Forty-five political parties that paid a solidarity visit to Senate President Bukola Saraki on Thursday alerted those present of an alleged plot to freeze the accounts of Saraki, the Senate, and state governors.

Regardless, Saraki expressed the hope that anti-democratic forces in the country had learnt their lessons in the past few days.

He said the National Assembly would continue to follow due process and rule of law and would not stand by to see the nation’s democracy wasted.

Speaking on behalf of the parties, the National Chairman of National Unity Party (NUP), Perry Okpara, said, “We have it on good authority that there are moles in the Senate and there are moves to freeze the accounts of the Senate, the Senate President, and governors.”

Okpara, who further revealed that there was a new plot to overthrow the leadership of the National Assembly, added that the move was to cripple the parliament.

“We wish to alert Nigerians of a new plot by the same people, whose first shameful attempt to unlawfully overthrow the leadership of the National Assembly failed – an attempt, which brought Nigeria to bad international limelight. We have it on good authority that a fresh plot is being hatched to make another attempt to cripple the parliament in the guise of impeachment, even when they know that there is no constitutional majority to achieve the sinister move.

“We wish to state that we, the chairmen and leaders of political parties, will not support or standby to watch any unconstitutional impeachment of the leadership of the National Assembly,” he said.

Okpara, who didn’t mention the name of the agency plotting to freeze the accounts of Saraki, the Senate, and the governors, said the political parties would not sit by and watch the country slid into anarchy, where life would become short, brutish and lawless.

He said, “Nigeria is gradually turning into a failed state and all the institutions of state have been compromised and desecrated. This is the time to rise in defence of democratic values and nationhood.”

The parties condemned the use of the police, Department of State Services (DSS) and Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to clamp down on the opposition, the leadership of the National Assembly, and lay siege to state Assemblies.

He added, “Today, our country is facing the challenges of pervasive insecurity, massive joblessness and unemployment, ethnic irredentism and disunity.

“We enjoin the National Assembly to use its constitutionally guaranteed powers to legislate to arrest the slide; to give the country a new direction and create hope for our countrymen and women.”

Okpara disclosed that the political parties had disassociated themselves from the attempt by Accord Party to undermine the constitutional powers of the National Assembly to determine the sequence of elections.

He said, “We note that the courts have rejected attempts by the Accord Party to undermine the constitutional powers of the National Assembly to determine the sequence of elections. We, majority of the political parties, disassociate ourselves from that inglorious attempt.”

•Sourced from a Daily Independent report

Update news