Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila (APC, Lagos) pleads for the embattled Ekweremadus in an impassioned speech yesterday in Parliament.
He made the speech while ruling on a House motion for clemency for the couple awaiting sentencing for organ trafficking indictment.
The Speaker hastened to say that the House was not absolving the Ekweremadus but pleading for clemency.
“It behooves any government of any country, wherever their citizens are distressed or found in situations such as this, that their government should intervene, not in the bid to establish their innocence, but in the bid to plead for clemency. Nations have done it times without number, even advanced democracies in the world.
“And for that reason, I will on behalf of the House of Representatives, also speak to the British Government and Judicial system. For as long as I have known Senator Ike Ekweremadu, he has been brilliant lawyer, a distinguished public servant, and a dedicated family man. Over the course of two decades of shared service in the national legislature, he has become a dear friend and trusted colleague.
“For these reasons, his arrest by authorities in the United Kingdom on charges of conspiring to arrange the travel of another Nigerian citizen to harvest his organs was a terrible shock. These revelations are a far departure from the character of the man as I have known him and fall far short of the standards of behaviour expected from a person of his standing.
“For twenty-four years since the return to democratic governance in Nigeria, Ike Ekweremadu has served the people of his community, his state and his country with vigour and dedication. For most of that time, he has been a member of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. He has used this office to advance the cause of democracy, champion critical reforms and advocate for the development of his constituency.
“Through his Ikeoha Foundation, he and his wife have helped provide access to quality education and healthcare for thousands of people in his community and his state. Their public service and private philanthropy have helped improve the social, economic and political fortunes of their communities and aided the personal and professional progress of many.
“None of this suggests that either Ike Ekweremadu or his wife should be above the law or held to a different standard than any other citizen. I recount these things to present a whole perspective so that in this moment of consequence, the judgment of the court may take into consideration the Ekweremadu’s history of honourable living and distinguished service, their contributions to a better world and the possibility that, given a chance, through the penitence of service, both Ike and his wife can yet atone for their failings and find forgiveness before God and man.
“I am confident that Ike Ekweremadu and his wife have learned from their recent experiences and will be guided by their better angels for the rest of their days. If nothing else, for the sake of their ailing daughter, Sonia, let mercy temper justice for this family”, the Speaker pleaded.
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