Admin l Wednesday, June 14, 2017
ABUJA, Nigeria – The Code of Conduct Tribunal, CCT on Wednesday cleared President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki of all charges.
Saraki has been on trial for 13-count charge by the federal government, shortly after his emergence as Senate president.
In his application for a no-case submission, Saraki’s lawyers argued that the allegations made against their client was based on petitions from complainants who never appeared as witnesses to testify.
The lawyers, led by a former Attorney General of the Federation, Kanu Agabi, argued that the petitions upon which the allegations were based, did not form part of the documents presented in court.
They prayed the tribunal to dismiss the case, on the grounds that the prosecution failed to link Mr. Saraki with the charges.
In his ruling on the application, the CCT said the failure of the prosecution to present witnesses who were fully part of the alleged offence against the senate president, made their evidence “incurably defective”.
“The evidence is incurably defective. The prosecution has failed to link the defendant with the alleged offence,” Mr. William Atedze, a member of the tribunal said.