The President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki, was implicated by the Offa Robbery suspects, whom the police claimed were working for the Senator.
However in a press release signed by his Special Adviser (Media and
Publicity), Mr. Yusuph Olaniyonu, the Senate President maintained that
there is no how he could have been involved in armed robbery against his
own people.
See the press release:
“The attention of the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola
Saraki, has been drawn to a story circulating online and apparently
derived from a Press Conference addressed by the Police Public Relations
Officer (PPRO), Moshood Jimoh, linking him (Saraki) to the Offa
robbery.
“Dr. Saraki will want the entire public to disregard this claim
as a baseless allegation and another ploy by the Police to implicate
him by all means.
“Let it be known that there is no way I could have been associated with armed robbery against my people.
“When the Offa robbery incident happened, I was the first top
public official to pay a visit to the place and right there in the
palace of the traditional ruler, I put a call through to this same Mr.
Ibrahim Idris, the IGP, requesting him to make certain specific security
arrangements as demanded by the people.
“Members of the public will remember that on May 16, 2018, I
alerted the Senate about the information passed on to me by my State
Governor, Dr. Abdulfatai Ahmed, over a plot by the Inspector General of
Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, to frame me up by getting some suspected
cultists arrested in Ilorin to implicate me. It is believed that the
timely leakage of the plot in that case aborted the use of the suspected
cultists to implicate me. Now, it is the Offa bank robbery suspects
that are about to be used.
“This plot is concocted to embarrass me and, in the mind of the
IGP, it is his own response after his refusal to honour the invitation
by the National Assembly, headed me, for him to come and offer
explanations on the rampant killings and violence across the country.
“Like the earlier one, this frame-up will also fail as I hereby
state categorically that I have no link with any band of criminals.
“As a person who has utmost respect for the rule of law and all
constitutional institutions, when the invitation from the Police is
formally extended to me, I will be ready to honour it without any delay.
“It is however sad that this abuse of the criminal
investigation process aimed at intimidating and over-overawing the
legislature, thereby obstructing it from doing its work, is a big threat
to our democracy “, the Senate President stated.
Signed
Yusuph Olaniyonu
Special Adviser (Media and Publicity) to Senate President