Senate Ministerial Screening - Amaechi Fights Back Legally

A former Governor of Rivers State, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, has written three letters on why the Senate should not stop his screening as a ministerial nominee, according to The Nation. Amaechi broke his silence in three separate letters to the President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki,and Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions. The letters were written by his solicitor, Edward E. Pepple.

 In the letters, he asked the Senate to “discard” the petition against him by the Integrity Group and the report of the Justice G. G. Omereji Judicial Commission of Inquiry. He said the allegations against him were not only false but also made malafide with the intent to “solely irritate, embarrass and tarnish his hard-earned reputation.” He said he should be presumed innocent until the contrary is proved.

He said since there are pending cases at the Federal High Court, Abuja and the Court of Appeal, any action by the Senate will be subjudice. He asked the Senate to preserve its Standing Order which bars it from dabbling in any matter pending before a court.

Citing the case of ex-Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Amaechi said the Supreme Court had emphasized that an indictment by the Judicial Commission of Inquiry or Administrative Panel is not an “indictment” or sufficient for the purpose of preventing a person from holding a public office.

Source

The NATION