Nigerian Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki has hired 66 lawyers to defend him in an alleged corrupt case against him being handled by the Conde of Conduct Tribunal saying that he is battle ready to prove his innocence.
This is even as he called on members of the public to disregard the antics of those he called “desperate and devilish elements over spurious and renewed attempts being made by forces behind his on-going trial.”
The lead counsel to the Senate President, Kanu Agabi, at the Tribunal sitting today, took about 10 minutes to read the long list of advocates and for them to acknowledge their presence at the Tribunal.
Senator Saraki is facing 13 counts of false declaration of assets relating to his time as governor of Kwara state. There was no immediate explanation about why so many lawyers were needed.
But the Senate President vowed that his lawyers are ready to defend his right and prove his innocence in court as the case began today, Friday.
And in a statement today by his Senior Special Assistant on Media, Yusuph Olaniyonu, the Senate President said that there elements that have been trailing the movement of his associates and giving different interpretations to their actions, all in a bid to poison the minds of the public against him, and to muddy the waters before the commencement of the case.
Senator Saraki said that some elements have been heckling his key aides and associates, using some unidentified individuals who make phone calls to the phone numbers of the individuals close to him.
“We assure all Nigerians and other observers of the Nigerian situation to be rest assured that the Senate President is ready to have his day in court. His lawyers are ready to defend his right and prove his innocence,” the statement said.
“Using the same scare-mongering methods that these devious forces have employed since the commencement of the case last September, they have employed an on-line medium known for its shady and unethical reputation, SaharaReporters, and another national newspaper to peddle inaccurate information aimed at prejudicing the coming case and forcing the actors in the case to take certain predetermined decisions.”
The statement added: “We will like to recall that this same group of people, using the same set of media and style, has last year successfully forced a Federal High Court judge to withdraw from the case filed by Dr, Saraki at the early stage of the Code of Conduct case. They also blackmailed the Court of Appeal to abruptly postpone its judgment some minutes to the period scheduled for the delivery of the judgment. Similarly, they have waged a war of attrition against Supreme Court Judges shortly before the February 5 delivery of the Apex Court’s judgement on the appeal filed by the Senate President.” [myad]
