Tag Archives: Budget Padding

Budget Padding: Court fixes hearing for February 20

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A Federal High Court in Kano on Wednesday fixed February 20 for hearing in the case against the Clerk and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, over the suspension of Abdulmumini Jibrin.

Some constituents of Kiru/Bebeji Federal Constituency sued the Clerk and Speaker Yakubu Dogara, challenging the legality of suspending their member, Mr. Jibrin.

The counsel to the plaintiff, Bashir Muqaddam, had earlier applied for a date to enable him respond to the issues raised in the preliminary objection filed by the defence counsel.

According to him, the defence counsel wanted the consolidation of the two suits – the one filed by the constituency in Kano and the other filed by Mr. Jibrin in Abuja.

The counsel to the defence, Kalu Onuha, said he had no objection to the application for adjournment.

The judge, Sulaiman Akoko, said in the absence of objection to the application for adjournment, the case would come up again for hearing on February 20.

Mr. Muqaddam, the counsel to the plaintiffs, told journalists after the sitting that “when the case resumes on February 20, we are going to argue on the issue of consolidation as raised by the defence counsel.”

Security was tight as hundreds of protesters thronged the court with placards shouting “bring back our member and compensate him.”

Mr. Jibrin was on September 28, 2016, suspended for 180 legislative days.

His suspension followed the adoption of the recommendations of the Nicholas Ossai-led Ethics and Privileges Committee.

The report of the committee was adopted on Wednesday after it was debated on the floor.

Speaker Yakubu Dogara did not preside on the matter because he was one of those alleged by Mr. Jibrin for padding the 2016 budget.

The four recommendations were adopted at the Committee of the Whole House presided over by the Deputy Speaker, Yussuff Lasun.

Mr. Jibrin had alleged that Messrs. Dogara and Lasun, Whip Alhassan Doguwa, Minority leader Leo Ogor and nine committee chairmen illegally inserted fictitious projects into the 2016 Budget.

Mr. Jibrin was accused of bringing the House into disrepute with his utterances and action over the scandal.

The budget had been a subject of controversy with Executive accusing the National Assembly of tinkering with the original document submitted by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Initially, both arms of the Assembly denied the allegation after the president rejected the approved appropriation bill.

He represented the bill to the National Assembly and in the process of cross checking, it was discovered that some items were removed.

The House of Representatives committee was found to have added constituency projects and alter some main projects of the executive.

Budget Padding: Judge’s absence stalls suit against National Assembly, Dogara.

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The absence of the judge presiding over a case against the National Assembly and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, on Tuesday stalled the sitting of the Federal High Court, Kano slated for December 20.dogara

Residents of the Kiru/Bebeji federal constituency sued the National Assembly and Speaker Yakubu Dogara, challenging the legality of suspending their member, Abdulmumin Jibrin , from the National Assembly.

Mr. Jibrin was suspended after he publicly raised fraud allegations against Mr. Dogara and other officers of the House. He accused the officials of manipulating the budget figures illegally in a term popularly known as ‘budget padding.’
Speaking to journalists at the court, the lead counsel for Kofa constituency, Bashir Muqaddam, said the Judge, Idris Koko, had travelled out of the state for the Judges Conference, currently holding at the Federal Capital, Abuja.

He said after returning from the conference, the judges would proceed for the Christmas and New Year vacations.

According to him, the judges are expected to resume on January19, 2017 while the case has been fixed for January18, 2017, for mentioning.

“Our prayer seeks that the sum of N2 billion be given to our client, Hon Abdulmumin Jibrin Kofa, as payment for damages to his reputation.

“When we resume on January 18, 2017, the case will come up for mentioning,” Mr. Muqaddam said.

Abdulmumin-Jibrin (1)He said the constituency was challenging the legality of Mr. Jibrin’s suspension by the House of Representatives.

 

“We want to know whether his whistle blowing role in exposing how the 2016 budget was padded was in contradiction of any stipulated law of the land.

“Fundamentally, we want an immediate re-instatement of the suspended member and the court to also order for the payment of all his (Kofa’s) entitlements for the suspension period.’’

Also speaking, the lead complainant in the case, Ibrahim Tiga, assured Mr. Jibrin’s supporters who came to the court that they would follow the case to its logical conclusion.

Jibrin Writes Buhari Over Budget Padding Scandal

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Suspended lawmaker, Abdulmumin Jibrin, has written an open letter to President Muhammadu Buhari, imploring him to end his long silence about the budget fraud allegations in the House of Representatives.

It is the first time the embattled lawmaker will write directly to the president since the controversy broke out —and he used it to attack Speaker Yakubu Dogara and other usual targets.

In the letter, Mr. Jibrin said he decided to write the president and copy the public after all his efforts to have an audience with the him were frustrated.

“I write this letter to you as a last resort to seek action on the allegations of budget fraud, abuse of office and corruption I levelled against Speaker Yakubu Dogara and three other Principal Officers of the House of Representatives,” Mr. Jibrin said.

The letter came a few days after he said he’d gone on exile partly because of the president’s reluctance to intervene in the scandal which has been rocking the National Assembly for four months.

“The silence of the presidency is no longer sending the right message to Nigerians and the international community,” Mr. Jibrin said in a statement on November 7.

In his letter on Friday, Mr. Jibrin, who was suspended on September 28 over his face off with lawmakers, informed the president about alleged sharp practices of House members and called on him to act.

“Your Excellency, the House of Representatives stinks of corruption and something urgent must be done to salvage the situation,” Mr. Jibrin said. “We have a golden opportunity to show the world that there is zero tolerance for corruption under your leadership.”

Mr. Jibrin said the president should order prioritised investigation into the padding claims with a focus on bringing culpable members to justice.

“I pray that you direct the various agencies that I submitted petitions to expedite action on the matter as Nigerians and the world are watching to see how we will deal with this issue of incontrovertible corruption by Speaker Dogara and others and systemic corruption in the House,” Mr. Jibrin said.

Mr. Dogara’s spokesman, Turaki Hassan, declined comments on Friday night. But his principal has repeatedly denied all the allegations of budget padding against him.

The demands for Mr. Buhari’s intervention stand in sharp contrast from Mr. Jibrin’s October 1 statement in which he described the president’s silence as “a blessing in disguise.”

“If Mr. President had jumped into the matter at the early stage, trust Nigerians, they would have concluded that the presidency is using me to fight the House,” Mr. Jibrin said in his Independence Day statement. ”Such perception and blackmail would have been difficult to deal with.”

The lawmaker went on exile last week, sparking speculation that he fled the country to avoid a pending charges against him by the authorities.

But he denied fleeing from prosecution, said he travelled because his safety was not guaranteed in Nigeria and he’ll return to the country when invited to testify in the budget fraud investigation.

“I will be available once my attention is required in respect of my petition against the Speaker and others or any petition that may come against me,” he said.

Credit:

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/215151-budget-padding-scandal-jibrin-writes-buhari.html

Budget padding: I did not flee Nigeria – Jibrin

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The former Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriation, Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin, has said he did not flee from Nigeria for fear of arrest by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

In a statement issued yesterday, Jibrin said the travelled to London to receive an anti-corruption award.

Jibrin, following his removal as Chairman of Appropriation Committee, had accused the Speaker of the House, Yakubu Dogara and some principal officers of corruption, fraud and abuse of the 2016 budgetary process.

The lawmaker who was suspended by his colleagues for 180 legislative sitting days for misconduct and abuse of privileges, said the reports that he fled Nigeria were orchestrated by corrupt House members who are aggrieved by his allegations against them.

“The fact of the matter is that I travelled out of the country freely like every responsible citizen and through the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport Abuja on November 4, 2016,” he said in the statement.

He added that his trip is also related to series of lectures where he would deliver papers on corruption in the Nigerian legislature and the reforms that must be implemented in the House of Representatives.

“I have stated repeatedly that I have engaged the security and anti-corruption agencies severally over the petitions I submitted and provided them with evidential documents and vital clues and we have constantly kept in tough. I have also pledged to stand as witness against the Speaker and others. I have nothing to fear. If for any reason my attention is needed, I will make myself available,” he added.

Jibrin reiterated his statement that his life was being threatened.

“It is against this background that I took the decision to stay away from the country until my safety is guaranteed. However ever, I will be available once my attention is required in respect of my petition against the Speaker and others or any petition that may come against me,” he added.

UK Newspaper Honour Jibrin for Exposing Budget Padding

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Abdulmumin Jibrin, the suspended member of the house of representatives has been honoured with the African Voice Leadership in Legislative Governance Award by African Voice, a London-based newspaper.


Jibrin was given the award for his commitment to legislative duties and fight against corrupt.

Mike Abiola, publisher/editor-in-chief of the newspaper, said the award recognised individuals who have shown dedication to developing their countries.

“The African Voice Leadership in Governance Awards recognises African leaders who have shown dedication to developing their state/countries, by demonstrating exemplary leadership,” Abiola said in a letter.

“The attention of the international community has been drawn to your commitment to the people of Nigeria and Kano state in particular. Your effort in helping to eradicate corruption is commendable.

“The 20th African Voice Newspaper Leadership in Legislative Governance Awards Investiture ceremony will take place on Saturday 5 November 2016 and will be attended by foreign and commonwealth officials, African diplomats in the UK, British politicians, members of parliament and influential business leaders.

“The event has a dedicated followership of high net worth individuals and the crème de crème of the British diverse community.”

On his part, Jibrin said the award is a huge morale booster because it was coming at a very difficult and challenging time.

“Thank you, African Voice Newspaper for this award. The award is a huge morale booster because it is coming at a very difficult and challenging period,” he said.

“It’s a period I had to leave my post as appropriations chairman of the house of representatives, suspended through subterranean means by Speaker Yakubu Dogara and received several threats to my life by the highly placed public officials I accused of corruption.

“My offence is disagreeing with some corrupt leaders of the house including the Speaker over the 2016 budget fraud and insisting that the right thing must be done,  exposing individual and systemic corruption in the house and rejecting immunity for principal officers of the house.

“Despite the difficulties I am going through, I will never be cowed into silence. I assure you I will never retreat from this worthy line of action. I shall remain committed to the fight against corruption in the House of Representatives and Nigeria as a whole.

“I dedicate this award to millions of Nigerians home and abroad who are suffering today because of the massive theft of our common wealth, budget fraud and monumental corruption in the house of representatives which assumed an unprecedented dimension under the leadership of speaker Yakubu Dogara.”

Suspended Jibrin Marks 100 Days Of Budget Padding Scandal By Distributing Gifts To Constituents

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Suspended lawmaker, Abdulmumin Jibrin, on Wednesday distributed cash and material gifts as part of an empowerment scheme to mark the 100 days of budget padding scandal.

Mr. Jibrin, who is currently serving a year suspension slammed on him by the House of Representatives, returned to his constituency in Kano on Wednesday, where he gave out items such as motorcycles and generators.

Other items distributed by Mr. Jibrin included sewing machines, grinding machines as well as scholarship package for about 1,000 pupils.

A statement from Mr. Jibrin’s media office said no fewer than 5,000 constituents benefitted from the scheme, which he hopes would help mitigate the effect of the economic recession on their households.

“I have done many empowerment programmes before I ventured into politics, I continued when I was elected and I sustain the tempo despite my suspension.

“This is a clear testimony that we hold our people dear to our heart irrespective of politics,” the statement quoted Mr. Jibrin as saying.

Mr. Jibrin said he will not renege on his promise to remain a vocal voice against sharp practices in the Nigerian parliament.

The whistleblower was suspended for a year without pay on September 21 after being found guilty of ethics violations.

Credit:

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/more-news/214386-suspended-jibrin-distributes-gifts-constituents.html

22 Top Federal Officials Sacked Over 2016 Budget Padding

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A total of 184 civil servants were disciplined for their different roles in the padding of the 2016 budget.

This was contained in Buhari’s authorised biography, ‘Muhammadu Buhari: The Challenges of Leadership in Nigeria’, written by Prof. John Paden and presented to the public on Monday.

Of the 184, Paden said 22 top officials were dismissed from service.

He said the President viewed the padding as an attempt to scuttle his administration’s innovations, hence his decision to wield the big stick against the culprits.

The author wrote, “Buhari himself was frustrated by earlier padding of the budget by bureaucrats in some of the ministries.

“This was interpreted by the Buhari team as an attempt to scuttle the innovations proposed by the President by inflating their costs.

“When Buhari found out, he was reported to be angry and ordered a purge of the ministries involved from the Director-General down.

“Twenty-two top officials were dismissed, including the budget director. In all, 184 civil servants were disciplined.”

He added that even after the budget had been adjusted downward by the National Assembly, the country would still have to borrow $3.5bn, as a result of the drop in oil prices.

In February, Buhari had while addressing the Nigerian community in Saudi Arabia, vowed that all those involved in the padding of the 2016 national budget, which led to the discrepancies in the document, would face severe punishment.

He had said the alterations, which he described as embarrassing and disappointing, made the document, being debated in the National Assembly at that time, completely different from what was prepared by the Ministry of Budget and National Planning.

Describing those responsible for the distortion of the budget proposals as entrenched interests, the President had said since he had been holding public offices, he had never heard about budget padding before the incident.

Buhari had added, “The culprits will not go unpunished. I have been a military governor, petroleum minister, military Head of State and headed the Petroleum Trust Fund.

“Never had I heard the words budget padding. Our Minister of Budget and National Planning did a great job with his team.

“The minister became almost half his size during the time, working night and day to get the budget ready, only for some people to pad it.

“What he gave us was not what was finally being debated. It is very embarrassing and disappointing. We will not allow those who did it to go unpunished.”

Reaffirming his government’s zero tolerance for corruption, Buhari said the war against corruption was a monumental task that he was determined to tackle successfully.

Budget Padding Scandal: Jibrin vows to upturn suspension in court

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Following his suspension by the House of Representatives, Abdulmumin Jibrin, on Wednesday night said he would seek redress in court.

The House on Wednesday afternoon slammed 180 legislative days —a full session— suspension on Mr. Jibrin after being found guilty of violating ethics and privileges of lawmakers.

Mr. Jibrin through his widely publicised allegations of budget fraud against the Speaker of the House and over a dozen other lawmakers had stirred controversies and subjected the House to public scrutiny since July.

But the lawmaker remained defiant, saying he had done nothing wrong and, as such, will not apologise.

“Let me say, I will never ever apologise to anybody in the House of Representatives,” Mr. Jibrin said in a statement. “I did not commit any offence.”

Mr. Jibrin’s allegations against Speaker Yakubu Dogara and others stemmed from his ouster as the chair of the much-coveted Committee on Appropriation.

Mr. Dogara announced Mr. Jibrin’s removal shortly before the House proceeded on an eight-week-long recess July 20, citing budget fraud and serial betrayal of trust.

On September 21, barely a day after resuming, Mr. Dogara’s loyalists moved a motion at the plenary seeking disciplinary actions against Mr. Jibrin.

Emmanuel Orker-Jev, a lawmaker from Benue, proposed tough sanctions against Mr. Jibrin for the damage his allegations had wrought on the House.

The image of the House has never been worse than this before. Hon. Jibrin was reckless and the allegations were false. He knew that the allegations were false and scandalous and he had no regards at all to whether the allegations were true or false,” Mr. Orker-Jev said.

The House subsequently assigned the matter to its Ethics and Privileges Committee for further investigation and to report back within a week with its findings and recommendations.

Nicholas Ossai, chairman of the committee, convened the first hearing on the matter September 23, during which Mr. Orker-Jev submitted his evidence against Mr. Jibrin.

Mr. Jibrin received an invitation to appear before the committee on Monday. But he decided to boycott the hearing, even though his demand that the sitting be thrown open to the public was met by Mr. Ossai.

Mr. Jibrin also asked his lawyer, Femi Falana, to seek discontinuation of the committee’s activities saying continuing  would amount to subjudice as the matter was in court.

Mr. Ossai said Mr. Jibrin’s failure to appear before his “properly and constitutionally constituted committee” was, in effect, a defence.

The report of the committee was laid before the House plenary at noon on Wednesday.

By 2:30 p.m., the House voted to adopt the recommendations of the committee as read out by Mr. Ossai on the floor.

The recommendations included a 180-day suspension, a formal letter of apology and a removal of rights to hold position of responsibility through the span of the current 8th National Assembly.

Although analysts said it was draconian and counterproductive, Mr. Jibrin’s, nonetheless, saw a bright spot in his suspension.

“At this point, I must say they freed me up to concentrate on the matter in court,” Mr. Jibrin said. “I know the suspension is not going to stand, secondly, I’m going into a massive alliance with civil society groups, NGOs and well meaning Nigerian to continue to press ahead.”

Analysts also said Mr. Jibrin’s suspension did not resolve the questions of what the House would do about the allegations of budget fraud confronting it.

House spokesman, Abdulrazak Namdas, did not respond to PREMIUM TIMES’ request for comment about this Wednesday night.

A top lawmaker in the House said the lawmakers will not consider Mr. Jibrin’s allegations since he didn’t present anything before them.

“I understand people want his allegations investigated,” the source told PREMIUM TIMES Wednesday night. “But don’t forget he didn’t present them before us.”

“He had an opportunity to do this last week when someone raised a motion for his suspension, but instead walked out in a show of arrogance.”

Mr. Jibrin is the first lawmaker to be suspended since 2010 when Dino Melaye and 10 others were found guilty of breaching House ethics and privileges.

West Idahosa, Austin Nwachukwu, Gbenga Onigbogi, Doris Uboh, Gbenga Oduaye, Independence Ogunewe, Solomon Achinawhi, Kayode Amusa, Anas Abass, and Bitmus Kaze received indefinite suspension alongside Mr. Melaye on June 22, 2010 under the speakership of Dimeji Bankole.

Mr. Melaye is now a senator representing Kogi West.

In the 4th National Assembly, 1999 -2003, two senators, Arthur Nzeribe and Joseph Waku, were suspended for ethical misconduct.

Mr. Jibrin’s suspension would see him barred from the premises of the National Assembly in the course of the disciplinary action. His office will be sealed and will not receive salaries or allowances.

House To Investigate Budget Padding Allegations

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The House of Representatives on Wednesday resolved to conduct an investigation into the allegations of tampering with the 2016 budget by some of its members.

This followed a point of order brought under Matters of Privilege by the Chairman, House Committee on Rules and Business, Rep. Emmanuel Oker-Jev.

It would be recalled that former Chairman, House Committee on Appropriation, Rep. Abdulmumin Jibrin, accused the Speaker of the house, Mr Yakubu Dogara and some principal officers of padding the 2016 budget.

Jibrin (APC-Kano) also demanded that Dogara should resign to allow investigations to be conducted into the matter.

Moving the point of order, Oker-Jev called for the suspension of Jibrin, describing his allegations as “sundry act of misconduct’’ against the members and institution of the House of Representatives.

According to him, Jibrin embarked on campaign of calumny and denigration by making publications in the media and internet against the entire membership of the House of Representatives and the National Assembly as an institution.

He said, “Jibrin’s comments were contemptuous of the House of Representatives and a breach of collective privileges of the members of the house.”

Read More:

http://punchng.com/house-investigate-budget-padding-allegations/

Budget Padding: I am ready to be suspended – Jibrin

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A former chairman of the House of Representatives committee on Appropriations Abdulmumin Jibrin says he is ready to pay the price of being suspended to rid Nigeria of corruption.

 

Jibrin made the remark as a guest of Channels Telesivion’s live programme ‘Politics Today’

 

He said, “On the issue of suspension I am less bothered. Perhaps that is the sacrifice I will have to make for the country and for us to be able to deal with the issues of corruption in the House but I doubt very much that the 360 members, having followed the events of last two months, and of course the letter I wrote to each member last week, I doubt very much if they will go on the floor of the House and start talking about suspending me.”

The Kano born lawmaker reiterated his commitment to follow to the latter his allegation of budget padding against speaker of the House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara, and other principal officers regardless of if he was suspended or not.

 

Jibrin said, “Whatever happens on Tuesday and the rest of the days we want to spend in the House before the end of the year, one thing is certain and I say this without any element of contradiction; I will continue to pursue this issue until justice is served on Speaker Dogara and other principal officers whether I am suspended or not.”

Budget Padding: Abdulmumin Seeks Court Protection From Arrest

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In a dramatic twist to the row over the 2016 budget padding allegations causing disharmony in the House of Representatives, the hunter now appears to be the hunted, going by emerging development.

The erstwhile Chairman of the Committee on Appropriation, Jibrin Abdulmumin, who made the budget-padding allegation, has approached a Federal High Court in Abuja seeking an order to restrain the Nigerian Police from arresting him.

The respondents in the suit are the Nigeria Police, the Inspector-General of Police, the Commissioner of Police (FCT), Hon. Yakubu Dogara, Hon. Yusuf Lasun, Hon. Alhassan Ado Doguwa, Hon. Leo Ogor and the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami.
The lawmaker, in his tweets and statements had given the impression that he was enjoying the cooperation of the police, over the allegations against Dogara and others.

But Abdulmumin, in the suit filed before the Federal High Court in Abuja with No: FHC/ABJ/CS/595, said there was a police siege on his home and that up till the time of filing the suit on August 9, 2016, the siege was still in force.

The affidavit deposed on his behalf by his legislative aide, Mr. Bashir Bello said this was “in a bid to arrest him unlawfully and achieve their pre-determined aim of tampering with his fundamental human rights.”

Abdulmumin, in the suit, accused the police of plotting to “nab him and also put him out of circulation and so as to lay their hands on the said documents and destroy the evidence therein, and avoid a leakage of their roles in the budget issue.”
The embattled lawmaker, in a separate suit, also sued Dogara, the Clerk of the House and others, to restrain the lower chamber from suspending him.

Read More: thisdaylive

Budget Padding: Jibrin Files Suit Against Dogara, Others.

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Former Chairman, Appropriation Committee, House of Representatives, Abdulmumin Jibrin, has sued the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, his Deputy, Yusuf Lasun, and other principal officers of the lower chamber over an alleged plan to suspend him.

 

In the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/595/2016, commenced by way of writ of summons and filed at the Federal High Court, Abuja on August 9, 2016, Jibrin  seeks principally to restrain the House of Representatives and its principal officers from giving effect to their alleged plot to suspend him as member of the House.

 

Jibrin, an All Progressives Congress (APC) legislator representing Kiru/Bebeji Federal Constituency of Kano State, has also filed an ex-parte motion seeking, among others, an other restraining the defendants from taking steps to suspend him pending the determination of the substantive suit.

 

Listed as defendants in the suit are: The House of Representatives, the Clerk of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, Yusuf Lasun, Alhassan Ado Doguwa, Leo Ogor, Herman Hembe, Umar Mohammed Bago, Zakari Mohammed, Chike Okafor, Dan Asuquo, Jagaba Adms, Haliru Jika and Uzoma Abonta.

 

Jibrin, in the substantive suit, seeks a declaration that the defendants are bound to comply with the provisions of Sections 49, 54, 56 and 60 of the 1999 Constitution and the Standing Orders of the House of Reps, regulating its sitting, procedure and other matters in the conduct of its legislative functions as provided in the Constitution and the Standing Orders made pursuant to the Constitution.

 

He also wants the court to make a declaration that the decision taken by the defendants at a meeting held on August 3, 2016 to suspend the plaintiff as a member of the House of Reps without granting him the right to fair hearing is unlawful.

 

The plaintiff stated, in a supporting affidavit, that Immediately the 3rd to 14 defendants (Dogara and other principal officers)  got wind of the petitions presented against them by the plaintiff to the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offenses Commission (ICPC), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and others, they held a meeting on August 3, 2016, where they allegedly resolved to suspend him immediately as member of the House of Reps.

 

He said that the defendants also agreed to urgently reconvene the House from its current recess “with a desperate agenda to suspend the plaintiff contrary to the Rules of the House”.

 

“That one of such meetings was held by the 3rd to 14 defendants at the residence of the 3rd defendant (Dogara) in Apo, Abuja on August 3, 2016.

 

“If the reliefs of the plaintiff are not granted, the plaintiff will be suspended as a member of the House of Reps, and this will greatly prejudice him and thousands of his constituents, who rely on him to afford them their due representations in the Federal Legislature,” Jibrin said.

 

It could not be confirmed when filing this story yesterday whether any proceedings had been conducted in court in relation to the motion ex-parte or whether a date had been set for hearing by the court’s current vacation judge, Justice Okon Abang.

Jibrin Challenges Dogara To Public Debate On Budget Padding Scandal

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Embattled former chairman of Appropriations Committee, Abdulmumin Jibrin, has challenged the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, to a public debate on the allegations of padding if the 2016 budget.

 

In yet another statement he issued yesterday, Hon. Abdulmumin said rather than defend himself against allegations of corruption levelled against him, the Speaker was embarking on “diversionary plan to mislead the public, avoid the anti-corruption agencies and buy time to cover up their dirty mess.

 

He said what the leadership and some committee chairman did amounted to “appropriation fraud.

 

“For instance, let’s say an item in a budget proposed by the executive under Power for the purchase of a transformer cost N2million and same amount was budgeted, If the Chairman House Committee on power because he has the “powers” to appropriate decides to add N3million naira to jack up the allocation to 5million naira when it is a public knowledge that the transformer cannot cost more than 2million naira, what do you call that? That essentially means appropriation fraud.

“On the other hand, let’s say he decides to irrationally reduce the amount to 500,000 thousand naira knowing fully well that, the said amount cannot buy the transformer, what do you call that? Appropriation Sabotage and such a chairman is a Saboteur. I have no apology for saying this!Little by little, I will be providing more in-depth details,” the statement said.

 

“I challenge Speaker Dogara and his cabal to a public debate on their claim that the fraudulent insertions they made in the budget is not an offense that can be prosecuted under the laws of Nigeria. Rather than continue their futile effort to blackmail the entire country or continue their begging mission to the Party, Transparency and Integrity Group, Speaker Dogara and his gang should submit themselves to the anti-corruption agencies and answer thousands of questions waiting for them” he said.

“Don’t Drag Buhari Into Budget Padding Allegations” – Hon. Ajibola Famurewa

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The member, representing Atakumosa West/Atakumosa East/Ilesa East and Ilesa West Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon Ajibola Famurewa, has cautioned his colleagues in the House of Representatives not to drag President Buhari into the ongoing padding crises rocking the National Assembly but allow him to concentrate on tackling various challenges facing the country at the moment.

 

He made this statement while reacting to insinuations in some quarters that the presidency signed a padded budget as well.

Famurewa said it is so painful that counter accusation of budget padding could be going on at a period when Nigerians are expecting so much from the political class.

 

He, however, urged President Buhari to remain focused in fulfilling the campaign promises of the All Progressives Congress to Nigerians.

 

The House of Representatives member further reiterated his support for the corruption fight of President Buhari’s administration and pleaded with Nigerians not to lose hope in the National Assembly

Budget Padding: Why I Cannot Be Interrogated, Tried—Dogara

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peaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, on Thursday, gave reasons why he failed to surrender himself to be interrogated by the Police Special Investigating Panel over alleged padding of the 2016 budget. Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara after inauguration, yesterday. Photos: Olugbemiga Olamikan/ Dogara, who spoke at an interactive session with Civil Society Organisations, CSOs, in Abuja, on one-year review of the 8th House of Representatives Legislative Agenda, said he enjoys statutory protection under the Legislative Houses Powers & Privileges Act.

The event was organized by the Policy &Legal Advocacy Center, PLAC, in collaboration with the House of Representatives. While responding to questions, the Speaker, maintained that no one or agency has the powers to pry into activities of the House, saying “most of the things we do in the National Assembly are privileged”. According to him, legislative business of the House, “cannot be grounds for any investigation or any procedure or proceeding to be commenced in court against a member of parliament, either the Speaker or even the Senate President, once they are done in exercise of their proper function. “The law is there. Both communications, whatever it is, they are privileged. That is in order to give independence to the legislature. If the legislature is not independent we can’t do anything. If whatever you say on the floor or before a committee or whatever you communicate is subject of litigation then all the members will be in court and at the end of the day when debate come you cannot even air your views”. However, Dogara took time to narrate his own side of the story, stressing that the House of Reps under him, had the powers to tinker with the budget proposal that was sent to it by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Read more at :

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/08/budget-padding-cannot-interrogated-tried-dogara/

 

Budget Padding: Dogara Shuns Police Invitation

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The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, has shunned the invitation of the police Special Investigating Panel over allegations of budget padding.

It was reliably gathered on Wednesday that the Speaker did not honour the police invitation because the letter was not signed by the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris.

The panel had in a letter to Dogara requested him and others mentioned in the petition to appear before it last Friday.

The Speaker, however, did not honour the invitation.  Rather, he met with President Muhamadu Buhari over the budget crisis on Friday.

While Dogara’s accuser and a former House Appropriation Chairman, Abdulmumin Jibrin, appeared before the panel last week Friday and on Tuesday, Dogara and other principal officers shunned it.

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We Are Elected To Pad Budget – Honourable Abiodun Olasupo

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The Chairman House of Representative Committee on Legislative Compliance, Abiodun Olasupo, has insisted that ‘budget padding’ remains a constitutional responsibility of the legislative arm of government and as such the House of Representatives did not err in the current ‘budget padding’ controversy.

 

Olasupo, representing Iseyin/Itesiwaju/Kajola/ Iwajowa federal constituency, stated this during the inspection of some his zonal intervention projects and federal government projects within his constituency on Wednesday in Oke-Ogun area of Oyo State.

 

He said Sections 80 and 81 the Nigeria constitution,guarantees the lawmakers the Powers to alter the Budget Proposals?.

 

The lawmaker argued that budgets presented by the executive arm of government do not often reflect true federal character hence the need for ‘padding’?.

 

”If you look at the Nigeria Constitution, what Honourable AbdulMuminin Jibrin refer to as padding is tantamount to what the constitution defines as the function of a member of House of Representative because the constitution guarantees the three major function of making law, appropriation, and over sight.

 

“In appropriation it is either for us to add, subtract or change and what Hon Jibrin has been trying to say is that we are changing, inserting and adding, so if that is what he calls padding then that is what the constitution expects the house of representative to do.

“In my own opinion been an active member during the budget defence, I was involved in the budgeting system of up to six ministries, I participated in FERMA, NAVY, health institutions, governmental agencies and a whole lot of them. The entire budgeting system make it possible that if you are elected as a member of national assembly and you are not ready to do what Muminin Jibrin calls padding then you are a failure, because basically the budget that is been brought to the national assembly does not reflect the principle of federal character as guaranteed by the constitution,” he said

 

Olasupo said all projects and employments from the executive should be done in a way that it reflects all parts of Nigeria, adding that: ”but what do we get in the budget, you will see a disapprotionate distribution of projects and basically if you look at it reflects mostly on where the minister is coming from since it is the executive that brings in the budget.”

 

The lawmaker went further that: ”When the executive are bringing the budget they are not considering my constituency, so they will bring a budget to me and I am expected to approve it, and if it doesn’t have the interest of my constituency you want me to keep quite, no I won’t, what I will also do is to insert what will favour the people of my constituency which is what Jibrin calls padding.

 

“I am not saying somebody is wrong or right but I do not see what is bad in attracting projects to my constituency. For the first time in the history of this country a budget presented by the executive was reduced when a president personally presented the budget to the national assembly personally. It means that we are shifting away from impunity, and corruption that has characterised the government of the past.”

 

Olasupo noted that the legislature have only had an unhindered experience of 16 years when compared with the executive, appealing to Nigerians to be patient with the national assembly to get right all their lapses in no time.

Buhari Not Part Of Budget Padding Scandal- Presidency

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The Presidency has distanced itself from the budget padding scandal rocking the National Assembly, saying the Appropriation Act being implemented was the one passed by the lawmakers in March.

The Senior Special Assistant to President on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Ita Enang, stated this on Tuesday at the national secretariat of APC after a closed-door meeting with the party leadership.

The former chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriation, Abdulmumini Jibrin, had alleged that the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, his deputy, Yusuf Lasun, and two other principal officers “padded” the budget with N40 billion.

Mr. Dogara has since denied the allegation. He also refused to resign from office as demanded by some members of the lower legislative chamber.

Mr. Enang said the presidency did not know anything about the scandal.

He said the budget that was signed by President Muhammadu Buhari was the one passed by the National Assembly.

“We are here on the invitation of the party leadership of the APC with my colleague to bring answers to issues raised by the party from the 2016 Appropriation and we have been with the party for a little over three hours and we have given explanation on every issue that there was nothing, to our knowledge, no padding of the budget,” he said.

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Budget Padding: APC Angry At Jibrin For Disobeying Its Directives.

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The acting National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Comrade Timi Frank has slammed former chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations, Abdulmumuni Jibrin, for flouting the party’s order to desist from further public utterances regarding the budget padding scandal in the house.

 

After the directive by the ruling party, Jibrin had gone ahead to accuse the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara of conniving with two serving governors and four former Reps members to block his access to President Muhammadu Buhari in order to explain his side of the story.

 

But Frank, in a statement issued in Abuja on Monday, accused Jibrin of having no respect for the Sen. Shuaibu Lawal-led committee empowered by the party to look into the issue.

 

He said, “It is now obvious how disrespectful, mannerless and desperate Hon. Jibrin could be even to the leaders of our party which include the deputy national chairman (north), national secretary, national treasurer and others who have been sleeplessly working to ensure that peace returns to the House.

 

“But if Hon. Jibrin does not have respect for Speaker Dogara as a person, it is expected of him to respect the office of the speaker, the number four citizen of our party and the country. Jibrin should also be told that he has clearly shown disrespect for President Muhammadu Buhari who is the leader of our party by this singular act.

 

“It is high time Hon. Jibrin kept quiet and stopped this public show of shame before his excesses will be made known to Nigerians and the whole world.”

 

The acting APC spokesman reminded Jibrin that “his continued show of shame does not only stop at him but has great negative impact on the party, its members and the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government.

 

“He should also be aware that disobeying the party in this manner may attract sanctions if the party deems it fit.”

Only Tailors Engage In Padding, Lawmakers Don’t – Ex-Rep Speaks On Budget Saga

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The Spokesman of House of Representatives in the Sixth Assembly, Eseme Eyibo, has said that there is nothing like budget padding.

Eyibo told newsmen in Abuja on Thursday that adjustments must be made in a budget before it could be passed into law.

He said that Section 80 (4) of the 1999 Constitution empowers the national assembly to make necessary adjustments to budget proposals presented to by the executive.

“I know padding is associated with tailoring, fashion, but I am not conversant with it as associated to appropriation process.

“It becomes difficult for an average man in the street to understand that in the course of budget preparation and the input of the legislature, there will definitely be the issue of adjustment.

“The adjustment could be deleted or added and something could be allowed to serve as it were.

“The essence of the public procurement act was to enforce the principle of accountability and thin out possibility of corruption.

“But the challenge is, has there been the enforcement or compliance of the full principles of the public procurement act?

He added that the budget proposal as presented by the executive was intended to come through the legislature so that the issue of checks and balances, separation of powers would be strengthened.

According to him, when that is done, that does not take away the input and contributions of the legislature into that proposal.

“If that was so, they wouldn’t have been a pre-budget meeting or oversight,’’ Eyibo said.

He said that the integrity of the legislature as an institution must be protected and strengthened. (NAN)

Budget Padding: APC Moves To Silence Jibrin, Wants Issue Dealt With Internally

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The All Progressives Congress (APC) has finally decided to intervene in the budget padding scandal currently rocking the House of Representatives. In a letter addressed to Honourable Abdulmumin Jibrin, the party says it is embarrassed by recent developments in the House over the 2016 budget and is now working on finding an internal resolution to the crisis.
 
The statement, signed by Senator Lawal Shuaibu, Deputy National Chairman (North), says the National Working Committee of the party has directed that Jibrin should henceforth avoid issuing any public statement on the budget padding matter and the allegations of corruption against Speaker Dogara and other principal officers of the House. Jibrin is also to desist from making further comments on social media.
 
This move by the APC is seen by many as a strategy to sweep the allegations of budget padding, financial mismanagement, corruption and bribery levied by the former Appropriation Committee Chairman against the Speaker Yakubu Dogara and three other principal officers of the House.
 
You will recall that Jibrin accused Dogara and three others of singlehandedly padding the 2016 budget with over N40 billion while also allocating projects worth over N30 billion to their constituencies. The Kano lawmaker on Monday went to the offices of the EFCC, ICPC and DSS to formally submitted petitions against Dogara and the three others.

Budget Padding Scandal: Police Invite Dogara, Others.

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Acting Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris, has raised a five-man special team to probe the alleged padding of the budget by House of Representatives Speaker Yakubu Dogara and some of his principal officers.

 

The Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) Amodu Ali-led Special Investigative Panel (SIP) has invited Dogara, his deputy Yusuff Lasun, Chief Whip Alhassan Ado Doguwa and Minority Leader Leo Ogor to appear before it on Friday.

 

The panel Tuesday had what was called “a preliminary session” with ousted House Committee on Appropriations chairman Abdulmumin Jibrin, who accused Dogara and others of padding the budget with N284 billion.

 

Last Monday, Jibrin petitioned the police, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and other anti-corruption agencies over the matter.

 

Jibrin was said to have “furnished the SIP with vital information and a heap of documents” at their meeting yesterday.

 

A highly-placed police source, who spoke in confidence, said Ibrahim has directed the SIP to conduct a “comprehensive investigation into Jibrin’s petition.”

 

We have commenced full investigation into the N284billion budget padding in the House of Representatives based on a petition from Hon. Jibrin.

 

A Special Investigative Panel (SIP), with a crack detective, AIG Amodu Ali as the chairman, is the one saddled with the responsibility of looking into the allegations in the petition.

 

The same Ali uncovered the lid on the $620,000 bribery scam in the House for which a former Chairman of the House Committee on Fuel Subsidy Management, Mallam Farouk Lawan, and the Clerk of the committee, Mr. Boniface Emenalo were indicted. The case is in court.

 

“You will recall that Ali was deeply involved in the investigation of the $180million Halliburton scam. So, the SIP is led by an officer who is tested.”

 

Asked of the preliminary work done by the SIP, the source added: “As I am talking to you (4pm yesterday), a letter of invitation has been addressed and sent to the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker, the Chief Whip and the Minority Leader.

 

“They will be interrogated by the SIP on Friday. As a prelude to the invitation of the principal officers, the SIP chairman and members had a session with Jibrin on Tuesday.

 

“It was not a grilling session. But Jibrin furnished the team with vital information and a heap of documents to back up the petition he submitted on Monday.

 

“We are going into the merit or otherwise of the petition on Friday by inviting Dogara and three others. It is going to be a gradual thing but we will crack the padding controversy.”

 

Jibrin confirmed on Tuesday that security has been beefed up around him by the Department of State Service (DSS) and the police.

 

He also asked the All Progressives Congress (APC) to prevail on Dogara to reconvene the House and step aside to face prosecution for alleged budget padding.

 

Jibrin, in a message on his Twitter handle, said: “My attention has been drawn to media reports that I have been summoned to appear before a disciplinary committee of our great party.

 

“That I received a letter yesterday evening (Monday) inviting me to a meeting in respect of the crisis in the House on Tuesday (yesterday) by 2pm at the party’s office.”

 

“The letter did not in any way indicate it as a disciplinary committee. And I have responded that I will attend the meeting despite my tight schedules shuttling between security and anti-corruption agencies to provide support and evidence against Speaker Dogara and nine others.”

 

“I am confident that the party will do the right thing by throwing its weight to support our resolve to wipe out corruption in the House and direct Speaker Dogara, Deputy Speaker Lasun, Whip Doguwa and Minority Leader Ogor to reconvene the House immediately and step down to face imminent prosecution and save the party and our dear country from further embarrassment.”

APC Summons Abdulmumin Jibrin Over His Allegations Of Budget Padding Against Speaker Dogara And Others

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The National Leadership of APC yesterday wrote a letter to embattled former Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriation, Abdulmumin Jibrin, summoning him to appear before it at the National Secretariat of the party today August 2nd.
Jibrin has continued his media campaign against the House Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, three principal officers and nine other lawmakers, accusing them of budget padding and corruption.

In a letter signed by the party’s Deputy National Chairman for the Northern Zone, Lawal Shuaibu, APC said it is totally unacceptable for Jibrin to have resorted to media war against its party members

when he had not exhausted the party’s internal dispute resolution mechanism.

“As a disciplined party, the constitution of our party has made adequate provisions on ways of resolving any issue among our members. It behoves on the party to take all necessary steps in order to ensure that no member of the Family brings dishonour to the party. To say the least, it is absolutely unacceptable to resort to media war as a means of settling scores without recourse to and/or exhausting the party’s internal dispute resolution mechanism. You are, therefore, by this invitation, expected to appear before the undersigned at the APC National Secretariat on Tuesday, 2nd August, 2016, at 2 p.m. Kindly note that failure to and/or refusal to honour this invitation will amount to a decision you have made not to submit to the party” ?the letter read

 

Gbajabiamila Breaks Silence Over Budget Padding Scandal

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The Leader of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, has broken his silence over the budget padding scandal rocking the lower chamber, following accusations of budget fraud made against Speaker Yakubu Dogara and others by former appropriations committee chairman, Abdulmumin Jibrin.

Mr. Gbajabiamila had remained silent since the House descended into a crisis that has drawn the attention of anti-corruption agencies, and sparked calls for the Speaker to step aside.

Mr. Gbajabiamila gave his position via emails sent to members of the House on Monday. A lawmaker shared the message with a reporter.

The Lagos lawmaker circulated emails to colleagues after some unknown people sent text messages around suggesting he was part of a group working discreetly to force a leadership change in the House.

The anonymous message was sent from phone number 08119106894.

It reads,”Plot to destabilize the leadership of the House of Reps has taken a new dimension as the AGF working with Gbajabiamila, Jibrin & SGF has (sic) drafted charges to arraign and detain principal officers of the House so that the transparency group who recently met with Tinubu’s wife will effect a leadership change with Gbajabiamila as Speaker and Jibrin as Deputy. This is why Jibrin did not mention Femi in his allegations. The 8th House won’t be anybody’s rubber stamp. We will resist them like the senate resisted them.”

But Mr. Gbajabiamila, in his email to lawmakers, denied claims made in the anonymous message.

He said, “Since the budget controversy that engulfed the House about a week ago, I have pointedly maintained a dignified silence. I did this for the sake of the institution I represent and which I have laboured hard to grow and protect, knowing that whatever I say could be impactful both within the House and outside it.

“I was determined to keep in place the glue that holds an otherwise fragmented House, protect its integrity and at same time avoid eroding the little confidence and vestiges of hope Nigerians have in us.

“I am being dragged into an arena I tried very hard to stay out of only for the good of the House. The Speakership election has come and gone. The election was divisive and acrimonious but I have since worked hard to heal the wounds some of which still fester amongst members on both sides.

“It is my responsibility to bring all tendencies in a House I lead together and I have worked well with the Speaker and all other Principal officers in a bipartisan manner and in the interest of the institution and members.

“It is clear that our budget process needs radical reform and very quickly too. Yes, allegations have been made but I strongly believe judgment should not be passed based on allegations. We operate a constitutional democracy and we must at all times submit to its dictates and ethos. All parties are innocent until otherwise proven. This should be our guide. I plead with all members. The mudslinging must stop.

“This text message, which desperately seeks to finger me in some macabre plot to destabilize the House is a throwback and echoes our dark post Speakership election history. The resurfacing or resurgence of the faceless text messengers will not help us as a House and let me quickly add that it will fail.”

“My strongest critics and biggest political adversaries in the House cannot deny the fact that my commitment has always been to strengthen the legislature and its processes and our democracy as a whole. I consider everyone a friend and colleague and urge that as we collectively work towards a stronger legislature and strive to deepen our democracy, we do not pull back the hands of the clock nor lose sight of the enormous responsibility placed upon us by providence as members of a critical arm of government.”

Credit: PremiumTimes

Budget Padding: Why I Revealed The Secret Late – Jibrin

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Erstwhile chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations, Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin, yesterday admitted that his revelations over the alleged padding of the 2016 budget were late.

 

Jibrin explained that he could not expose the budget padding in good time, as it was difficult for him to stand against the institutionalised corruption in the House of Representatives.

 

He also said that allegation of corruption levied against the National Assembly by former president Olusegun Obasanjo could not be totally.

 

Jibrin, while speaking on the controversial insertions into the 2016 budget, on a Channels Television weekly programme, ‘Sunday Politics’ said although this revelations were coming late late, but as the chairman of the committee, he was made to believe that certain information were not to be disclosed.

 

“I fought the battle of my life, I didn’t help myself, I started speaking late,” he said.

 

He added that; “I am a product of the establishment, and now my mentors will now realize that I have gone out of the cycle. I am so glad that I am breaking away from the cycle.”

 

He however explained that the insertions did not affect the size of the budget, noting that the harmonisations committee chaired by the deputy speaker Yusuf Lasun took advantage of the committee to insert more items for personal aggrandizement.

 

Abdulmumini stated further that just 10 standing committees out of the 96 standing committees posted 200 projects which amounted to N284 billion were inserted into the budget.

 

“After collecting the reports of the various committees, we did the statistics and shockingly, I discovered that just about 10 standing committees out of the 96 standing committees of the House posted about 2000 projects, totaling about N284 billion,” he stated.

 

Although, he admitted that the insertions were constitutional that the insertions into the budget by the principal officers of the House were constitutional, and it is a usual practice in the national assembly, he maintained that the insertions were outrageous and above the limit.

“There is that unanimity in the national assembly, we all do not agree with the word padding, of course as I have explained that there are so many insertions from the angle of the National Assembly, even though the law allows it, internally, I raised an observation, of course, I discussed the matter with the speaker, that personally I believe that the insertions were too much. And it is also very important that the constitution gave us the power to appropriate, but the intention is what I question, those were the issues I fought until eventually I left,” he said.

 

He stated further that; There have been insertions in past budgets; I saw the insertions in budgets of 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015. The only difference is that in 2016, the insertions went completely above the board.”

 

Abdulmumini maintained that there is Institutionalised corruption in the House, but members are quick to deny the fact.

 

“There is institutionalised corruption in the House, but we keep living in denial, it is my fifth year in the National Assembly, I have never been involved in corruption, I have never shared money.”

 

According to Abdulmumini, the size and quantity of insertions would always cause a rift between the executive and legislative arm of government. If the insertion into the budget is done from the executive arm of government, members of the national assembly refer to such insertion as padding, and when it is done by the National Assembly members, the executive arm of government also refer to it as padding.

 

When pointedly asked to explain the role of ministries, departments and agencies in the conspiracy, Jibrin said; “I don’t want to involve the executive arm of government in this, because the matter is already controversial, of course a lot transpired between the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Budget office on one hand and the Ministry of Budget and the Budget Office on the other hand.”

 

He noted that his mission was to force a revolution in the House of Representatives and a lot of issues ranging from corruption and conduct of members will be raised.

We Will Not Intervene In The Budget Padding Scandal – APC Governors

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The governors of the All Progressives Congress, APC, have said they would not intervene in the current budget-padding scandal rocking the House of Representatives.

 

The governors had last week met President Muhammadu Buhari and obtained permission from the president to mediate in the crisis.

 

Governor Mohammed Abubakar of Bauchi State stated this during a chat with journalists in Abuja.

 

“I assure you that we are not going to delve into cases that are before the courts or tribunal. We are not going to delve into the current issue of the moment. We are only going to touch on the political issues pertaining to the National Assembly.

 

“What is before the court, those of us who are lawyers, know that it is subjudice and the current issue is just coming up and it is not politics.

 

“As far as I am concerned, if any proof is found to any of the allegations, these are criminal offences. So, there is no way any committee of governors can delve into that, I assure you,” he stated.

Budget Padding: EFCC, ICPC Must Investigate Allegations Against Dogara, Others – Jibrin

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Former chairman of the House of Representative Committee on Appropriation, Honourable Jibrin on Friday insisted that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) must probe the allegation of budget padding he levelled against the Speaker, Honourable Yakubu Dogara and three other principal officers.

 

He said that, “This is a defining moment for the House of Representatives. It will never be business as usual”.

 

To this end, he urged members “to join hands and do the honourable thing by asking Speaker Yakubu Dogara and the three other principal officers to reconvene the House and step down with immediate effect to face prosecution.

 

According to him, “They have all lost the moral grounds to call themselves presiding and principal officers of the House. The more they cling on to power, the further the image of the House will be battered.”

 

The statement reads in part: “I wish to inform you that I have officially approached the EFFC and the ICPC to come in and decisively deal with this matter and other corruption cases in the House. Kindly note that the allegations must be externally investigated.

 

He also questioned the rationale behind his former deputy, Honourable Chris Azibogu and few others’ decosopm to address a press conference where they claimed there was no budget padding.

 

He wondered why “only 9 out of the 40 appropriation committee members agreed to participate in such a dishonorable press conference after  shamelessly collecting $20,000 each distributed to them yesterday at the Speaker’s residence by his Deputy Chief of staff, Hon CID Maduabum.

 

“My same Deputy Hon Chris Azubogu ( you will remember his history with Hon Hembe in the 7th Assembly) who was used to organize the press conference was clearly on camera almost crying at the press conference where I announced my resignation.”

“Dogara Tried Breaking Into My Office To Discard Evidence” – Jibrin

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A former chairman of House Committee on Appropriation, Abdulmumin Jibrin, on Thursday said unnamed individuals acting on the orders of Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, had moved computers used by officials of the committee.

 

Mr. Jibrin has accused the speaker of budget fraud, an allegation Mr. Dogara denies.

 

In a statement Thursday, Mr. Jibrin said there was also an attempt to burgle his office, saying all the systems were shut down.

 

“Speaker Dogara has ordered that all the computers in the appropriation secretariat be shut down and moved to his office as if that is the answer to the allegations I raised,” he said. “The secretariat staff are being harassed to keep quite and suppress facts. There has also been an attempt to break into my office at the House.”

 

Mr. Jibrin said Mr. Dogara’s action was calculated at manipulating documents crucial to the unfolding budget padding scandal involving him, the speaker, his deputy, Yusuf Lasun, House Whip, Alhassan Doguwa and Minority Leader, Leo Ogor.

 

He said the plan would not work because he was in possession of “enough evidence” already.”

 

“I know he wants to tamper with documents critical to his and the three others future investigation and prosecution but unfortunately for him we already have enough evidence in our possession,” he said.

 

He urged Mr. Dogara to allow an independent investigations into the allegations.

Budget Padding: 100 Reps Want Dogara, Lasun, Doguwa, And Leo Ogor Prosecuted.

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Members of the House of Representatives, under aegis of Transparency Group, yesterday, told the anti-graft agencies to wade into alleged padding of the 2016 budget by the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara; his deputy, Yusuf Lasun; Chief Whip, Ado Doguwa, and Minority Leader, Leo Ogor, and ensure credible investigation.

 

The group also claimed that it had collected signatures from about 100 members of the House, cutting across the six geopolitical zones of the country and from different political parties, dissociating themselves from the media briefing by the chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Abdulrazak Namdas, saying the allegations had nothing to do with the entire House.