Accept Court’s Verdict In Good Faith – Smart Adeyemi Tells Abbo

A former federal lawmaker, Senator Smart Adeyemi, has told the Adamawa Senator, Ishaku Elisha Abbo, who was sacked by the Court of Appeal, to accept the court’s verdict in good faith and leave the red chamber.

Naija News recalls an Appeal Court sitting in Abuja on Monday sacked Abbo, who represents Adamawa Northern Senatorial District.

The Adamawa senator was elected on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC); however, the court, after sacking him, directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to withdraw the Certificate of Return issued to him and issue the same to Rev. Amos Yohanna Kumai of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Following the judgement, Abbo had accused the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, of witch-hunting him out of the red chamber for kicking against his emergence as head of the Senate, an allegation Akpabio denied.

However, on Tuesday, while featuring on Arise News Television’s News Night, the sacked Adamawa senator apologized to the Senate President, saying his action was premature.

Reacting to the issue, Adeyemi, during an interview with TVC News, said he has known Akpabio for over a decade, and he is not the type of person who would hunt Abbo or any lawmaker.

The former lawmaker said the allegation is a weighty one and thinks the judiciary must look into other related issues.

He said, “Condemning anyone in the chamber now will be against the norms and values that we have placed on ourselves in the National Assembly. But I must say that I do not see the possibility of the Senate President working against any senator for whatever position he or she decided to take on the floor of the Senate.

“I think these are some of the certain problems when you have a new Assembly in place. It keeps happening before you can get to understand each other and have stability. But more importantly, these are some of the problems when you have a large army of newcomers coming to the chamber.

“But for the Senate President, I do not think he is a man who would want to witch-hunt anybody. I’m talking about Senator Akpabio. I have known him more than a decade ago. I do not see him as somebody with that kind of heart or spirit to witch-hunt anybody, but my brother Abbo could have a reason for what he has said. I think he should just take the judgment of the court the way it is, not to rock the boat and let us have stability in the red chamber.

“And I do not want to believe that our legal system is that corrupt to get somebody who has been elected by his people to be so removed.

“But be that as it may, I think it is a very serious allegation that he has made, and I personally feel disturbed. But I think, more importantly, that the judiciary must equally weigh this allegation in view of certain other issues.

“It may not be an issue that has to do with the Senate President, I’m talking about the judgment about Senator Elisha Abbo. It may not have anything to do with the Senate President, but, unfortunately, he cannot take this case further, so I will appeal to him that for the peace and stability of the system, he should just move out of the chamber like I was forced out.

“I was forced out because of my position on contemporary national issues. But I don’t think my own case is similar to his own because I had nobody in the Senate to accuse of pushing me out. So, I will just tell my brother to take it in good faith and believe in God that tomorrow is still there for him. He is still a young man and still has a long way to go.”