By Lukman Amus
The opposition has alleged that the current wind of change may move from the judiciary to the National Assembly (NASS) this week.premier has learnt.
Speculations that the NASS leadership may be swept became rife since President Muhammadu Buhari suspended Justice Walter Onnoghen last Friday at the request of the Code Conduct Tribunal (CCT).
But the opposition claimed those allegedly plotting the fall of some principal officers of the National Assembly based their stance on such officers having issues relating to asset declaration, which led to Onnoghen’s fall.
The opposition parties and coalition, yesterday, alerted Nigerians of fresh plots to remove the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki and the Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu. The two principal officers had asset declaration issues raised against them. Even though Saraki has been cleared by the Supreme Court, those allegedly pushing for his removal, argued that he is not a “sacred cow.”
For the House of Representatives Speaker, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, his traducers want him to go for allegedly turning to a pain on the neck of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bauchi State.
Dogara is reported to have formed a coalition with other political parties to ensure the defeat of governor Mohammed Abubakar of Bauchi State at the forthcoming governorship election.
Ahead of the National Assembly reconvening to deliberate on Onnoghen’s suspension by the president, the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) said it has uncovered plot to impeach the leadership of NASS on Tuesday in order to forestall the federal legislature’s debate on Onnoghen’s fate.
At a press conference in Abuja, CUPP’s spokesman, Ikenga Ugochinyere, said that the plot was being hatched by the All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership in conjunction with some of the ruling party’s lawmakers.
He said that the plan to sack the National Assembly leadership involved ensuring that Saraki, Dogara, and Ekweremadu are prevented from entering the NASS complex tomorrow.
Ugochinyere claimed that some APC senators had been mobilised for the action with the sum of $70, 000 each while their counterparts in the House of Representatives were given $40, 000 each.
He hinted the CUPP would mobilise to the National Assembly complex as early as 6am tomorrow to ensure that the plotters do not succeed with their plan.
He said: “The CUPP is once again raising alarm having received incontrovertible facts over a fresh plot that has been hatched and which has received the go-ahead nod of President Muhammadu Buhari for a violent, undemocratic, unlawful, illegal and demonic takeover of the leadership of both chambers of the National Assembly on Tuesday, 29th January, 2019.
“The APC-led federal government is of the firm belief that Tuesday is their best and last chance to effect the changes as their control of the judiciary will be put to use to ensure there is no reversal of justice for the present occupants.
“The Senate will reconvene on Tuesday to discuss the suspension of the CJN, Justice Walter Onnoghen by President Muhammadu Buhari.
“The APC is ready to do whatever they want and destroy the very fulcrum of our constitutional democracy on Tuesday and have vowed, ‘it is tomorrow or never’. The judicial coup which they believed was supposed to be more difficult went very easily beyond their imagination hence the need to complete the takeover of the National Assembly immediately so that the distraction of the election campaigns will be put to use,” CUPP said.
Ugochinyere added that the government had resolved to make some major positive announcements today to deflect the minds of Nigerians from the move on Tuesday.
According to him, Senator Ahmed Lawan will be announced as “the Senate President, Senator Hope Uzodimma as the Deputy Senate President and Senator Godswill Akpabio as the Senate Leader.
“While in the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila will be announced as the Speaker of the House and Hon, Abdulmimin Jibrin will be made the Deputy Speaker.”
The CUPP spokesman further said that “to ensure the plot goes successfully, the federal government has mapped out the sum of $70, 000 for each Senator and $40, 000 for each House member for what it called welfare since majority of them will be compelled to be in town suddenly.”
The alleged bribes, he asserted, had been forwarded for distribution to the APC lawmakers as they return to their chambers, adding that “the money amounting to $15million ($8million for the House and $7 million for the Senate) was sourced from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), a commercial bank and a company owned by a member of the alleged cabal in the presidency.
“Nigerians are hereby put on notice that these coupists are plotting that Senators Saraki, Ekweremmadu, Ben Bruce, Dino Melaye, Abiodun Olujimi, Dogara, Hon. Kingsley Chinda, Hon. Nnena Ukeje among others would be stopped by security agents from gaining entrance into the National Assembly.
“Thugs have been mobilised from Plateau, Kwara and Kogi States to mount protest at the gates of the National Assembly and have the approval to attack and disperse any group that come to hold a counter rally.
“We hereby reiterate our call; if you are sleeping- wake up! If you are eating – stop! If you are playing – stop! The political barbarians are knocking on the last door of constitutional governance and democratic rule and are willing to knock it down if we do not resist them. This was how Hitler started!” he said.
CUPP Is A Nebulous Organisation – APC
In a swift reaction, the APC dismissed the CUPP and its allegations of an imminent change in the leadership of the National Assembly, insisting that such an organisation does not exist.
The party, which insisted that it does not respond to a nebulous organisation, added that it would not give credibility to the claim by dignifying same with a response.
APC national publicity secretary, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, told LEADERSHIP last night that there was nothing to react to.
He said: “The APC does not react to such nebulous organisation, we do not react to an organisation that does not exist,” he repeated.
APC Senators Induced To Stop NASS Sanctions On PMB, PDP Insists
Also, the PDP yesterday alleged moves to bribe APC Senators to protect President Buhari from parliamentary sanctions for constitutional breaches and gross misconduct over the controversies surrounding the suspension of Onnoghen.
The party said that based on its intelligence, the presidency has summoned all APC senators to the presidential villa to a meeting tonight, ahead of the Senate’s resumption on Tuesday because it is jittery.
The PDP national publicity, Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement yesterday, claimed that the Buhari presidency “has been unsettled following national and international outcry over his constitutional breaches, particularly the assault on the judiciary in h
s attempt to forcefully remove Onnoghen and impose a pliable CJN to do his bidding.
“President Buhari is not only apprehensive that the Senate might sanction him for violating the constitution and usurping its statutory duties regarding the handling of issues related to a CJN, the parliament might also open an inquest into how President Buhari, who parades as Mr. Integrity, allegedly procured an order from the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) upon which he announced the illegal suspension of the CJN.
“There are reports that the said order is suspicious and subject to investigation, being not argued or issued in the open court; following which the Buhari Presidency now seeks to undermine the Senate.
“The PDP has been made aware of how money has been moved from the coffers of the NDDC to bribe the APC senators, as well as how each APC senator has been offered huge sums of money in foreign currency to engage in heckling during the session, particularly when the matter is raised.
“However, the PDP wants the APC senators to note that the issue at hand is not partisan, it is not even about Onnoghen, but about nationhood, as well as the protection of our democracy and constitution from despotism,” the PDP said.
Atiku Salutes US, UK, EU For Standing With Nigerians
The presidential Candidate of the PDP and former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, says his condemnation of Onnoghen’s suspension is about preserving the sanctity of the constitution.
He warned that once the Pandora’s Box of unconstitutionality is opened no one can tell where it will end.
Atiku who hailed the international community for standing with the Nigerians over the saga, lampooned those backing the suspension of the CJN and questioned what has changed between 2015 and now when they celebrated a statement from the US/UK/EU calling for free and fair elections in 2015, just after the postponement of the 2015 elections to make room for a final assault against Boko Haram.
He also commended all the Lord Justices of the Supreme Court for not participating in the swearing-in of election petition tribunals, saying that they heeded the call to remain united.
In a statement he personally signed, Atiku said that “since the unconstitutional removal of CJN by President Buhari, there has been some water under the bridge that necessitates a restatement that I still completely and unequivocally reject and condemn that action and any other breach of our constitution.
“I am not fighting for Justice Onnoghen. I am fighting for the constitution. Once we open the Pandora’s Box of unconstitutionality, we cannot tell where it will end.”
Atiku who said that the current scenario appears to him like déjà vu, recalled that under “a particularly brutal military dictatorship, Nigerians witnessed the illegal and arbitrary removal of many innocent people from their positions of authority and many said nothing because they were not from the ethnic group of those affected.”
While he noted that he remembered speaking up then that what we know is when the rain begins, but we do not know when it will end, adding that, “my warnings were ignored by some until they woke up one day and that dictator removed no less a personality than the Sultan of Sokoto.”
Atiku continued: “It is worth pointing out that Muhammadu Buhari was by his side when he did that. He obviously learned very well from his teacher.
“If they come for the heads of the legislature and we keep quiet because we are not legislators, if they came for the heads of the media and we keep quiet because we are not journalists, if they came for the head of the judiciary and we keep quiet because he/she is not from our area, there may be no one left to speak up when they come for us.
“At this point, let me commend all the Lord Justices of the Supreme Court who have heeded my call and the call of other patriots to remain united. The fact that they did not participate in the swearing-in of election petitions tribunals is not lost on true democrats all over the world.
“My thanks especially go to the governments of the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union for standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the Nigerian people. This is most appreciated and on behalf of the voiceless,” he said.
Onnoghen Ought To Have Resigned – Ajulo
Meanwhile, an Abuja-based lawyer and founder of Egalitarian Mission of Africa, Dr. Kayode Ajulo, has said that Onnoghen ought to have honorably resigned his appointment in the interest of the country.
Ajulo, who is the brain behind Buhari re-election movement, Forward With Buhari (FWB), said that Onnoghen should have bowed out before his suspension from office.
He said: “In more civilised climes, the CJN ought to have resigned but he refused to do so. What you are seeing today is probably because of the office or person involved. Of course, it is expected because most of the senior lawyers today defending what is indefensible may be, have some interests, but I believe that one day we will start interrogating such interests.
“I have received so many calls from my senior colleagues condemning the action of Mr. President and I ask them where in the world do you have CJN with questionable character?
“Again, the CJN in question has admitted to the allegations but he said he forgot. Do you know how many people in this country who have been jailed and are languishing in jails across the country for the same forgetfulness?”
On whether Onnoghen’s suspension is constitutional or otherwise, the lawyer said: “You see, all these depend on narratives and how it is being presented to the general public. I don’t want to believe that the president suspended anybody but he acted according to a court order, and I want to believe that if the court wants anyone suspended, the court has such powers.
“The tribunal is very clear on that and that’s why the president said that having received a true certified copy of the order by the court on the CJN suspension, he had to appoint a new CJN in acting capacity. The purpose of that is that we still have the CJN, my Lord Justice Walter Onnoghen because for you to remove the CJN you need to go through Section 292 of 1999 Constitution or you go ahead with the two-thirds of the Senate.
“That’s why we have to understand this, the CJN is still under suspension, and he has not been removed. So, there’s no need for all these noise I am hearing. In order to put the records straight, once you are facing any disciplinary action, the court has the powers to suspend you, even as a CJN.
“What the president has done is in respect of the court order because he didn’t suspend anyone, it is the court. Whatsoever anyone is saying that the CCT cannot suspend the CJN or make such pronouncement, then such a person has a misunderstanding of our laws. Don’t forget the constitution created the Code of Conduct Tribunal. Part of its duties is to make some orders that have to be followed and that’s the purpose of force of law. And it has to be followed,” Ajulo stated.
Aisha Buhari Denies Condemning Onnoghen’s Suspension
Relatedly, the wife of the president, Aisha Buhari, has denied reports that she condemned the federal government over the suspension of Onnoghen.
In a statement issued by her media aide, Suleiman Haruna, Mrs. Buhari described the purported report as “fake news and untrue”.
Haruna said: “The attention of the wife of the President has been drawn to a post on social media to the effect that she condemned the suspension of the Chief Justice of Nigeria.
“It is important to inform Nigerians that the wife of the
president has not made any public statements on the matter and therefore the commentary is untrue and fake.
“This is highly condemnable and we therefore advise the purveyors of such news to recant and desist henceforth,” he said.
