Alleged corruption: PDP, APC in war of words over Bulkachuwa
Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday, called on President Muhammadu Buhari and the leadership of All Progressives Congress, APC, to clear the air on allegations of corruption against Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa, President of the Court of Appeal. But Department of State Services, DSS, also, yesterday, denied ever indicting Justice Bulkachuwa of any financial crime. APC-PDP However, PDP in a statement by its spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan, noted that on account of the allegation and the nefarious plot to bring its name into its narrative, charged the Buhari-led Presidency to come clear on the corruption allegation it opened on Justice Bulkachuwa. The statement read:
“The party says since the Buhari-led Presidency has alluded to issues of corruption against Justice Bulkachuwa, contrary to issues raised in the PDP petition bordering on bias, it behoves on the Presidency and the APC to make public the corruption issues they have alluded to. My arrest not true, Okorocha out to destroy APC – Senator Uzodimma “The Presidency should also take a step further by pursuing these issues of corruption just as it did in its case of corruption allegations against the former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, instead of dragging our party into issues that have no bearing on PDP. “Now that the Presidency has informed the whole nation that Justice Bulkachuwa has issues of corruption, we challenge it to do the needful rather than engaging in shadow-boxing against our party.
“Moreover, in the face of corruption allegations, as has now been exposed by the Presidency, the burden still lies on the same Presidency to come clean. “In doing that, the Presidency will be ranching on its established course, having hit the records of harassing and intimidating judicial officials; abuse of court processes and disregard for court orders.” We’ve not indicted Bulkachuwa — DSS However, the Department of State Services, DSS, has denied ever indicting Bulkachuwa of any financial crime. The open declaration by the DSS followed a report by a newspaper, which claimed that Bulkachuwa was purportedly indicted for bribery and corruption by a certain secret memo of the service. A statement by DSS spokesman, Peter Afunanya, read:
“Consequently, the DSS categorically states that the said memo only exists in the imagination of the writers and should be roundly disregarded by the reading public. “It is unfortunate that the newspaper followed unethical ways to publish this falsehood. It is rather curious and, indeed, condemnable that the newspaper did not reach out to the service for its comments as would have been expected in a reportage of this nature. “The service has, nonetheless, launched a detailed investigation into the controversies surrounding the said newspaper publication. “It is the wish of the service that it is left out of the maneuvers of politicians who are hereby advised to abide by the rule of law and respect the entire process of electoral litigation regarding the activities of the tribunal.
“While the service will continue to collaborate with the media as strategic partners in nation building, it admonishes practitioners to be lawful and professional in the execution of their responsibility. “However, mischief makers, intent on causing disaffection in the polity, are warned to desist from such acts as the full weight of the law will be visited on defaulters.” PDP should look for something concrete to bring forward—APC In his reaction, APC’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, stated:
“Do you think somebody should be responding to such hogwash. When will PDP sit to put down the names of all justices at the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal and trace their families so that we know how many of them who have relations who are in politics and should be disqualified, starting from the Supreme Court. ‘’Then they should point to what aspect of the Nigerian law that says that if you have a relation who is a politician, then you are disqualified. PDP is indirectly questioning the integrity of the people in the judiciary and is indirectly trying to intimidate that institution and undermine the rule of law.
‘’Hardly would you find anybody in the judiciary today who does not have a relation who is a politician. From the Supreme Court down to the Magistrate Court, hardly would you find any Nigerian who is a judicial officer who does not have somebody who is a relation that is a politician. ‘’The world has become tired of an opposition party that has failed in its responsibility to even oppose, using logic and applying sense into what they are doing. I think they want to be in the news by all means but I think they should do better and look for something concrete to bring forward.” Vanguard
