would be a Deputy Director General of Police, DIG. A senator from the former Bendel State is to present the amendment bill which would be expected to be fast tracked. The senators at the Thursday meeting particularly lamented what they claimed as the way and manner the EFCC was being used to hound what they claimed as perceived opponents of the administration. The case of former governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa and his son was given as a particular instance at the meeting as it was claimed that the EFCC rushed to file charges without investigation. As part of the amendment the EFCC would be compelled to finish investigations before filing charges against anyone, a source at the meeting disclosed. Noting the determination of the new senators to get their own entitlements in the chamber, a senator who attended the meeting told Saturday Vanguard that the group would frustrate what they described as the over ambitious nature of the older senators who are anointing themselves as those that will take over from the embattled Senate President, Senator Saraki. The source also disclosed that the G77 came into existence to frustrate any gang up against Senator Saraki’s leadership of the Senate. Among those sighted at the meeting were Senators Samuel Anyanwu, PDP, Imo East; Clifford Ordia, PDP, Edo Central; Matthew Urhoghide, PDP, Edo South; Ben Murray Bruce, PDP, Bayelsa East; Dino Melaye, APC, Kogi West; Biodun Olujimi, PDP, Ekiti South; Isa Misau, APC, Bauchi Central, among others including Akpabio who came into the meeting not too long before it ended.

Vanguard.