Senate President Bukola Saraki Tuesday approached the Supreme Court to again; challenge the jurisdiction of the Code of Conduct Tribunal to try him.
Mr. Saraki also filed an application for stay of proceedings to stop the Tribunal from carrying on with his trial pending the determination of his appeal at the Supreme Court.
It will be recalled that the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja, had on October 30, dismissed all the five issues raised by Mr. Saraki including issues of jurisdiction and composition of the Tribunal.
Two of the Appellate Court Judges had affirmed the jurisdiction of the Code of Conduct Tribunal to try Mr. Saraki for charges bordering on false declaration of assets preferred against him before the Tribunal.
However, the Senate President in his notice of appeal raised seven grounds of appeal that are attached to the application for stay of proceedings.
He prayed the Apex 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.
Mr. Saraki 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.
He stated that the Appeal Court therefore, erred in law by affirming the competence of the proceedings of the Code of Conduct Tribunal.
According to the embattled Senate President, 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”.
Mr. Saraki is facing a 13-count charge bordering on false declaration of assets when he served as the Governor of Kwara Sate from 2003 to 2011.
