A senator from the North-Central geopolitical zone and an ally of Saraki said trouble could start on resumption when the APC caucus would definitely demand a roll call so that senators who defected to its fold could sit with their party members for easy identification.
“For now, I am not aware of any division or faction in the PDP at the moment that could warrant the action of Akpabio and others.
“The Senate President is expected to exercise his constitutional powers now to declare the seats of Akpabio and others’ vacant until they are able to justify the reasons for their defection.
“We know that the development would provoke an uproar, but the Senate President would remain resolute. So, the only option that would be left for Akpabio and his co-travellers would be to approach the court to determine whether there is actually a division in the PDP or not.
“Until the procurement of the legal interpretation of their status, those who defected from the PDP would be barred from entering the premises of the National Assembly.
“They will probably remain in court till the end of the current 8th Assembly.”
However, members of the APC caucus at the Senate alleged that Saraki withheld their defection letters from the PDP sent to the upper chamber.
The APC senators further alleged that Saraki, who read out the letter in which 13 lawmakers defected from the APC to the PDP and another one to the African Democratic Congress on July 24, refused to read the letters from those who dumped the opposition party for the ruling party.
The Senate President has however denied the allegation, challenging those who claimed to have written to him to declare their defections to publish their letters.
Speaking to SUNDAY PUNCH on Saturday, an APC senator accused Saraki of ignoring the defection letters.
“Saraki has been proving smart by not reading letters of defections from the PDP. Until that was done, those affected have technically not defected. He is not reading the letters and it is deliberately so. As a result, in the records of the National Assembly, PDP is 57 while we are 48.
Reacting to the allegation, Saraki, who spoke through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Yusuph Olaniyonu, denied keeping defection letters.
He said, “There is no senator whose letter is still pending. It is a lie, we don’t have such letters. When did they write and send the letters? Did they show you the copies? They need to make available the acknowledgement copies.”
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