The President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has filed an appeal against the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, which affirmed the jurisdiction of the Code of Conduct Tribunal to hear the corruption charges brought against him.
The Tribunal, under the chairmanship of Justice Danladi Umar, had arraigned Saraki on a 13-count charge bordering on corruption and false declaration of assets while serving as Governor of Kwara State.
However, the Senate president approached the appellate Court to challenge the jurisdiction of the Code of Conduct Tribunal to try him.
Delivering its judgment on October 30, the Court Appeal affirmed the jurisdiction of the Tribunal and dismissed all the five issues raised by Saraki.
In the fresh appeal, Saraki also filed a stay of proceedings at the Supreme Court to stop the Tribunal from trying him pending the determination of his appeal at the apex court.
In his notice of appeal, the Senate president raised seven grounds of appeal that are attached to the application for stay of proceedings.
Saraki urged the Supreme Court to set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal, the entire proceedings of the Code of Conduct Tribunal and the charges preferred against him before the Tribunal.
He had also raised the issue of membership, arguing that the Tribunal has only two members as against the three provided for in the provisions of Paragraph 15 (1) of the Fifth Schedule to the Nigerian Constitution.
According to him, the Appeal Court, therefore, erred in law by affirming the competence of the proceedings of the Code of Conduct Tribunal.
Saraki argued that the application of the Interpretation Act to hold that two out of three members of the Tribunal could validly sit “is to circumvent and reduce the number prescribed by the Constitution for the due composition of the Tribunal”.