…meeting meant to bribe lawmakers, says PDP
Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari has summoned members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Senate to a meeting at the Presidential Villa on Monday (today) over the suspension of the Chief Justice, Walter Onnoghen.
Onnoghen was suspended on Friday by President Buhari based on an ex parte order granted by the Code of Conduct Tribunal.
He is facing six counts of false assets declaration filed against him by the Code of Conduct Bureau.
Buhari’s meeting with the APC governors will take place ahead of the Senate emergency resumption on Tuesday (tomorrow) when decisions are expected to be taken on Onnoghen’s suspension by the President.
The APC senators’ meeting with the President, it was gathered, would take a position to counter the expected condemnation of the CJN’s suspension by the members of the opposition in the Senate on Tuesday.
However, the meeting which is going to hold at the Banquet Hall, is being tagged as a dinner. Invitations to the meeting were signed by the Director General of the APC Presidential Campaign Organisation, who is also the Minister of Transportation, Mr Rotimi Amaechi.
A source close to the organisers of the meeting who spoke with one of our correspondents, said the national leadership of the APC would also attend the meeting.
He said apart from the senators and the APC leaders, some APC governors had also been invited to the meeting.
He said, “You know that the Senate leadership belongs to the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party. The party on its own has taken a position on this matter.
“Also, the President of the Senate, who is also the Director General of the PDP presidential candidate Council, Bukola Saraki, has taken a position on this matter.
“So, we need to talk to our members in the Senate and impress it on them not to allow Saraki to impose his personal opinion on them.”
Also, members of the APC Caucus in the House of Representatives have scheduled an emergency meeting for Monday (today).
The Majority Leader, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, called the meeting, according to a text message circulating among the lawmakers on Sunday.
“Honourable colleagues, there will be a meeting of the APC caucus tomorrow, Monday, at 4pm. Venue is the White House Hearing Room 1. Thank you. Femi Gbajabiamila,” the message sighted by one of our correspondents read.
But the PDP has alleged that certain agents of the Presidency were making moves to bribe the APC senators to protect Buhari from parliamentary sanctions for constitutional breaches.
The PDP National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement on Sunday stated that intelligence available to the PDP showed that that was the reason the Presidency had summoned all the APC senators to the Presidential Villa to a clandestine meeting on Monday (today’s) night.
Ologbondiyan said, “President Buhari is not only apprehensive that the Senate might sanction him for violating the constitution and usurping its statutory duties regarding the handling of issues related to a CJN, the parliament may also open an inquest into how President Buhari, who parades himself as Mr Integrity, allegedly procured an order from the CCT upon which he announced the illegal suspension of the CJN.
“There are reports that the said order is suspicious and subject to investigations, being not argued or issued in the open court; following which a distressed Buhari Presidency now seeks to corrupt and undermine the Senate.”
