Saraki Pays Omo-Agege’s Entitlements After Court Order

Nigeria’s Senate President Bukola Saraki has paid Delta-Central senator, Ovie Omo-Agege, all his entitlements that accrued from his illegal suspension by the Senate earlier in the year, Omo-Agege’s lawyer told an Abuja court on Thursday.

Omo-Agege was suspended by the Red Chamber for 90 legislative days as a violation of constitutional provisions empowering the Senate to punish its members, which the Judge had in May ruled that law only allows for the Senate to suspend its member for 14 days.

He was suspended following comments he made at the floor of the Senate accusing the upper legislative chamber of conspiring against President Muhammadu Buhari.

Omo-Agege initiated the committal proceedings praying that Saraki be sent to prison as punishment for flouting a May 10 judgment of the court which ordered him (Omo-Agege) to be reinstated from illegal suspension and be paid all his accrued benefits for the period of the voided suspension.

In the court sitting on October 11, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of an Abuja High court warned the Senate President again and gave “the alleged contemnor (Saraki) another opportunity to remedy the alleged wrong”.

Omo-Agege’s lawyer, Dr. Alex Izinyon (SAN), informed Justice Dimgba on Thursday that his client was paid on October 12, 2018, barely 24 hours after the court adjourned.

Izinyon said he received and acknowledged the receipt of nine cheques on behalf of the senator.

According to him, when the cheques were presented to Omo-Agege, the senator acknowledged that there was a shortfall of N6m.

He said when notified, the Senate President’s aide acknowledged that the senator’s claim was correct and admitted that the shortfall arose from an error of computation.