Senator Dino Melaye (APC, Kogi West) has denied reports that he threatened to beat up and rape his colleague and wife of one of the national leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Oluremi Tinubu. He gave his reason:  “it is biologically impossible to impregnate a woman who has arrived menopause”. He spoke to reporters to clear the air, Thursday.

The flamboyant Senator also said that the issue of impeachment of President Muhammadu Buhari  was never discussed at the Executive session of the Senate on Tuesday, but how the senate could resolve the alleged forgery imbroglio. He told his critics that he was not a coward to speak through proxies if he is convinced of the need to remove the President from office.

According to him the story had been deliberately distorted  and sold to online medium, Saharareporters, to malign his person and intimidate him from supporting Senate President Bukola Saraki in the latter’s political battles with Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The Kogi senator said: “it has become expedient because my name, my personality, my character and integrity is at stake and there has been a lot of misinformation out there, nobody asked why did Dino even react to Mrs. Tinubu and nobody has reported what generated this whole crisis and I needed to clear the air.

“It is fallacious, malicious and a lie that I said I will impregnate Mrs. Tinubu. Biologically it is even impossible to impregnate Mrs. Tinubu because she has arrived menopause. If you also look at that statement for those of us who are intellectually mobile, how can you say you want to beat somebody and at the same time you want to impregnate the person? If you juxtapose the two is there any correlation, does it make any logical sense? So, when they planted this falsehood they did not think deeply.

“I want to say that I will continue to uphold the culture the tradition, the values of the Kogi West Senatorial district and I will not abuse it. But it is absurd for a woman to look at her colleague and call him a thug and a dog when he has not personally addressed you. Unfortunately I did not have the anointing to be quiet when you are being insulted (and) I replied accordingly. I repeat there is no reaction without an action. If she did not call me a dog or a thug there is no way I would have responded. I responded; I have no regrets for responding and defending my person and if tomorrow or in the next hour, Senator Tinubu again calls me any name I shall equally respond accordingly.

“I heard that Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu said my political career has come to an end. I want to say that Tinubu is no God. I fear only  God Almighty; I fear no soul I only respect souls. So far my political journey to the House of Representatives and the Senate have no political, financial or moral contribution of Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu; the God who has brought me this far is mighty, strong and enough to take me further, what God has given me no man can give and what God has given to me no man can take.

“Today, I read on the pages of a newspaper; in the Nation to be very precise  Senator Borrofice calling me names. Unfortunately, this expatriate senator, absentee senator called Senator Borrofice was not even in the Chamber and he has not been in the chamber for the past two months. He was not in the chamber; I was surprised maybe he has celestial powers to understand what happens in his absence for him to open his gutter mouth and pass insolent languages on me.

The full text of his press briefing:

“On Tuesday, the 12th of July, we had an executive session to discuss basically on the issue of forgery case in court and when I stood up to address and I want to say that on my honour as a Christian; on my honour as a father and on the oath of my office as a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria I am telling you the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. I have never being a coward; I will not start an apprenticeship programme now on how to become a coward. Whatever I say anywhere I can boldly repeat everywhere.

“When I stood up and I made my submissions that day in the Senate, all I did was to pacify my colleagues and asked that the case in court be withdrawn because already there is a resolution of the Senate that the rules of the Senate were not forged and since there was a resolution of the Senate that the rules of were not forged then I said all those who have gone to court should go and withdraw their names from court and that if at the end of the day those who refused to withdraw their names from court we should penalize them by suspending them, I said that.

“But I did not use any insolent, abusive, degrading or manner less language. So there was no reaction from any of our colleagues as regards my presentation. After I spoke so many other senators spoke and I did not mention the name of any senator while I was making my presentation. Unfortunately, Senator Oluremi Tinubu got up and was recognized to speak and immediately she started speaking she specifically mentioned my name even when in my presentation I did not mention anybody’s names.

“But because of reasons only known to senator Oluremi Tinubu she got up the first thing she said was that she’s being harassed in this chamber by Senator Melaye. I kept quiet at that point, she went ahead to say that why will he come here and be threatening senators and there was a large chorus from senators ‘how, when, where,’ senators reacted. At that point I was still very calm, she got up again and said that ‘this thug must be tamed’ at that point I got up and I told her that she is very stupid. The next statement from her is that you are a dog.

“She called me a dog and when she called me a dog I stood up and I reacted and I told her that this is not Bourdillon and that she should look at my face, I am not one of those senators who normally come to prostrate to them in Bourdillon. And I told her I am from Kogi State, I am not from Lagos State and that there would never be a day that I will come to you for political assistance. These were my words and she went on shouting dog, thug.

“I want to tell you gentlemen of the press for every reaction there must be an action. When I got up to address my colleagues she was not the only senator there. If I had used insolent language or foul languages you will know the type of senators we have they would have reacted and some of them would have even addressed you guys by now to say Dino insulted us. But because she acted in the manner she did not one senator stood up in her defence when I was tongue lashing her. Even the senators from Lagos were there; Ashafa was there he didn’t stand up from his seat. It is not true that anybody circled her because there was no need to. I did not leave the spot where I was sitting; I didn’t get up from my seat.

“But somehow she got falsehood sold to Saharareporters. Nobody amongst those of us who spoke there actually talked about impeachment. In fact, the issue of the presidency or president was not the subject matter, we were discussing on how the Senate can also come together and solve the forgery case. There wouldn’t have been any need to even discuss about Buhari or the Presidency but because of deliberate wickedness and satanic manifestations they brought in the issue of presidency to garnish their aim and purpose.

“Today, I read on the pages of newspaper; in the Nation to be very precise that Senator Borrofice calling me names. Unfortunately, this expatriate senator, absentee senator called Senator Borrofice was not even in the Chamber and he has not been in the chamber for the past two months. He was not in the chamber; I was surprised maybe he has celestial powers to understand what happens in his absence for him to open his gutter and pass insolent languages on me.

“I have never being a coward and I will never be, I fight my battles alone and I stand by it and there is nothing I say anywhere that I cannot repeat everywhere. If there are instances; I am not a super human being; if there are instances where as a human being I have reacted negatively I am also ready to be apologetic about it. But in this particular instance, I have never mentioned anybody’s name, I never even used insolent languages but because they are here to heal from the wound of defeat of the election of the senate president and because of my key role in this exercise where she and her husband called me severally to appeal to me to back-off Saraki and I say I will not back-off Saraki, I will continue to support Saraki; Saraki is my brother, he is my friend and I will continue to support him and this will not change today, it will not change tomorrow, it will not change in this four years of our stay in the Senate.

“Every human being can have ambition; it is not a crime to be ambitious. Saraki had the ambition of becoming a Senate president and God endorsed it; President Muhammadu Buhari is an ambitious person that is why he contested for the presidency four times before God answered him. I am an ambitious person, I even want to be president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria very soon.

“So it is not a crime to be ambitious. So if you go through the papers today there has been a lot of misinformation, a lot of lies, a lot of blackmail, planted stories just to discourage the person and personality of Dino Melaye but I want to assure everyone that I remain resolute in my convictions. I will continue to stand by the truth, I will continue to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves, I will continue to be a voice to the voiceless.

“I will want to educate you that I had issues with my colleague and not with Bola Ahmed Tinubu. I read from the social media that senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu through his media aide is asking me to apologize. I will not believe that a man of his caliber will ask for apology without hearing from both parties. But when I get confirmation that senator Bola Tinubu actually is the one asking me to apologize I will also address him accordingly.

“If I decided to say anything against the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria today I will not use a proxy name. I will do it and I think those who will bear me witness know that I confronted the Jonathan administration headlong I didn’t use proxy. I was on the street fighting for this democracy that we are enjoying today. I was on the street also and followed Mr. President to all the states of the federation even when I had my own elections because we wanted a change. Like I said I have never being a coward and I will not start practicing how to become one now.”