I’m not losing sleep over plan to remove me, says Saraki

Senate President Bukola Saraki says he is not losing sleep over the plot of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to remove him.

The ruling party has repeatedly called on him to resign or be removed from office over his decision to join the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

But speaking with journalists after meeting with Ifeanyi Okowa, governor of Delta state, on Saturday,  Saraki said those seeking to oust him are “engaging in cheap blackmail”.

He was accompanied by Dino Melaye, senator representing Kogi west, and Peter Nwaoboshi, senator representing Delta north.

“I am not losing any sleep about impeachment. We have a country that a lot of Nigerians believe there must be rule of law, those who are talking about impeachment are engaging in cheap blackmail and I am not concerned about that,” he said.

“I made a four-page statement on why I left the APC and I made it very clear that the ideas and visions of what we expected was not realised in the areas of democracy, justice, etc.

“Those that followed the political terrain in the last three years can see that the people are not happy. It is not about myself but about Nigerians and about the kind of country we want to build, the kind of democracy we want practised and the kind of leadership we need but we have not been able to achieve any of this under the APC as much as we have tried.”

Saraki said Delta has witnessed economic growth under Okowa and commended the governor.

“Governor Okowa is a very important party member, he is someone I truly respect and I have come to listen to him, hear his views and to consult with him,” he said.

“There is lot of economic growth for the past three years in the state, a lot of opportinites have been created for Deltans, there is a lot of development in the state and this is what we want to see in most of our states.”