House of Representatives in unison, yesterday, said it will not allow any actions that tended to humiliate Senator Ike Ekwerenmadu.
The House said that Ekwerenmadu, a serving senator and former deputy Senate President deserved all necessary assistance from the Nigerian High Commission in the United Kingdom and as such, mandated the ministry of foreign affairs to get to work immediately.
The House also invited for briefing, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama; acting Comptroller General of Nigerian Immigration Service, Issa Jere; and Chief Executive Officer of National Identity Management Commission on Ekwerenmadu’s travails in London.
The resolutions came on the heels of a motion about the arrest of the former Deputy Senate President and his wife, Beatrice in London last week over charges of conspiracy and organ harvest.
It will be recalled that both were arraigned in Uxbridge Magistrate Court.
The House also mandated the federal ministry of foreign affairs and the high commissioner of Nigeria to the United Kingdom to take all necessary steps possible to ensure that all consular services were made available to them.
Presented by Hon. Abdullahi Abdulkadir Ningi and seconded by Hon. Haruna Mshelia at Tuesday’s plenary under matters of urgent public importance, the Reps also requested that the agencies of the federal government of Nigeria and relevant corporate bodies and particularly, the National Identity Commission, Nigerian Immigration Service, and banks act swiftly to respond to a legitimate request for information to facilitate the prompt resolution of the charges against the couple.
The House also urged the Ministry of Health and the Nigerian Embassy in the UK to provide care for Ekweremadu’s daughter pending the court case
Moving the motion, Ningi noted the arrest of Senator Ike Ekweremadu, a Nigerian citizen and serving senator of the federal republic of Nigeria; former deputy president of the Nigerian senate; and former deputy speaker of the ECOWAS parliament by the metropolitan police in the United Kingdom.
In his remarks earlier, the Speaker of the House, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila intoned that a criminal charge does not constitute a conviction or conclusive proof of guilt.
He disclosed a discussion with the High Commissioner in the UK, who assured him of justice.
“We will all do well to remember that a criminal charge does not constitute a conviction or conclusive proof of guilt. This is merely the beginning of the judicial process to substantiate the fact of the allegation and gather sufficient evidence to sustain the charges therein. Until that process is concluded , let us keep in mind that at the heart of this matter, there are human beings and fellow citizens whose lives have taken a turn none of us would ever wish for ourselves.
“I ask the Nigerian High Commission to avail Senator Ekweremadu and his family all necessary defence and support that he will need to defend himself. Indeed, I have spoken to the High Commissioner in the UK. I still spoke with him this morning and he has been very proactive. He has done all that needs to be done. The Queen’s Counsel has been made available to Ekweremadu. He has access to him. The Nigerian High Commission is doing all that is necessary to make sure that Senator Ekweremadu is given the full opportunities, rights, and privileges that he would need to defend himself”, Gbajabiamila said.
The motion was unanimously adopted by the House when put to voice vote.
