*Senate President: no plot against Buhari

An aide to All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu yesterday urged Senate President Bukola Saraki not to allow his personal interest to affect the screening of ministerial nominees.

In a statement, Mr. Sunday Dare, Tinubu's Chief of Staff/Special Adviser (Media), said "Tinubu will remain true to the progressive ideas that fuelled the creation of the (APC)".

Reacting to a news story published by "The Sun" at the weekend that Tinubu was under security watch, having been fingered to be working with the senate president to thwart the ministerial screening, Dare said: "Given the exigencies of his position, President (Muhammadu Buhari) is placed in an unenviable position to some degree.

"The duties of his office give him no choice; necessity constrains him, requiring that he discuss with Senator Saraki. As party leader, Asiwaju is free of such constraints.

"On these matters, I know where Asiwaju Tinubu stands. He remains glued to the party decision that the manner by which Saraki captured his current seat travestied party discipline. It was a crass act of disloyalty showing that Saraki may have joined the APC on paper but has remained true to the malpractices and wrong aims of the reactionary PDP in his soul.

"The alleged conspiracy is a figment. It takes at least two people to make a conspiracy.

"There has been no substantive communication between Asiwaju and Saraki since the latter decided to foul the integrity of the Senate and the party.

"To be truthful, I don't think Saraki would care to hear what Asiwaju would have to say to him. He would admonish the Senator to treat the nomination process with dispatch, justice, fairness, transparency, and most of all with the greatest patriotism.

"He would counsel Saraki to shelve his personal situation for the moment to concentrate on the people's business. It would be a grave mistake and abuse of office for Saraki to directly or indirectly inject his personal matter into the approval process.

"Saraki should not link the approval of a single Minister to his desire for extrajudicial treatment of his issues."

The full statement is hereby reproduced.