IN law, there is no legal or constitutional basis for Dr Bukola Saraki to resign or be removed as president of the Senate and Chairman of the NASS simply because he has decamped or defected from APC to PDP. The first point to make here is that section 68(1) of the 1999 Constitution provides inter alia, that any member of the 109 Senators and 360 members of the House of Representatives who loses his Nigerian citizenship, or is made a minister, or decamps from his political party to another party automatically loses his seat. However, section 68(1)(g) of the same 1999 Constitution permits a legislator to decamp or cross carpet from his original party under whose platform he contested and won election, to a new party if he can show that there has occurred a division or factionalization of his original party, or that his party has merged with another party, or a faction of another party. It is a question of fact, not of law, if there exists a division in a party.
In the case of APC, 24 states held parallel congresses before the national convention. Can there be any better or stronger evidence of a division in a party? I think not.To add to the gravity of this internal implosion and vertical and horizontal schism, a new wing, r-APC emerged from the APC at the national level. It is headed by no less a person than Buba Galadima, a tested political strategist, Buhari’s right hand man and former Secretary of Buhari’s CPC.
Although APC leadership had dismissed the breakaway factional members that have fecund Kassim Afegbua as their spokesman, the wind was removed from their sail when they commenced frantic fire brigade appeasement missions to the respective homes of these aggrieved members. They did these nichodemusly at wee hours of the night, even when they had claimed they would not lose sleep. They lost plenty sleep. The pandora box has since been broken as three governors, the Senate president,15 Senators, over 40 House of Representatives members, Local government chairmen, Councillors, Commissioners, etc, have defected in droves to the PDP, and some few ones to ADC and SDP. And still counting… So, all the legislators, including Dr Bukola Saraki, are constitutionally covered and immuned from removal from office, because their APC party is eventually irredeemably broken into smithereens and totally factionalized. Must Saraki and Yakubu Dogara (I can bet he will soon defect) lose their leadership positions as Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives respectively by this defection? The answer is a categorical no.
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There is nowhere in the extant 1999 Constitution where it is provided that the ruling party must provide these principal heads of the bicameral legislature. Indeed, APC was lucky in June, 2015, when Saraki, then in APC, was narrowly elected Senate President and Ike Ekweremadu of PDP as his deputy. It could have been the other way round as has happened many times in the USA, and heavens would not have fallen. Section 47 of the Constitution provides that the Senate shall consist of 109 members and the House of Representatives 360 members. By virtue of section 50(1)(A) of the Constitution, the President of the Senate and the Deputy President of the Senate shall be elected by members of the Senate. By section 50(1)(b), the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives shall be elected by members of the House. There is nowhere it is stated that such officers must come from any political party, whether ruling, or in opposition.
The only circumstance in which the Senate President or the Speaker of the House of Representatives can lose his seat is provided for in section 50(2) of the same Constitution. It states, inter alia, that the President of the Senate, the Deputy President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives shall vacate their offices through a resolution passed by 2/3rd majority votes of members. Consequently, for Saraki (and later, Dogara), to be removed, each of the houses needs 2/3rd majority votes. In the case of the Senate, that is a humongous 73 senators,and a whopping 240 members of the House of Representatives to remove Dogara. That is an impossible task under the present circumstances even if this corrupt government that feigns anti corruption war promises all the oil blocks and automatic tickets to the legislators. This is because its antecedents of self denial on everything it ever promised during campaigns makes it very untrustworthy 0to be believed on anything. In law, we call it similar facts. The last time I checked, APC and PDP stand shoulder to shoulder on membership, with each laying claim to numerical superiority. So,where will it achieve this talismanic constitutional superiority of 2/3 majority votes to sack Saraki and Dogara. It will not happen. The deft Machiavellian and superior sagacious political acrobatics of Saraki and r-APC movement have left APC breathless and confused. They must go to the drawing board, a tabula rasa, if it hopes to snatch the burning kernel from the blazing inferno. The next weeks and months will be very interesting. My Kobo take.
- Dr. Ozekhome (SAN) is a constitutional lawyer
never,capital no, to hell with wailers.
yes he must
Yes immediate.
But you know you are the wailers. Look at your Logo.
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I did not support the idea of him to resign as a senate president
how long shall this Fulani terrorist government last with their agent of terror of apc
Did Tambuwal resigned his post as speaker of house of representatives in 2014 ? Capital Nooooo
Let Buhari resign first, then it will be morally correct for Saraki to do the same
A chase in a ghost city.
No
So that apc government can turn Nigeria democracy to tyranny government
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yes he should resign as Senate President and become the President
Helllo No!
No let him stay because I’ll like him to use his office to expose the hypocrisy of APC led government.
We don’t resign our offices in Nigeria, you only impeach him if possible.
Yes
It also not unconstitutional to remove him if APC becomes the majority and want him out when NASS reconvened. When PDP were the majority that was how it was. We shouldn’t be losing sleep over all this political gimmicks
CAPITAL NO
hahahahaha very soon Hausa will betray Akpabio and call him infidel. Akpabio will soon regret his action. As long as he is a Christian, Hausa people can never like him, they want to use him and dumped him. Even if he converts to a Muslim, as long as he is not Hausa tribe, they will still hate him.
Yes we don’t want him there again
History will answer both APC and PDP because you guys are just playing hide and seek game with Nigerians as regards our status in the international settings.
Why must he resign…APC is just looking for total control of NASS. and it’s not going to happen….
2014 did Tambuwal resigned when he defected to APC as a speaker then?
Yes
Nigerian politicians can easily loose sense of history.In 2014 when Aminu Tambuwal defected from PDP to APC,he did not resign as speaker of House of Reps.He contested for sokoto governorship.PDP members didn’t call for his resignation.Why then is APC calling for Saraki,s resignation.Mr A must be treated as Mr B,irrespective of party affiliation if we are actually practicing democracy.
Why do the FG wants Saraki resignation? If the FG really wants to follow due process in all its doing, there is no need for saraki to resign. After all Buhari has spent some money withou the approval of senate, If FG has no coakroch in her cupboard, saraki should be left alone and lets see the drama. The secret is if there is cordial relationship btw them, it will not pay we the masses
Yes he should resign as Senate President
No
In 2014 after defection of Tambuwal and others APC has won as majority unlike now, they’re fighting base on number now not party line. Though their problem bcuz no one is better
Capital no
In 2014 after defection of Tambuwal and others APC has won as majority unlike now, they’re fighting base on number now not party line. Though their problem bcuz no one is better
For peace and progress of the country Nigeria he should resign with immediate effect
Olaniyi B. Ojo Its their problem as you rightly said.
NO
Must akpabio escape prison because he join corrupt buhari?
No….those who taught us democracy dont taught hatred because u represent public figure
It’s not constitutional for him to do so
MUMU APC
Yes opposition cannot control the Senate, to have PDP as a Senate President and as a deputy.
Thanks to Doctor Ose who cured me of hepatitis b virus with her herbal medicine i will ever be grateful for what God has used her to do in my life. You can also call or Whatsap her with this number 09075610666. For similar issues like HIV, GONORRHEA, CANCER, PULMONARY, TUBERCULOSIS, CIRRHOSIS, STROKE, SYPHILIS, GONORRHEA, ETC..
What did the constitution said?
How will the resignation create succour for the masses?
If his party is in d minority then he can’t lead
Omo,I concore. U are on point
Analysis from looter SAN….
Capital yes
To what end would his resignation be and for what purpose should he resign? He contested for Senate under APC platform, but he was elected Senate President afterwards. So, the Federal government and those clamouring for his removal should be mindful of their motives. It’s nevertheless clear that he can’t therefore be passed “a vote of no confidence” only by the two third majority (2/3) of the Senate. This is what the law recognises. Any contrary move to this will definitely rubbish Buhari’s anti corruption crusade. And it’ll interest you to know that there’s no clear cut majority in the Red Chamber, hence, Saraki remains the Senate President as the party with absolute majority decides.