Off The Mic: Bulkachuwa Alleges At Senate Valedictory Session That Colleagues Lobbied Him To Influence His Wife When She Was President Of The Court Of Appeal

There was mild drama at the 9th Senate Valedictory Session on Saturday when Sen. Adamu Bulkachuwa insinuated that he was approached by some of his colleagues to curry favor with his wife, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa, the former President of the Court of Appeal.

“Particularly, my wife, whose freedom I encroached while she was in office,” Mr Bulkachuwa said. “She has been very tolerant and accepted my encroachment and extended her help to my colleagues.”

While Ahmed Lawan, president of the Senate, had to chastise him for making such nasty remarks and warn that doing so would damage his colleagues’ reputations by portraying them negatively.

Adamu Bulkachuwa, a senator from Bauchi North and the oldest senator in the 9th Senate, proceeded to discuss the problem until being cut off by the Senate President, who insisted on calling him to order three times in order to avoid the situation.

While, he submitted to the President’s order and thanked his wife for her patience, endurance, and the support she has given him and numerous of his coworkers over the years, Bulkachuwa concluded his speech.

Sen. Bulkachuwa Alleges That Some Of His Colleagues Had Come To Him To Seek His Help Through His Wife When She Was President Of The Court Of Appeal.

🎥: Channels TV @NGCourtofAppeal pic.twitter.com/8NyxSA8Wfu

— The Nigeria Lawyer (@Nigerialawyers) June 12, 2023

Sen. Adamu Bulkachuwa’s remarks, however, were humiliating for both the Senate President and the Senate itself since many Nigerians have accused the Senate of being home to a swamp of dishonest politicians who will do everything to subvert judicial independence.

Justice Bulkachuwa retired from the Court of Appeal Bench on her 70th birthday on the 6th day of March 2020. She was succeeded by another female and distinguished Abusite, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem.

Recall that there had been controversy over the APC Yobe North Senatorial ticket between duly elected Bashir Machina and Lawan.

Machina, at a primary election organised by the party in May 2022, won unopposed as the Senate President who was pursuing his presidential ambition at that time did not participate in the primary election, but lost to former Lagos State governor, Bola Tinubu.

However, rather than submit the name of the elected candidate, Machina, the ruling APC submitted the name of the senate president to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), a move that led to the deliberate omission of their names from the published particulars of candidates late June 2022.

To clarify the brewing controversy around the seat, INEC, on at least two different occasions, said it rejected the senate president’s name because he had not been validly nominated for the senatorial seat, and urged the duo to resolve their issues internally or seek redress in court.

Following his loss of the case at Court of Appeal in November 2022, Lawan filed an appeal at the Supreme Court, which affirmed him as the party’s candidate.

Meanwhile, in response to Okorocha’s mockery, Lawan claimed that his constituents and party stakeholders had appealed on his behalf up to the Supreme Court.

“I didn’t even appeal the judgement that did not give me the contest. The party and the stakeholders appealed on my behalf up to the Supreme Court, so there is nothing critical or remarkable. In fact, you have nothing to learn from it,” Lawan said.