There is renewed pressure on Senate President, Bukola Saraki, to throw in the towel and step aside as the presiding officer of the senate, ahead of his resumed trial by the Code of Conduct Tribunal, CCT, on Friday, March 11, over alleged falsification of assets declaration forms while in office as governor of Kwara State. Many senators are insisting that Saraki should step aside, go and answer to his criminal allegations first, and if he is able to prove his innocence, he would then return as the Senate President. The anti Saraki senators are opposed to the idea of shutting down the senate each time he goes to the tribunal for trial.

The Supreme Court last month dismissed the appeal filed by Saraki, seeking to stall his trial by CCT. Following the Supreme Court judgment on the matter, Saraki promised that he would go before the tribunal to prove his innocence, even as the Senate President has consistently maintained that his trial is political. The resumed trial was originally fixed for Thursday, March 10, but was just last week moved forward to Friday. Those opposed to Saraki alleged that the shift in date is part of the grand plan by his group to ward off pressure on him to step down. The plan by the anti Saraki senators was to mount pressure and insist on getting a replacement once he leaves to the tribunal for his trial. Getting a Friday trial date, a day that the senate does not sit, according to the opposition group, is part of the design by the Saraki supporters to postpone the evil date.

Aside from members of the Senate Unity Forum, SUF, who are stoutly opposed to Saraki, the Transition Monitoring Group, TMG, comprising about 200 civil society organisations, last month issued a statement calling on Saraki to step aside to clear his name over the criminal allegations. But some senators said they and an overwhelming majority of their colleagues remain solid in their support for Saraki. The senators, in a statement said there is no truth about claims that discussions were ongoing about Saraki's successor because there was no basis for that. They stated that they decided to issue the statement after consulting their colleagues who said they have been bombarded with calls from their constituents demanding to know the veracity of the claims contained in the news story. The statement was signed by senators Rafiu Ibrahim, Peter Nwaoboshi, Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, Isa Hamma Misau, Samuel Anyanwu and Lanre Tejuoso "Saraki would not have been Senate President if God Almighty did not wish it. He is the only Senate President who in less than one year had votes of confidence passed by 85 of the 109 Senators.

If we have a motion for confidence vote today, we are sure that 90 Senators will endorse the Senate President. "Let us make it clear, our position remains the same. The case against Saraki at the Code of Conduct Tribunal is not a case of corruption. It is a case of political persecution. Again, he remains innocent until the case has gone through the final floor of the judicial architecture. We have no doubt that the mischief will fail and so we are solidly behind him. "In the mischievous report aimed at prejudicing the CCT trial, a method typical of detractors who are behind this persecution called prosecution, they sought to present a case of division in the rank of the supporters of the Senate President by mentioning a senator from Kwara North, without giving the name of the senator. "We have spoken with our colleague from Kwara North, Senator Shaaba Lafiagi and we can say it that he remains a loyal supporter of Dr. Saraki. "He also told us he has never heard of any discussion about having a replacement for the Senate President. He further described the news story as mere speculation. "We want to alert members of the public that this is the typical method that those detractors of the Senate President have employed since the beginning of the case last September. "They sponsor stories in some newspapers and online publications to blackmail and prejudice judges, and compel them to take decisions in a predetermined manner. "