Member House of Reps Hon. Samaila Suleiman has called for arrest and prosecution of Governor Nasiru elRufai for an act and utterances capable of inciting the public against the office and person of President of federal republic of Nigeria.
The federal legislator described the order by the Kaduna Governor to the public to continue spending the old 500 and 1000 naira notes against the direction of President Buhari as capable of causing unrest, chaos and civil disobedience against an constitutionally elected government.
Hon. Suleiman who is People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Kaduna North House of Reps candidate in 2023 general election lamented the utterances of Governor elRufai, describing them as affront and seditious to the Sovereign and corporate existence of Nigeria.
“Malam Nasir El-Rufai disdainfully countered the valid orders of the Nigeria’s current president on whose popularity Malam EL-Rufai and his cohorts rode to their current positions. No wonder, the former President of Nigeria under whose regime El-Rufai was lifted from oblivion to become the F.C.T Minister was once quoted to have said El-Rufai is not a man of loyalty because biting the fingers that fed him is his trademark.
“It was an attempt by El-Rufai to be clever by half by portraying that his outburst was done in the interest of the downtrodden the rule of law which he disdained so much by most of his anti-People policies during his timeously expiring term as the Governor of Kaduna state.
“Both hands of El-Rufai are not only soiled and dirty but are filthy as far as the naira redesign saga is concerned vis-à-vis his track record of disobeying validly obtained court orders. In fact, the man El-Rufai does not have the moral right to approach our courts for any remedy as has shamelessly done in this case by approaching the apex court invoking its original jurisdiction over a currency issue.
“If the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria cannot guide Malam El-Rufai that currency redesign is an issue under the exclusive Legislative List and well within the powers of Mr. President to enforce, I thought his apparent albeit fake loyalty to President Muhammadu Buhari should have guided him not to scornfully dare the President’s orders on the naira redesign as he did.
What is even more worrisome is not the fact that El-Rufai actually issued his statement but his deliberateness and countenance while reading out same made it clear that he did so damning all possible consequences.
“elRufai knows well that his orders which were counter to the ones issued by President Buhari on the naira notes redesign tantamount to curving out Kaduna state from the Federation of Nigeria which act is not only illegal, unconstitutional but also amounts to sedition and treason against the Nigerian state.
“The obvious desperation of Malam El-Rufai on this saga ofcourse says the expected; the well hatched plan of Malam El-Rufai and his cronies to use illicit old naira notes amassed over the years to buy votes for his children and cronies in order to continue reaping Kaduna state of its resources has hit the Kufena rock.
“Same desperate El-Rufai, his sons and godsons who have deployed all undemocratic means against my supporters and political opponents by using all forms of intimidation and cowardly antics ordering unjustifiable arrests of my supporters in order to scuttle my aspiration to give his son an edge in forthcoming election.
“The security agencies are urged to be on high alert and move in to defend and protect our democracy, the sanctity and integrity of the Nigerian state as one indivisible and indissoluble entity by arresting and prosecuting Nasir el-Rufai for his treasonable conduct which constitute serious threat not only to democracy but the entire entity called the federal Republic of Nigeria. As a serving Legislator,
“I am not unmindful of the immunity accorded to sitting Governors and their Deputies but of course no person or authority including Malam Nasir El-Rufai should be allowed to threaten the territorial integrity of Nigeria without any consequence on the altar of immunity close.
“My least expectation of our security agencies is for them to take cognizance of the treasonable conduct of El-Rufai and to swing into action as soon as his term of office expires on 29th May, 2023,”he appealed.