The Trial of Brother Saraki & The Breath of Garlic

Dear reader, can we attempt a recent Nigerian history flip a bit? Let’s just imagine a scenario where the initial permutations of the ruling party – APC actually materialized and Senator Lawan became the Senate President during the election of principal officers of the 8th Senate and all other officers like Deputy Senate President, Senate Leader, Chief Whip, Majority Leader fell in line as planned, would there be any discussion of a Code of Conduct Bureau or even the slightest mention of a trial? 

How many former APC Governors or should I say PDP governors turned ACN/APC currently have cases to answer at the CCB? EFCC? ICPC? Now, re-flip the script to today and picture our Senate President, Senator “Brother” Bukola Saraki sitting in the docks being drilled with questions about his complacency in asset declaration since he left Government House Ilorin to the Senate in 2011. The underlying questions on the minds of many-a-Nigerian is “Why Saraki?”And “Why Now?” Or is this actually evidence that the CCB is doing their job and that the modus operandi is to operate covertly and wait for the right time to strike, which in their estimation is now? And in a bid to understand their way of doing things, it seems really confusing as to whether its operationally cumbersome for the CCB to play Spot-The-Senator while he/she is in plain view. And by plain view I mean in the open where there’s no place to run or no political or constitutionally immune title position to hide under? Or is it spot-on for the Saraki dynasty that the proverbial chickens have come to roost? What is so special about Senator Saraki & Wife at this opportune moment in the annals of the rise-to-reign for the APC that this overhyped media circus on the Saraki family is taking center stage? Since when did Asset Declaration or the lack thereof catch the fancy of any government fact-finding agency since we returned to democracy in 1999? What are the “real sins” of Bro. Saraki? Is it really Asset Declaration or should we expect another?

Perhaps, in line with President Buhari’s Anti-Corruption agenda, the CCB/EFCC/ICPC have been given marching orders to search for big fishes to catch as a lesson for others to follow and Saraki happened to be the first casualty to be caught in the net; hence the trial? Perhaps, the anti-graft agencies have been in hot pursuit of the Sarakis since they left Government House for the Three-Arms Zone on corruption-related charges and 2015 was co-incidentally the breakthrough year. What are the true sins of Saraki? Did he embezzle monies, inflate contracts or defraud and deprive the treasury meant for Kwara state (if yes, shouldn’t the Kwara State Government be both whistle-blower and lead prosecutor)? Was he screened by the anti-graft and given a clean bill of health before he ventured contesting the Senate position he now holds? 

Irrespective of how numb the ruling party pretends to be about the present trials of Bro & Sis Saraki – their Senate President or how neutral the Presidency wishes to seem in this regard as they tout the idea of “Zero Interference” in the affairs of the National Assembly. We will believe what we Nigerians oft choose to believe and for me, I firmly believe all the CCB hullabaloo stems from the outcome of the election of principal officers of the Senate! That marked the beginning of the trials of Bro. Saraki. In comparison with the happenings in the Green Chamber which was akin to that in the red chamber where the leadership of both houses emanated against the wishes of the party, the noise in the Green Chamber has since quelled as owing to concessions by Dogara for peace to reign- and his position remain unchanged. 

Saraki doesn’t seem to have that luxury in the face of a ferocious and deeply wounded ruling party turned opposition staring him in the face red-eyed saying “Touch not our anointed (Ekweremadu)!” Perhaps, Saraki’s sin was aspiring and ascending to the Presidency of the Senate which were against the wishes of his party and some vested interests therein. This school of thought seem to be held by the generality of pundits who strongly postulate that the ascendancy of Saraki was a direct poke in the eye to the interest of APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and in retaliation, the hidden can of worms was burst open. Saraki himself recently admitted to the Senate Presidency seat is the reason for his present tribulations which probably means that if he had not attempted to go against the party’s wishes, the story would have been different. 

As this is going on, other APC controlled camps sing discordant yet similar tunes as the Presidency sticks to its No Interference with the National Assembly soundtrack, the APC leadership sings an elegy on its senate structural misfortunes while the Asiwaju recently released his latest single on Its Nothing New, I have been before the CCB too, Saraki is not above the Law. Should Nigerians swallow the opinion of the Jagaban and believe all is well and what APC is going through via the Saraki VS CCB trial is simply an example of the chewing garlic and hoping the mouth wont smell. Garlic spice in the opinion of many-a-health expert is good for the body as a cleanser & purifier, but unpleasant in the breath. 

Is APC really undergoing a top-to-bottom cleansing? Is this just a mild face wash or a total sponge bath? Will there be concessions for certain privileged few or is this total? Is Bro Saraki the scapegoat as proof to Nigerians on the zero tolerance of the Buhari led Federal Government and the APC for corruption? Will the CCB let off with its trial once the leadership calculations are reworked to the initial Lawan-Akume masterplan or is this an actual Anti-Corruption War? Will other erring former governors and political office holders with cases to answer also suffer the same fate?
We are watching.