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Senators Got $1m Bribe To Impeach Saraki -Sen Rafiu …Oshiomhole, Daura, 30 APC Senators Plot To Impeach Saraki -Timi Frank
Amidst tension in the National Assembly over planned impeachment of the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and his Deputy, Ike Ekweremadu yesterday by pro-Buhari Senators in the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Rafiu Adebayo Ibrahim representing Kwara South, has disclosed that the lawmakers known as Parliamentary Support Group received the sum of $1million each to carry out the impeachment.
Rafiu, one of the recent returnees to People’s Democratic Party (PDP), made the disclosure in an interview with The Tide at the National Assembly.
Rafiu, expressing disgust over the invasion of the National Assembly by officers and men of the Department of State Services, accused the Federal Government under APC of perfecting illegality totally in contradiction to the change they preached in 2014.
His words “I can authoritatively tell you that those senators behind the desecration of the National Assembly collected $1million each to impeach the Senate President and his Deputy. You can quote me anywhere on this”.
In a related development, another prominent member of the pro-Saraki group, Senator Dino Melaye representing Kofi West, accused the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, of collecting signatures of lawmakers with the aim of effecting a leadership change in the upper chamber of the National Assembly.
Melaye, while bringing his colleagues up to speed on the plot by members of the PSG, said the APC national chairman was in a meeting with pro-Buhari senators to collect signatures for Saraki and Ekweremadu’s impeachment.
“The chairman of APC is currently meeting with some APC senators. As I speak, we understand he is collecting signature for the senate president’s impeachment.
“We also understand that after collecting the signatures they will be proceeding to the National Assembly to carry out their plan. We are waiting for them”, the lawmaker added.
Meanwhile, former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Timi Frank, this morning raised the alarm that the National Chairman of the APC, Adams Oshiomhole, the Director General of the Department of State Services (DG – DSS), Lawan Daura and 30 APC Senators are spearheading fresh moves to illegally impeach Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki.
According to Frank, the 30 APC Senators are bring led by the Senate leader, Senator Ahmad Lawan, APC, Yobe North.
Preparatory to the meeting of the leadership of the Senate and the House of Representatives slated for 12 noon today, men of the DSS are stopping Journalists and staff from gaining entrance to the National Assembly complex.
Chairman, Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions and a very strong loyalist of Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, Senator Rafiu Ibrahim, PDP, Kwara South has been stopped from entering the National Assembly as DSS take over the complex.
Even a Journalist who had tried to enter had his phone sophisticated by the security operatives, though it was said to have been returned to him after some minutes.
Meanwhile, Frank who raised the alarm in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday morning, said that the APC National Chairman, the DSS and the APC Senators group met last night in Abuja to perfect strategies on how to carry out the plot.
He said that he has reliable information that the meeting was at the instance of Oshiomhole who is currently pressurizing President Muhammadu Buhari to accept his proposal of using “crude tactics” to topple Saraki and his Deputy, Senator Ike Ekweremadu.
According to him, reliable information emanating from the meeting, that National Vice Chairman (Southwest) of the APC, Chief Adeniyi Adebayo, joined Oshiomhole in pushing for the illegality while some APC Senators and House of Representatives members at the meeting kicked against the plot saying any “forceful removal of Saraki without due process will not fly with Nigerians.”
The lawmakers, according to Frank, were said to have further alerted Oshiomhole and the APC leadership that they only have 30 Senators on ground which will fall short of the 73 Senators required to lawfully impeach Saraki.
According to them, while other APC Senators have since travelled out of the country on vacation, a proposal to appoint Senator Lawan from Yobe State as Saraki’s replacement would be a direct violation of the Federal Character Principle since the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara is from Bauchi in the Northeast zone like Lawan.
Frank noted that following the red flag raised by some of the APC Senators who warn of the consequences of the proposed illegality, the meeting was said to have been rescheduled to reconvene by 11am this morning enable Oshiomhole to call Mr. President in London at 9am this morning to brief him on the progress made so far.
It was further learnt that Oshiomhole is expected to present the candidature of both Senators Lawan and George Akume to the President to make his choice during his proposed telephone conversation with Mr. President by 9am.
He alleged that the Presidency through the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has increased the $400,000 it is already offering to lure individual lawmakers to support the plot to illegally impeach Saraki to $500,000.
According to him, the lawmakers are also being wooed with offers to drop all corruption charges against them by the Federal Government.
He insisted that Saraki’s life and personal safety is at stake while appealing to Nigerians and leaders of the international community to urgently speak out to protect the President of the Senate, Saraki, and safeguard democracy in Nigeria.
He said that the illegal plot to break into the Senate Chambers to illegally impeach Saraki, if allowed to happen, could lead to chaos and anarchy of unimaginable proportion in the country, capable of burying the nation’s democracy apart from the danger it portents for the lives, security and safety of Nigerians.
Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, has called on Nigerians to reject silence in the face of extrajudicial killings and other abuses of human rights.
Soyinka stressed that accountability and civic courage remain essential to rebuilding public confidence in the nation’s institutions.
He made the call during the 28th Wole Soyinka Lecture held in Port Harcourt, last Friday as part of activities marking his 92nd birthday.
The lecture, themed “Reclaiming the Nigerian State through Accountability, Justice and Civic Courage,” drew participants from different sectors of society.
The renowned playwright and human rights advocate said the country’s greatest tragedy was not only the unlawful killings carried out by state and non-state actors, but also the silence that often follows such incidents, allowing perpetrators to evade justice.
According to him, indifference by citizens to abuses of power and violations of fundamental human rights has contributed to the persistence of extrajudicial killings and other forms of injustice across the country.
Soyinka said he dedicated this year’s lecture to victims of unlawful killings, noting that the event was intended to honour individuals who had lost their lives as a result of failures within the justice system and society’s inability to protect the sanctity of human life.
He stressed that the lecture was dedicated to what he described as the basic unit of every society – the human being, and urged Nigerians to place greater value on human dignity irrespective of ethnicity, religion or social status.
The Nobel Laureate recalled several incidents of violence, including the fatal shooting and killing of a young man in Ugheli in Delta State by a police officer, and the mob killing of Deborah Yakubu in Sokoto State sometime ago, lamenting that many of those responsible are yet to face justice.
He expressed concern that some perpetrators of violent crimes had openly admitted their actions without fear of prosecution, describing such situations as evidence of serious failures within the nation’s justice system.
Soyinka maintained that when justice is delayed or denied, public confidence in state institutions continues to erode, thereby encouraging further violations of human rights.
Responding to critics who accuse him of promoting religious or ethnic divisions whenever he spoke on such issues, Soyinka dismissed the allegations and pointed out that his advocacy has always centred on the protection of human life and the rule of law.
He urged Nigerians to remain vigilant and continue demanding justice in cases of alleged extrajudicial killings, including the recent shooting of a young man by a police officer, stressing that every life deserves equal protection under the law.
The literary icon also recalled an earlier pledge by a past incoming president to make public the files relating to unresolved assassinations and extrajudicial killings, questioning the status of the promised investigations.
He challenged citizens to continue asking questions about unresolved cases, insisting that justice, accountability and respect for human dignity are indispensable to building a peaceful, democratic and inclusive Nigerian society.
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has clarified that there was no fire at Terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, contrary to its earlier advisory.
Earlier yesterday, FAAN had announced that a fire incident had occurred at Terminal 2 of the nation’s busiest airport, and assured that its Aerodrome Rescue and Firefighting Service had been deployed to contain the situation.
There were also reports that activities were briefly disrupted at the airport yesterday after smoke was seen inside parts of the terminal.
Videos circulating online showed passengers kept standing outside the terminal while firefighters responded to the incident.
However, in an update issued less than two hours later by the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Henry Agbebire, and posted on FAAN’s official X handle, the authority said preliminary findings showed that the smoke seen at the terminal was caused by the discharge of the facility’s FM-200 fire suppression system.
“Further to our earlier advisory regarding the incident at Terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) wishes to provide the following update,” the statement read.
“Preliminary findings indicate that there was no fire at the terminal. The smoke observed within the affected area resulted from the discharge of the terminal’s FM-200 fire suppression system. The reason for the activation of the fire suppression system is currently being investigated,” FAAN stated.
The authority said normal operations had resumed at the terminal while investigations were ongoing to determine the cause of the incident.
“Normal operations have since resumed at the terminal, while detailed investigations are ongoing to determine the exact cause of the incident,” the statement added.
The authority thanked passengers, airlines, airport users and other stakeholders for their understanding and cooperation.
FAAN appreciated the understanding and cooperation of passengers, airlines, airport users and all stakeholders, and reiterated its commitment to the safety and security of all airport operations.
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