Anti-Saraki Groups Plan Mass Protest Tuesday

 President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki

Groups opposed to the President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki are said to have concluded plans to stage a mass protest on Tuesday at the National Assembly against his senate presidency, ultimately to force him to bow out of office.

Sources claimed the Ilorin, Kwara State eid protest was a prelude to the Tuesday version by elements within the All Progressives Congress (APC), who are said to be determined to get Saraki out of the way owing to the manner he beat the party leadership to emerge the Senate President.

Apart from the protest which has already been perfected, according to sources, another set of the groups have also been assigned the responsibility of holding a press conference across the states over the Saraki matter, specifically asking the Senate President to resign.
This, the organisers are believed to have also designed to coincide with the resumption of the Senate that Tuesday so that the exercise would not only taint and embarrass the person of the Senate President but also prevent the lawmakers from sitting.

The Tuesday protest however leaked, when one of the field coordinators allegedly received a call from the main coordinator and was being handed instructions on the preparations for Tuesday. Although he was alleged to have spoken in the Hausa language, those who understood the language later interpreted his conversation, having followed through.

According to sources, the reason the anti-Saraki forces were resorting to mass protest, was not only to embarrass the Senate President but force him out of office because they reckoned his current trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal might ultimately not lead to their expectation, hence the resort to other options to aid their cause.

“Of course, intelligence had revealed that there were plans to organise protest and embarrass the Senate President, but he was not going to be stifled by such sinister plots from those who are clandestinely harming the change movement and ignored them. But our fears were further confirmed when one of them received a call and started speaking in Hausa.

“He had thought nobody understood Hausa where he was but he goofed at that point. He had a good discussion on the protest and reviewed the Ilorin project as a success.

So, immediately, we decided to come up with counter-strategy that would prevent a breakdown of law and order.

“Their plans also include a press conference across the states, where they have point men to start running the person of the senate president down. We hear they have been mobilised already and what is left is to unleash on Tuesday,” he said.