By Suleiman Yakubu
I nurse no acrimony towards Senate President Bukola Saraki neither am I his fan in any way. But I do not like the underhand measures that some of his aggrieved colleagues at the All Progressives Congress, APC, are applying in an attempt to discredit him. It was sad that at some point they even dragged his wife into it. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, detained Toyin Saraki, for intense interrogation that lasted over seven hours. They said that they were investigating large inflow of moneys into her private account when her husband was governor of Kwara State. The question is why now after over five years since he left office? There is nothing wrong with investigating Saraki or even his wife, but doing so when there was so much bad blood between him and some powers that be in APC, was simply not tactical. Moreover, it is very doubtful if he will be harassed in such manner; if he had swallowed the humble pie and stepped down for the party’s choice.
The whole matter came to a head when the Senate President was made to appear before a Code of Conduct Tribunal which brought a13-count charge of false declaration of assets and corruption against him. This led to a lot of bickering which culminated in his been stoned at the Eid Praying Ground in Ilorin, Kwara State. Many public commentators said it was finished for Saraki and some have even started speculating about who the new senate president would be. But in a surprising twist of event; his colleagues, an overwhelming 83 senators out of a total of 109 gave him a vote of confidence. This clearly signified that the Senate refused to be muzzled on the Saraki issue. They were able to send a strong message that the Senate should not be toiled with.
Nonetheless, the matter is with the Code of Conduct Tribunal which Wednesday adjourned the trial of Senate President Bukola Saraki to November 5 and 6, 2015. Therefore, it is good to reserve our comment on the matter until a judgement is passed.
Needless to say, but this type of selective prosecution will seriously undermine the ingoing war on corruption.
This is because even if there is no malice attached to it; the war on corruption should be dealt with wholistically.
As long as we continue to use government anti-corruption agencies to settle scores, to fight those who are disloyal to us; the anti-corruption effort would not be taken seriously.
In fact, even when we decide to do the right thing, and genuinely deal with those who are corrupt, people would begin to read meaning to it. Hence we give room to people to take advantage of the anti corruption effort.
True, most of the people arrested for corruption related allegations; are actually corrupt for only few Nigerians who have held public offices can boast of not indulging in the act in one way or the other. This is sadly understandable because until President Buhari’s present stance of zero-tolerance for corruption, the menace simply became the norm rather than aberration. Still, it is morally wrong to single someone out.
Back to Saraki’s many travails, will those who want him out spring up other charges that will completely discredit and make him indefensible to his colleagues who will now have no choice than to give a vote of no confidence? Or is the Code of Conduct Tribunal case the last thing that he should worry about, because they have given up? Better still, is the senate president able to make a deal with those who wanted him out? Is it the reason for their soft-pedalling?
Senate President Bukola Saraki’s case is another reminder that those who come to equity should do so with clean hands. Believe it or not, it is the only reason why the number three citizen of the nation can be harassed in that manner. On the other hand, somebody like Buhari survived the daily onslaught of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) because they had nothing on him. This fact has further reassured Nigerians knowing that the hounds of PDP would have unearthed his hidden skeletons if there were any.
For the sake of Nigeria and for the smooth running of government business, I do hope that Saraki has no other ugly past to be dug up again by his detractors.
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