Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki Fails In His Bid To Disqualify CCT Chairman Umar

Senate President Bukola Saraki has failed in his bid to disqualify the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) Chairman, Danladi Umar from presiding over the criminal charges against him bothering on false assets declaration.

The CCT on Wednesday dismissed the motion filed by Saraki asking the tribunal chairman, Umar, to recuse himself from further presiding over the criminal matter against him on grounds of bias.

Saraki had through his lawyer, Kanu Agabi (SAN) filed an application seeking the withdrawal of the tribunal Chairman over allegation of a bias statement credited to him during the proceedings of June 7.

Agabi had cited a statement by Umar in which he said Saraki was employing delay tactics because he was afraid of the “final consequences” of the trial.

However ruling on the application, the tribunal Chairman Umar held that the application was founded on “mere conjecture,” saying the comment credited to him was unverified and that the defence failed to meet the legal standard of proving allegation of bias against a judge.

He said, “It is our holding that the defendant/applicant’s allegation of bias is merely founded on conjecture.

“The allegation of bias is a serious issue and it is capable of destroying public confidence in the institution.

“The affidavit by the concerned citizens does not constitute a standard for proving such serious allegation.

“The tribunal upholds that the application of the applicant is not legally founded and it is hereby refused.”

Reading the ruling of the two-man panel, Umar observed, by the way, that even if he had wished to withdraw from the case, the Constitutional constraints as captured under Paragraph 17(3) and (4) of the Fifth Schedule to the Constitution, would not permit him to do so.

He also said the practice of asking a judge to disqualify himself from the trial before the CCT was only application to the Federal High Court, the National Industrial Court, as well as the High Court of the various states of the federation but not to the tribunal. Because, according to him, that would tantamount to closing down the tribunal as “without the chairman, there is no tribunal”.