THE Northern Ethnic Nationalities Unity
Congress (NENUC) yesterday called for the
resignation of the Senate President Dr Abubakar
Bukola Saraki.

The call came just as the Code of Conduct Bureau
(CCB) secured a bench warrant for the arrest of the
embattled Senate President by the CCB Tribunal over allegations of false declaration of assets dated back to 2003.

The group said the Senate President should resign
before he drags the image and reputation of the
office he presently occupies further in the mud.

Speaking with reporters yesterday, the National
President and Convener of the group, Mr Bako
Benjamin, said it is disgusting that the Senate
President would rather be seeking court’s protection than going before the anti graft agency to clear his name of the charges.

“Let the Senate President come to equity with clean
hands. Let him defend himself against all the
charges levelled against him in the spirit of the new
wind of change blowing across the country,” Benjamin said.

He said the anti-corruption war spearheaded by the
President Muhammadu Buhari administration would be futile if people like the Senate President continue to seek protection from the law courts rather than presenting themselves for the acid test.

Benjamin, who noted that the recourse to the court
itself is an admission of guilt, said: “Seeking
protection from the law courts is sending a strong
signal that he (Saraki) has something to hide.”

The group, he said, has therefore given the Senate
President a three-day ultimatum to honourably
resign to prevent impeachment proceedings against
him for his eventual removal from the exalted office.

NENUC said Saraki’s continued stay in office is
“capable of sending wrong signals to the
international community and pose a huge question
mark on President Buhari’s commitment to ridding
the nation of corruption.

He said NENUC would not hesitate to mobilise other
well-meaning Nigerians to march on the National
Assembly in protest should the Senate President
refuse to honourably resign from office within
reasonable time.

Meanwhile, the Senate President, Senator Bukola
Saraki, has filed an appeal challenging the ruling of
the Code of Conduct Tribunal which ordered the
Inspector-General of Police, Mr Solomon Arase, to
arrest and produce him before the tribunal on
Monday, September 21.

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