By Ndubuisi Orji
How long can the Senate President, Bukola Saraki still hang on to power as the leader of the National Assembly?
He is being tried at the Court of Conduct Tribunal(CCT) for alleged perjury and false declaration of assets, during his second tenure as governor of Kwara State.
The former governor had explored all legal means available to stop his trial at the CCT, pursuing his case up till the Supreme Court. But the apex court said he must have his day in court.
Analysts believe that owing to what befell former leaders of the National Assembly who got entangled in corruption cases, Saraki has a tough battle ahead of him.
Already, the pressure is mounting. Lagos lawyer, Mr Femi Falana in the aftermath of the Supreme Court ruling on a suit brought before it by Saraki to stop his trial at the CCT , had equally asked the embattled senate president to resign.
Falana had in an interview with a national daily said Saraki should resign as senate president so as to preserve the integrity of the National Assembly.
“Having undertaken to prove his innocence at the Code of Conduct Tribunal, Senator Saraki should resign so as to preserve the integrity of the National Assembly.
“When Senators Chuba Okadigbo and Adolphus Wabara were indicted, they were made to step down as senate presidents,” Falana had stated.
Some members of the Red Chamber were said to have met with Saraki lask week and advised him to resign. The senators, it was gathered also gave him the option of naming his successor from amongst loyalists in the Senate. As it appears, there is an increasing pressure on Saraki to resign in order to protect the integrity of the Senate which he presides over.
Recently, some members of the Senate had reportedly met with him to consider resigning to enable him concentrate on his trial.
Keen watchers argue that if the circumstances that led to the fall of some of his predecessors are anything to go by, then the former Kwara governor has a very serious battle ahead of him.
Although Saraki is presumed innocent until proven guilty, analysts believe that there is pressure for him to quit. They think that it would be a rare feat if he survives until the end of his trial at the CCT.
In February, members of the Senate Unity Forum(SUF) had also called for the Senate President’s resignation on account of his pending case.
Although members of the group, who have been at daggers drawn with Saraki since his emergence as senate president mended fences with him recently, it is not unlikely that they would join the “Saraki-Must- Go” train, if it would give it access to the leadership of the Senate. Saraki’s travail was recently worsened by Panamapaper revelations, which listed him amongst Nigerians, who have secret businesses in the latin American country. But, Saraki has explained that the companies in question belong to his wife’s family, which he is required to declare.
Analysts argue that with the way things are presently, the clock may have begun to tick for the Senate President.
Since Monday, April 4 when the trial started at the tribunal, the first prosecution witness, Michael Wetkast had regaled the nation with startling revelations on how Saraki allegedly abused his office as governor.
Saraki had served as governor of Kwara State from 2003 to 2011 and emerged as president of the Senate on June 8, with the backing of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) senators to the consternation of the national leadership of his party, the All Progressives Congress(APC).
The ruling party had nominated Senator Ahmed Lawan as its preferred candidate for the seat, but the former Kwara governor beat him to it.
Having lost out in the leadership of the Red Chamber, the APC nominated Lawan for the position of Senate Leader but Saraki was not comfortable with the arrangement, saying that his hands were tied in the matter.
Since then, neither Saraki nor the Senate has known real peace.
Following his arraignment before the CCT last September, Saraki described his trial as politically motivated. He said it is orchestrated by those who are not happy that he is the Senate president.
In a statement by his Special Adviser (Media),Yusuf Olaniyonu, he said his political opponents want to settle scores with him through the CCT trial.
“We want to emphasise the fact that this is not part of the war against corruption, but using state institutions to fight political opponents and seeking to achieve through the back door what some people cannot get through democratic process.
“We need to caution here that in a desperate bid to settle political scores and nail imaginary enemies, we should not destroy our democratic institutions and heat the polity for selfish reason. Let us all learn from history,”he said.
Similarly, The PDP believes Saraki’s travails is political.
The party pointedly blamed President Muhammadu Buhari for Saraki’s ordeal. In a recent statement by its national publicity secretary, Olisa Metuh in the wake of Saraki’s arraignment at the CCT, the party accused the President of being desperate to remove the senate president.
Also, the House of Representatives sought a political solution to the issue. The minority leader, Leo Ogor moved a motion calling on the speaker, Yakubu Dogara to meet with President Buhari to explore the possibility of a political solution to Saraki’s travails.
But the political solution also did not work, as Buhari refused to intervene in Saraki’s trial.
The President in a recent interview with Sahara TV was quoted to have said:”What has the president got to do with another person. The case is in court. Do Nigerians expect me to tell the Chief Justice to tell which ever court that they shouldn’t try the Senate President? Do Nigerians know about the constitution of their own country? The judiciary, the legislator and the executives have got their own roles within the constitution of the federal republic of Nigeria? Then how do they expect me to interfere? I can be successfully impeached if I do it”
Recall that allegations of corruption have been the nemesis of leaders of the National Assembly since the inception of the current political dispensation. Most of these corruption charges are never pursued to its logical conclusion.
In 1999, the fall of the then Senate President, Evan Enwerem started with speculations that he falsified his record. This gave rise to the controversy whether his first name is Evan or Evans.
With time, the issue assumed a life of its own and his political foes capitalised on that and mobilised for his removal. Not longer after, Enwerem, a Third Republic governor of Imo State was sacked as Senate President.
His successor, the late Senator Chuba Okadigbo suffered the same fate. The charismatic former senate president was at the height of his reign when he ran into troubled waters.
He was accused of corruption in the award of contracts in the National Assembly. He did not survive the onslaught against him.
Just like in the case of late Enwerem, Okadigbo who had assumed the seat in a blaze of glory was shoved aside with ignominy.
Similarly, Senator Adolphus Wabara was forced to resign his position as the president of the fifth senate following allegations that he collected N55million from the then Education Minister, Fabian Osuji, to jack up the budget of the Federal Ministry of Education.
It was same fate that befell former speaker of the House of Representatives, Patricia Etteh. Etteh was forced to resign based on alleged corruption.
But so far, the Senate President seems to be riding the storm very well. Apparently buoyed by the support of majority of the senators, he announced last week that he would not resign.
Late last year, 81 out of the 109 senators had passed a vote of confidence on Saraki, his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu and other principal officers appointed by the various caucuses of the chamber, to run the affairs of the 8th Senate.
But for how long can these senators actually stick with the Senate President. Can Saraki actually survive the pressure on him to resign that is bound to increase as his CCT trial continues?