Ekit APC chieftain slams Saraki’s refusal to quit
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Ekiti State, Dr. Adebayo Orire, has berated the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, for his refusal to resign, saying that “such a conduct shows him as lacking integrity.”
Saraki is currently being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for alleged financial lapses while in office as governor of Kwara State.
In an interview with our correspondent, Orire declared that “I will say Saraki doesn’t have integrity, that is why he has not done the right and most honourable thing for him to do since. You see, the most honourable and right thing for him is to resign his position.
“Resigning is a matter of integrity, emotion, although it is voluntary; if you don’t have it, you won’t want to resign which is the best in such circumstance. You don’t force people to resign, you can only sack them, but there are proper, legal ways to it.
“With the way things are going, Saraki may lose his seat in the House; he may also lose his position as Senate President and he may lose both depending on the outcome of his case. Saraki himself knows this, but this is a democracy, you cannot go and throw him out without the proper process; he will sue you.
“The only thing is that the process has been somehow slow because our legal system is slow and permissive to the protection of fraud, and theft. Until such a person is proven, people who were arrested or caught red-handed for theft and fraud are free to move about.
“The reason is that such a person has a lot of protection under our law and that theft or fraud is a bailable offence is painful and I see all these as obstacles in the fight against corruption in the country.”
Orire, who also described the punishment for theft and fraud in the country as not harsh enough said that “on a more serious note, I think it is high time we put forward a new set of laws that is more draconian. In Singapore, and in Asia generally, they would actually shoot you if you steal their money or fraudulently divert their money.
His words: “Corruption is the bane of Nigeria. We are really blessed and we have everything going fine for us, but corruption has spoilt all things, and if really the people see that the government is intolerant of fraud and they see that the stand of the government on punishment against corruption and stealing is really harsh, people will sit tight and caution themselves. By so doing, corruption and stealing will be drastically reduced.”
Speaking about the one-day, one-trouble in Ekiti since the coming to office by Governor Ayo Fayose, Orire said that “Fayose cannot have peace because he is not a man of peace, even the Holy Bible says if you want peace, you must seek and pursue peace.”
According to him, “Fayose got to power fraudulently, so he cannot have peace. He is running his government fraudulently, and violently, so he can only have violence and peace will be far away from him. He carries thugs all around to terrorise people, to beat up Judges. So, how can he have peace?
“Every day is either he abuses Buhari or Obasanjo, and he has no respect the elders, even in his bedroom he cannot have peace because, if you have ever met him, you will know that he is not a peaceful person; his psyche is not peaceful, his spirit is not peaceful; he is always a fighter. He fights everybody, and if he doesn’t have anybody to fight, he fights himself. How can such a person have peace? And how can his government or his reign be peaceful? Definitely, Fayose cannot have peace.”
On the country’s economy, Orire urged President Muhammodu Buhari to make sure that whatever wasthey arrived during the last economic summit should be implemented for the economic revival of the country.
He also urged Buhari a put a value on Nigeria money and scrap second hand market, and as well ensure that Nigeria cut down its excessive importation as a way out to bring down the value of dollar that is currently causing a devaluation of the naira.
“Let us decide what we want to import, or why should we be importing toothpick? Why is it that we cannot produce ordinary toothpaste without outside influence? Why should we be importing clothes? Why can’t we depend solely on the textiles made here? All we need is determination, patriotism, and self-discipline. So, there is a lot we can do; it is not about the naira, but the people running our government. Let us put the value then on everybody, the Central bank of Nigeria (CBN), the banks, the businessmen, industrialists and everybody will fall in line, and it would work.
“Soludo was saying let’s decimalise, if you had decimalised, you will be spending one thousand naira instead of hundred thousand naira. There would have been no problem about the dollar being stronger. We can afford to produce food; every other needs are secondary.
“India did it, Ghana did it. In fact Ghana’s money was less valuable than naira. What they did was to put a put a value on it. It is not the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that will do it for us. We’re the ones; the government can do it. Logically, you will not want to steal and be killed for ten thousand naira, but you can still die for hundred thousand naira which would have been the same thing,” Orire said.
