President of the Nigerian Senate, Bukola Saraki, has described his trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) over allegations of false declaration of assets and corruption as a huge distraction.

Speaking in an interview in Abuja, he expressed the hope that the trial will soon be over to enable him concentrate on advancing the country.

“It (CCT trial)‎ is a distraction. I want to clear my name as soon as possible so that we can move forward. It is a huge distraction.

“As an institution we must look at how to strengthen the judiciary. The fight against corruption must be transparent.

“It might slow us a little bit down, but I am confident we will ‎make progress.”

On the 8th Senate, Saraki said: “The group of senators we have now are very patriotic. You can’t compare it to the previous senate. Senators have come there as senators of the federal republic and not as senators of APC or PDP.

“I’m honoured by the support that they have given me.

“We are focusing on the economy and on how we can make Nigeria a better place. This is different from before.‎”