Saraki: We’ll Use Legal Means to Redress Any Illegality By APC, Say Senators

By Deji Elumoye in Abuja

Two members of the National Assembly, Senators Isah Misau and Rafiu Ibrahim, have vowed to seek legal means to redress any illegality that may be carried out by the All Progressives Congresses (APC) senators to unseat the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki.

The duo, representing Bauchi Central and Kwara South respectively in the Senate, in a joint statement issued in Abuja Saturday to react to the recent threat by Senator Abu Ibrahim that the Senate will know no peace until Saraki vacates office, declared: “We urge Senator Ibrahim and his colleagues to know that if they tried anything illegal and indecent, we will resist it through legal means.”
They added that the APC senators “saw an instance with the way our colleagues in the House of Representatives quickly gathered to foil their failed coup early this week”.

The two senators therefore warned their counterpart from Katsina South Ibrahim and his fellow travellers in the APC not to foment any trouble when the Senate resumes on September 25, as the Senate President Saraki will never resign from the position.
According to them, Senator Ibrahim and his APC colleagues will meet their match if they tried anything illegal even with all the deployment of security forces which they might have been assured of by the executive arm of government.
They also accused Ibrahim of not being conversant with the Senate rules despite the fact that he is a four-time lawmaker.

“Our colleague from Katsina State has equally demonstrated that he has not imbibed parliamentary ethos. Even his knowledge of the provisions of the law and the Senate rules is suspect. That is why he misrepresented the provisions of Rule 12 order 1, 2 and 3 of the Senate about the process of reconvening the Senate after it properly adjourned. By the provision, without all the leaders of the four parties initiating the reconvening of the Senate before the adjourned date, nothing can legally happen. Also without the consent of the Senate President, nothing can happen.
Describing Senator Ibrahim as a non democrat, the two legislators said: “It is obvious from the statements of Abu Ibrahim that he and his cohorts are not democrats and do not believe in the rule of law, the provisions of the constitution, the standing order of the Senate, parliamentary procedure and the due process.”

They wondered “how a supposed democrat will be threatening disruption of peace in the parliament because his party lost members and lost its majority status?” adding that: “Abu Ibrahim has given us an insight into what they are planning and we will be ready for them. He has also shown an indication of how he, as the Chairman of the Police Affairs Committee, has been misusing the police against other senators.”

According to the duo, APC is now the minority party in the Senate with 48 seats as against 54 by the PDP.
“APC should note that they are now the minority party. PDP has more members. When we resume, if they push us, we will move for a head count of members and change some of our principal officers to reflect party strength. Today, by the list paraded by APC themselves, they have only 48 senators and PDP has 54, APGA has two and ADC has two. There are two vacancies. That is the distribution in the Senate. Let them continue to deceive themselves,” the two senators added.