Lagos State chapter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has called for the arrest and prosecution of Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC), Prof. Itsey Sagay (SAN), over what the party termed his inciting comments capable of provoking civil unrests in the country.
PDP made the call on Sunday in a release issued by its publicity secretary, Mr. Taofik Gani, saying the party based its call on recent pronouncements by Sagay against the Supreme Court judgments on Rivers and Zamfara States which gave eventual victories to the PDP after declaring that all votes cast for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Zamfara were wasted votes.
The party recalled that “Prof. Sagay had described the said judgment as a travesty of justice whilst he also urged the APC to insist on their ‘mandate’ by approaching the Supreme Court for a review of the Zamfara State judgment.”
“The security agencies must now arrest, interrogate and expectedly prosecute Sagay for his inciting comments capable of provoking civil unrests in the country at large,” PDP said.
Besides, the party charged President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately replace Sagay as head of PACAC, while also urging the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee and the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and the Courts to withdraw all privileges enjoyed as SAN by Sagay.
According to the Lagos PDP, “Prof. Sagay has exposed his hatred for the PDP when he derided the Supreme Court judgment by positing that ‘in the next four years, Zamfara State will be governed by a party and politicians rejected by the electorate’.
“To the PDP, these words and stance are inciting and unbecoming of a senior lawyer and must be taken seriously as professional misconduct within the contemplation of S.24(1) A&B of the rules of professional misconduct.
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“To us as a party in Lagos State and from where most of these false activists speak, Professor Sagay is no more a fit and proper personality to head a Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption.”
The party said Sagay had now shown enough obvious partisanship and support for the APC, contending that one need not wonder why all APC chieftains were saints before the Sagay-led PACAC.
“With Sagay as an adviser, the advised is at his own risk. It is very laughable that Sagay attempts to be appellate court to the Supreme Court. It is, however, indeed unethical for a lawyer who did not appear in the matter to be seized of the evidence adduced to now berate decisions of such courts.
“This is exactly what Prof. Sagay has done. To hit hard on the Supreme Court Justices. He chose to play sycophantic and patronising roles by rudely describing the Supreme court judgment as a travesty of justice. This is capable of causing hatred for the justices. We thus expect that the Supreme Court should consider the Sagay statements as inciting and contemptuous.
“For us in Lagos PDP, we shall no longer tolerate unjustifiable attacks on our image and interests by persons who disguise as fair speakers but actually APC apologists,” the party said.
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