I’m Not In Hiding -- Senate President Saraki

The embattled Senate President, Bukola Saraki, has denied going into hiding to evade police arrest over the corruption charges he is facing before the Code of Conduct Tribunal.

He also denied planning to defect from the All Progressives Congress, APC, on whose platform he won the March 28 poll to the upper legislative chamber.

The Tribunal had on Friday ordered the Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase, to arrest Saraki and produce him on Monday following the failure of the Senate President to appear before it to answer a 13-count criminal charge preferred against him by the Federal Ministry of Justice.

The senate president, through his lawyers, however approached the Court of Appeal immediately, requesting it to set aside the order for his arrest.

Yusuph Olaniyonu, Saraki’s aide on media and publicity said on Sunday that the senate president was not in hiding as being speculated, but merely travelled to his home town in Ilorin.

He explained that Saraki, who represents Kwara Central Senatorial District, made the trip to calm tension that had built up among his constituents and attend to other engagements.

“How can he be hiding? He travelled to Ilorin to pray and calm frayed nerves and attend to some engagement.

“He is back in Abuja and currently in the Guest House to which he moved when a section of his house got burnt some weeks ago. You know he moved to the Guest house before the issue of Code of Conduct arose and so it was not because of the issue he moved.”

Olaniyonu said he was not aware that a bench warrant had been issued though he could not confirm if the senate president would appear before the Tribunal on Monday.

According to him, it is only Saraki’s lawyers that could provide answer to that, stating that the matter may come up at the High Court, the Court of Appeal and the CCT on Monday and that it is the lawyers that will determine which of the courts he will attend.

The senate president, while responding to questions on his official Twitter handle, denied planning to defect to the Peoples Democratic Party, to which he belonged until early 2014.

Saraki was alleged to be planning to dump the APC after stripping the party’s name from his twitter bio.

“I remain a card-carrying member of my dear party. But I’m also honoured to serve as Senate President of all Senators,” he said in a terse statement on the twitter handle.