Senate President Bukola Saraki has made fresh moves to reach out to President Muhammadu Buhari and the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, following the Supreme Court judgment on his trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal.

The Supreme Court had on February 5 ruled that Saraki’s trial should continue at the CCT. The apex court had affirmed the propriety of Saraki’s trial at the CCT on 13 counts of false asset declaration.

In the 13 counts initiated by the Federal Government, Saraki was said to have made false asset declaration in his forms at the Code of Conduct Bureau as a two-term governor of Kwara State.

The CCT had on Friday said Saraki’s trial would resume on March 10.

It was reliably gathered that since February 5, Saraki had been making moves to indirectly reach out to Buhari and Tinubu.

A top government source, who confided in SUNDAY PUNCH , said Saraki could not reach out directly to Buhari on the matter because he knew the President’s disposition to such issues.

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, added that the Senate President resorted to sending emissaries to Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo when Buhari was on a six-day vacation and Osinbajo was the acting President.

The delegation was reportedly led by the Senate Leader, Ali Ndume.
The source said the Vice-President made his position and that of the President clear to Saraki’s emissaries.

He said, “Saraki knows the kind of person the President is and I think he won’t approach him directly on this matter.
“But yes, I can tell you that he is reaching out indirectly.

“He sent emissaries to meet with the Vice-President when the President was on vacation and the Vice-President was on the chair in acting capacity.

“The emissaries had met with the Vice-President under the cover of the developments about the 2016 budget.
“In the process, they put the issue of Saraki forward.

“Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, however, made it equivocally clear to them that the two issues could not be mixed. He told them that the issue of the budget was different from the trial of Saraki.”
Ndume had on Tuesday led some of his colleagues, including Dino Melaye, Abdullahi Adamu and Monsurat Sumonu to meet Osinbajo at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
At the end of the closed-door session, Ndume told State House correspondents that the meeting reviewed some developments in the polity, including the issue of the 2016 budget currently before the National Assembly.

While saying that it would not be a new thing if people read meanings into their visit, Ndume had claimed that his delegation did not discuss Saraki’s travails with the Vice-President.

He was however quick to rise in support of the Senate President when his opinion was sought on the calls by his colleagues in the Unity Forum that Saraki should resign.

“Are you saying that the Senate President should be convicted before the trial? In our constitution, you are considered innocent until proven guilty,” he had said.

For Tinubu, it was gathered that Saraki had reached out to not less than 10 opinion leaders and clerics to visit the APC leader at his home in Bourdillon, Ikoyi, Lagos.

Saraki and Tinubu fell out in June last year when he defied the directive of the APC and became the Senate President under controversial circumstances.

The Senate President further ensured that Tinubu’s preferred candidates were denied principal offices at the Senate.

The former governor of Lagos State subsequently broke all communication with Saraki, describing him in an open letter as an ‘indisciplined and disloyal man who is a member of the Peoples Democratic Party in soul.’

Another reliable source told one of our correspondents that Tinubu was not interested in Saraki’s latest peace moves.

He said, “Access from Saraki’s camp has been blocked. Tinubu has been disappointed in every way. It was the party that picked Ahmed Lawan. He was not Tinubu’s initial candidate but he did it all the same.

“So, he has decided to (wash his) hands and will not say a word again regarding Saraki.
“Efforts have intensified since Saraki’s recent CCT trouble but Tinubu has been out of the country. He has been in Guinea for the last five days.

“We have been informed that Saraki is working with a team of people in Ilorin that will storm Lagos. Top leaders there including Muslim clerics are being put together to visit Lagos and mediate on his behalf but Tinubu is not interested.”

He added, “There is no deal to be made anymore. Saraki never conceded anything. He did not give any of our people any principal position. He then went ahead to increase the number of Senate committees by fiat just to placate those that have been following him to court.

“Every concession was denied. The approval of ministers had nothing to do with Tinubu. It was purely between him and President Muhammadu Buhari.

“Tinubu has moved on. He has been visiting African countries, supporting other democracies in West Africa.”

“Saraki should go and get good lawyers. As you can see, attempts to remove the CCT chairman did not work. Attempts to stop the trial at the Supreme Court have also failed.”

All attempts to reach the spokesperson for Tinubu, Mr. Sunday Dare, proved abortive as he did not respond to repeated telephone calls.


Saraki meets Buhari regularly — Aide

When contacted, the Special Adviser to the Senate President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Yusuf Olaniyonu, said on Saturday that his principal had been having regular meetings with the President in recent times on national issues.

Olaniyonu, who spoke with one of our correspondents on telephone cited the most recent when both leaders jointly hosted the German President at the Aso Rock villa on Thursday night.

Saraki’s spokesperson however, said the regular parleys between Saraki and Buhari were purely on issues of national interest.
He said, “These two gentlemen hold two critical arms of government and they need to meet regularly to discuss issues of national importance.

“The issue of budget is there, insurgency and the economy generally. How can anybody think the Senate President will be seeking audience with the President on the issue of the CCT when there are serious national issues calling for attention?”

When asked if Saraki would reach out to the President, Olaniyonu said, “No comment.”

Before his recent moves to reach out to the President and Tinubu, Saraki had been facing renewed opposition from the Senate Unity Forum led by Senator Ahmed Lawan.

Lawan was supported for the senate presidency by the APC leaders and some party senators, while Saraki got the backing of all Peoples Democratic Party senators and some APC senators to emerge as senate president last year. Last week, the Lawan faction regrouped in a bid to force Saraki to resign.



www.punchng.com/cct-trial-saraki-reaches-out-to-buhari-tinubu-again/

this is what happens when a man goes into a political thug of war with his fathers in the game,
Igbo si na, nwata bulie nna ya elu, ngwongwo na ngwongwo ayochie ya anya

Saraki!Please don't forget to send those IPOD youth to help in begging Buhari and Tinubu.Those people were the ones who helped you in digging your political grave.Anything they support is either dead at arrival or they turn their back when you experience a brick wall.Look at Kanu.None of them have been able to carry out their threat with the amount of chest beating.

disloman:
Saraki

ssvbss

Politics

This saraki's issue is indeed a big one. He's in for it. Only God can save him.
Let the will of God and that of the people prevail.

Lalasticlala should do the needful abi he's busy on valentine's day.

This is the result of Inordinate ambition and stark arrogance.

Saraki ought to do the needful, hence he will be politically 'neked'.

Leave our son alone ooooo.
We North central youths declare.

Saraki is as good as gone. Just when I was starting to like the dude.

Saraki made mockery of APC majority in the National Assembly by conniving with the minority to be a deputy Senate President. He has murdered sleep,he will never sleep.

Saraki should go to court and prove his innocence.. with all his antics to stop his trial,one can only conclude that he is guilty..moral of the story: Dont throw stones if you live in a glass house..

people like saraki should have never been allowed close to any political power.

why the lobby if he is innocent? I see him going to jail. he has succeeded in alienating the cct chairman against his case by trying to have him removed. saraki is a goner.

[size=20pt]You can't betray Tinubu and go Scott free..

READ The History Book, Saraki![/size]

Nobody can save you sir

Saraki precipitated his own political demise.

First of all I'll like to wish all my nairaland peeps happy sunday as well as hppy val for those who no nothing about the historical background of Valentino.


Back to the thread,Saraki'll have to kiss Jagabon(tinubus) shoes for him to be provided an escape route Unfortunately for saraki Buhari is not Uncle GEJ.Saraki has now started running helter skelter from pillar to pole Chai OYO is your name oooooo.

Me belief sey saraki don enter one Chance

OK...

EndTime Saraki Political Career

Meanwhile in Ibadan

PMB please dont disappoint us who voted you into power. Anybody found wanting in corruption case and guilty let him face the music

What goes around comes around


I want to know the exact mod that banned me Sobibca. Run away from his or her territory


Wicked laugh

Sometimes am just tired of hearing those in public offices being tried in courts...
Is he supposed to be thinking of his appearance in courts or concentrating on his job as the senate president of this country...

My opinion is that those government officials on trials in courts should vacate the seat pending when their trials will be over to enable good governance because I believe it is difficult to combine the two tasks together successfully..

Ok

Corruption is a cankerworm that has eaten deep into the fabric of the nation's progress.

Saraki Leave tinubu out of this issue! Tinubu has no power or are you trying to tell us that, tinubu is secret Nigeria vice-president.. Lol

bad begine..end bads ..

Something tells me that nothing much will happen in the end......

.....or maybe change is coming in this particular case