Senator Saraki made the application for Mr Umar to disqualify himself because of a suspicion of bias. The reason he adduced is that the Fifth schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (CFRN 1999) did not contemplate such an action.
To me, he is right because the Tribunal has only one chairman who must preside over proceedings. That chairman is him. So disqualifying himself is equivalent to terminating the trial because the case file cannot be transferred to to any other person.
Does this mean that Senator Saraki would have no remedy? Well the answer is no. By the time the final judgment is given, he can appeal it to the Court of Appeal which can upturn it on the grounds of absence of fair hearing. This is perhaps an exception to the rule which requires a judge to disqualify himself upon a reasonable suspicion or real likelihood of bias.
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