Nigerian appeal court drops 15 of 18 charges against Senate President
A Nigerian appeal court dropped most charges against Senate President Bukola Saraki, accused of falsely declaring his assets, but said he still had a case to answer on three counts.
The decision of the Abuja Court of Appeal to abandon 15 of the 18 charges brought against Nigeria’s third-most powerful person after President Muhammadu Buhari and his deputy Yemi Osinbajo, “vindicates the innocence of the senate president,” his spokesman Yusuph Olaniyonu said Tuesday in an emailed statement.
Saraki was acquitted in June by the Code of Conduct Tribunal, which dismissed the charges on the grounds that the “evidence given was discredited in cross-examination,” a court spokesman said at the time.
Saraki has denied the allegations, stemming from his time as governor of the western state of Kwara from 2003 to 2011, saying they were politically motivated.
The three counts retained by the Appeal Court are related to alleged false declarations of property purchases and alleged failure to declare outstanding loan liabilities, according to Lagos-based Punch newspaper.
“We remain convinced about the innocence of the Senate president on the three” remaining counts, Olaniyonu said.
As Nigeria, Africa’s biggest oil producer and most populous nation, begins to gear up for general elections in February 2019, Saraki is seen as a key player. He has expressed interest in the past in running for president, but hasn’t said if he plans to stand in the next election.
