Senate President, Saraki, may be sent to prison, impeached

Senate President, Saraki, may be sent to prison, impeached

Senate President, Bukola Saraki may be remanded in prison pending determination of his bail application when his trial finally commences in a week's time, multiple judicial insiders have revealed.

Also, there are indications that as soon as a pronouncement to that effect was made by the Code of Conduct Tribunal, sending Saraki to prison, a group of anti-Saraki Senators would emerge to call for his immediate impeachment and replacement, another insider in the Senate have revealed.

As the case is criminal in nature, the trial now fixed for March 18, is expected to open with a likely application for bail by the Senate President, a request that is not likely to be determined on that day.

According to the source, the tribunal is likely to fix determination of the bail application for a next adjourned date while the suspect is to be remanded in prison.

"That is the usual practice. You know it happened in the ongoing case of Alex Badeh, Olisa Metuh among others. Interestingly, the Senate President has no immunity," the source noted.

It was learnt however that such application has not been filed at all even as the trial was stalled due to a motion filed on Monday by counsel to the Senate President.

The prosecution and the defence counsel have agreed on next Friday, March 18 for the argument of the motion on jurisdiction of the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) to try the Senate President on a charge of alleged false asset declaration slammed on him by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB).

President of the CCT, Danladi Umar, asked the defence to ensure that he served all motions and processes on the prosecution counsel to avoid further delay of the trial.

He therefore adjourned the case to Friday, March 18, 2016, for moving of the motion and possible hearing of the substantive matter. The Senate President sat in the dock as the lawyers prosecution and the defence exchanged arguments.

Although the criminal case of wrongful asset declaration slammed on Saraki by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) was a calculated plot by powerful forces within the APC to do away with Saraki who emerged as the Senate President against the will of the All Progressives Congress zoning arrangement, Saraki's ordeal, Daily Correspondents gathered, has to do with his planned ambition to contest for the Presidency in another party in 2019.

Saraki is also believed to be planning to dump the APC and cause division within the rank of the party when the time comes, a decision that is already seriously working against him as the architects of his trial before the CCT are bent on stopping him achieving his future ambition.
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