APC chairman disowns petition against Supreme Court justices as PDP asks him to resign

Yobe State governor and Chairman, All Progressives Congress Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee, Mai Mala Buni, has denied knowledge of petition against justices of the Supreme Court.

In a statement last night signed by Mamman Mohammed, Director General, Press and Media Affairs to Governor Buni, he said at no did he personally write or “directed anyone to write on my behalf or the party to allege or claim that their Lordships met with members of the PDP or any political party on any matter.”

He maintained that conscious of the positions the justices occupy, he would not be a party or associated to such reckless statements against them.

“As leader of APC, l am saddened by such weighty allegation said to be emanating from our party obviously without my consent. On behalf of every member of the party, we distance ourselves from this allegation and sincerely regret the injury and hard feelings this might have caused their lordships.

“The party will do the needful to uncover those behind such accusation.”

However, speaking on the development, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Tuesday asked Mala Mai Buni to resign his position.

This is contained in a statement issued Kola Ologbondiyan, National Publicity Secretary, in which the party noted that it is appalling that the Buni leadership of the APC could “in their penchant for falsehood, go to the extent of falsely accusing the justices of the Supreme Court of holding a meeting with PDP leaders allegedly to subvert justice, in a case, in which the PDP is not even a party.”

The PDP said the pronouncement of the Supreme Court has ultimately vindicated the party’s stand that the “APC is a party of irresponsible, reckless and dishonorable persons who only thrive in fabrications, falsehood, lies, blackmail and character assassination.”

The main opposition party added: “It is shameful that after mismanaging its nomination process in the Imo North Senatorial by-election, the APC leadership is seeking to drag our party into its vicious attempt to use the instrument of blackmail and character assassination against the justices of the Supreme Court to settle their internal scores.

“While it is obvious that the APC is plagued with political cannibalism, infighting and backstabbing, it is shocking that it will carry its wild tendencies to this ridiculous extent.

“The assertion by the Supreme Court that ‘if people as highly placed as the interim chairperson of the APC would open his mouth and make this weighty statement against innocent justices of this court…’ places a huge moral burden and integrity question on Governor Mai Buni.”

The PDP opined that the declaration by Supreme Court that the APC has been making such “useless statements” in the past further vindicates the opposition’s stand that the “APC is ethically challenged and should not have been entrusted with governance.”

The party therefore demanded that Buni should immediately resign as governor and APC chairperson, “having been indicted by the Supreme Court, after which he should face the court to answer for his baseless and ‘irresponsible’ allegation.”

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