Melaye Faults Oshiomhole’s Call on Saraki to Resign as Senate President

Abdullahi: I’ve no case with EFCC

By Deji Elumoye in Abuja

The senator representing Kogi West senatorial district in the National Assembly, Senator Dino Melaye, has faulted the recent call by the National Chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Mr Adams Oshiomhole, on the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, to resign having defected from the APC to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

This is coming just as another Senator Abdullahi Adamu has come out to say he has no pending case before the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Senator Melaye, who spoke in Abuja weekend, expressed disappointment with the position of Oshiomhole over the issue of the Senate Presidency.

He said it was wrong for the APC national chairman to liken the Senate Presidency to a crown, adding that there is no crown in the National Assembly for any senator to wear.

“Crown is worn by cultural lineage and possibly diabolical means and in the Senate there is no crown for any senator or Senate President to wear and I begin to wonder why a party chairman like Oshiomhole will not know that the seat of the Senate President has no party affiliation and the election of Senate President is democracy in action irrespective of party affiliation but now I understand that you can’t give what you don’t have,” he said.

He advised Oshiomhole to be abreast of the provisions of the 1999 Constitution and the extant laws of the Senate “before commenting on issues like this next time”.

According to him, Saraki emerged as the Senate President on June 9, 2015 by mainly 42 PDP senators out of the total number of senators that elected him.

He added that any attempt by the APC senators to reconvene the Senate before the adjourned date of September 5 will be an exercise in futility.

He said: “Senate Rule 12 is clear about this as only the presiding officers (Senate President or his Deputy) can reconvene the Senate outside the adjourned date and in their own myopism and intellectual porosity, they forgot that we adjourned for time and the provision of our rules that the vote and proceedings of our last sitting had been approved.

“Such attempt or move by APC senators will never happen and will amount to exercise in futility to impress President Muhammadu Buhari as whatever is illegal will continue to be illegal while I will continue to defend democracy no matter whose ox is gored.”

Meanwhile, Senator Adamu has punctured the Senate President Saraki’s claim that he has a case with the EFCC.

Saraki had accused Adamu of becoming the attack dog of the Presidency since the EFCC dusted his file on alleged case of corruption and also went ahead to arraign Adamu’s son in court.

Adamu, who chairs the Senate Committee on Agriculture, said he told Saraki when his case was struck out at the court in 2016.

“I think because Saraki has so much to talk about EFCC, he’s being dishonest about it. This is because when my case was terminated, when it was discharged, in the Federal High Court in Lafia, way back on June 28, 2016, as a senator, when I got back to Abuja, I went to him (Saraki) and told him that my case has been discharged. All the other accused persons were discharged.

“He congratulated me. Of course it wasn’t for him to announce formally at plenary, but he congratulated me. There were other colleagues of mine I discussed the matter with. They knew about it. Each time they talk about Abdullahi Adamu, they say EFCC, I have no case with EFCC. I’ll give you the documents to peruse,” he said.

Adamu made available the ruling on his case by a Federal High Court sitting in Lafia dated June 28, 2016 with reference number FHC/LF/CR/08/2010.

The prosecution in an application dated 25th May, 2016 withdrew the suit.

The application was supported by an affidavit of 11 paragraphs and written address.

The prosecuting counsel, Mr. Salisu A Majidadi, in moving the application relied on the averments in the affidavit and adopted the written address.

The court presided over by Justice A. A.Okeke had while ruling on the application by the prosecution counsel struck out the case and discharged Adamu and the 11 other accused persons.

He said the prosecution can withdraw a charge at any stage before judgment and that the defence counsel do not object to the withdrawal of the suit.

“The peculiarity of this case is that prior to taking plea, prosecution withdraws the charge. In such circumstance, the appropriate order to make is that of discharge. Prosecution having withdrawn the charge, the charge be and is hereby struck out. Accused persons are discharged,” Justice Okeke had ruled.