PDP lambastes presidency for silence over Sagay’s ‘attack’ on Supreme Court

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has decried presidency’s silence on alleged attacks on justices of the Supreme Court by Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC) Professor Itse Sagay.

In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, it described Buhari’s failure to prevail on Sagay to stop casting aspersions on the integrity of the Supreme Court justices over its judgments on Rivers and Zamfara states elections as unfortunate.

The party alleged that Sagay’s resort to inciting and hate language against the Supreme Court justices further exposed the Buhari Presidency and the All Progressives Congress (APC) desperation to cow, blackmail, intimidate and annex the judiciary, particularly, the Supreme Court, ahead of determination of PDP’s Presidential Election petition, now before the Court of Appeal

“Sagay’s comment has also revealed the level of condescension, derision and contempt the Buhari Presidency and APC have for the justices of the Supreme Court.

“By declaring the Supreme Court ruling as a ‘national tragedy’ and ‘unimaginable injustice,’ and suggesting that, ‘the APC should not allow’ the judgment as delivered, Sagay is calling for anarchy and rebellion against constitutional democratic order and rule of law,” the statement reads.

The PDP said it believes that such deliberate attack on the Supreme Court could only emanate from apprehensions in the Presidency and APC that they may not have their way in the Presidential election petition, hence the resort to blackmail.

“As a law-abiding party, the PDP holds the integrity of the justices and the judiciary in high esteem and do not support any attempt by the APC to clip and sequester the judiciary for their partisan interests,” it added.

It also insisted that Sagay, a professor of Law, could not justify his call for rejection of the Supreme Court judgment on Zamfara and Rivers states, as they were in protection of rule of law, democratic ethos and aspirations of the people over APC’s attempt to take control of their states through manipulation and awarding of fictitious votes to their candidates

It, therefore, charged the Supreme Court justices to note APC’s machinations, and continue to uphold justice, as demonstrated in the Rivers and Zamfara states’ elections.

“These should serve as lesson to political parties to adhere strictly to rules of internal democracy in the nation’s electoral processes,” he said.