Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has condemned the invasion of the
homes of Senate president Bukola Saraki and his Deputy, Ike Ekweremadu, by
security operatives acting on orders from the Presidency.
Atiku said while such action is “troubling and unsettling,” leaders of the
parliament should not be treated like criminals.
The former Vice President’s statement reads:
Stop the Persecution of NASS Leadership Now
The news of the sieges on the residences of the Senate President, Bukola
Saraki, and his Deputy, Ike Ekweremadu, is both troubling and unsettling.
No democratic nation ought to treat the leadership of its Parliament like
common criminals in the course of a political disagreement.
I remind the powers that be that on August 31, 2013, when Senator Bukola
Saraki walked out of the Peoples Democratic Party and began the process of
joining the All Progressives Congress, there was celebration in their
camps.
I also remind them that their electoral victory, which they have so badly
mismanaged today, would not have been possible without the Senate
President.
Power is transient and is also a trust that should only be used for the
good and advancement of the people one leads and not for the persecution
of real and imagined political opponents.
I therefore call for the lifting of the sieges on the persons and homes of
Senate President Bukola Saraki and his deputy, Senator Ike Ekweremadu by
security forces.
I remind President Muhammadu Buhari of his public words of solidarity to
Senator Saraki after his ordeal of malicious prosecution, which thankfully
was brought to a halt by the Supreme Court, and I urge him to live up to
those words today and always.
Atiku Abubakar
Waziri Adamawa
Vice President of Nigeria 1999-2007