The embattled Senate President, Bukola Saraki, said his office has uncovered a plot by his political adversaries to use his ongoing trial to stampede him out of office.

Mr. Saraki added that those sponsoring protests to push him out are doing so because they want to impose their preferred candidates on the Senate through the back door.

He said he’s determined to fight on, despite calls from some Nigerians that he should resign honourably.

In a statement signed and distributed by his Special Adviser on Media, Yusuph Olaniyonu, on Saturday, Mr. Saraki alleged that politicians are sponsoring faceless civic groups to incite the public against him.

“The Office of the Senate President, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki has uncovered plots by some politicians to sponsor protest marches and demonstrations in which some hired people will be given placards to disturb public peace.

“As part of their plan, they are already distributing money and other materials to some faceless civil society organisations, market men and women associations and other shadowy groups with a view to instigate demonstrations in Lagos, Abuja and Ilorin starting from Monday, April 11,” Mr. Saraki said.

Although the statement fell short of mentioning the groups being allegedly sponsored, the calls for Mr. Saraki’s resignation have been spearheaded by the Transition Monitoring Group, TMG, Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, CACOL, Muslim Rights Council, MURIC, among others.

Mr. Saraki said his detractors are hinging their plot on his ongoing alleged false assets declaration scandal at the Code of Conduct Tribunal.

“They believe that the on-going trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal provides them the opportunity to stampede Dr. Saraki out of office so that their defeated objective of getting their lackey into the office of Senate President will be realized. This is another desperate move by these spineless politicians to achieve through the back door what they failed to realize on the floor of the Senate,” he said.

He warned the public to be wary of his political enemies, accusing them of trying to use the protests to breach public peace, order and health.

“We are alerting members of the public to the antics of these desperate politicians which may result into breach of public peace, order and health. Dr. Saraki is a peace-loving and law abiding politician.

The trial at the CCT is just beginning and while the prosecution’s witness has started giving evidence, he is yet to be cross-examined by the defence team. The defence has also not opened its own case. We urge members of the public to patiently wait for the conclusion of the case.

“Since the fundamental principle of our legal system is that an accused person is presumed innocent until he is found guilty, Dr. Saraki will not allow any distraction to take him away from his responsibility as President of the Senate and Chairman of the National Assembly,” Mr. Saraki said.

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In a statement signed the Senate President’s
Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, the Office
alleged that sponsors of the proposed protest
marches are seeking to forcefully mobilize and
pollute public opinion against the Senate
President.