Suspended lawmaker, Abdulmumin Jibrin, had last week gave his
colleagues in the House of Representatives three days to return all
questionable allowances they paid themselves.
Mr. Jibrin
accused his colleagues of raking in millions in illegal allowances, and
after he indicted himself as having received N650 million illegally.
To
return their loot, Mr. Jibrin advised his colleagues to individually
approach the appropriate authority and make arrangement on how to pay
everything back into the federal purse.
Mr. Jibrin said any
lawmaker who fails to heed his call should be prepared for the backlash
that would follow when he publishes details of how such official
perpetrated the fraud.
Mr. Jibrin’s statement came a day
after he was suspended by the House for 180 legislative days
—approximately a full calendar year as the House sits three times a
week— after being found guilty of violating House ethics and lawmakers’
privileges.
“I have written to the Clerk of the National Assembly to stand by in anticipation.”
“In
the face of the revenue challenges and biting hardship the country is
currently facing, there is no better time the country needs such money
than now,” he said in a statement last week.
Mr. Jibrin said
he resolved to take this action after receiving numerous enquiries from
different corners on the need for him to back his allegations against
the House leadership and other lawmakers with evidence.
“I
have come under intense public scrutiny and pressure to prove that there
exists systemic corruption in the House,” Mr. Jibrin said.
Mr.
Jibrin said he was specifically demanding the return of a N10 million
illegal allowances his colleagues allocated to themselves while the
poor were struggling to make ends meet.
Hon. Jibrin via
his Twitter handle yesterday said, “as I promised and gave a 72-hours
ultimatum to the Principal Officers and one week to other members, I
have forwarded to the Anti-graft agencies first batch of 50 members of
the House that are involved in running cost allowances fraud.”
He
said for the Job to be easier for the EFCC, he will be releasing the
names in batches – of 50 members each – until the list is exhausted.
The
first batch includes Speaker Dogara, Deputy Lasun, Whip Alhassan
Doguwa, Minority Leader Leo Ogor, Hon Herma Hembe, Hon Jagaba Adams Hon
Timothy Golu, Hon Yunusa Abubakar, Hon Mukaila O Kazzim, Hon Lynda
Ikpeazu, Hon Abdulrazak Namdas, Hon Osai Nicolas among others
He
said after the EFCC might have concluded their investigation the world
will know whether he lied or told the truth on systemic corruption in
the House of Representatives.
As an insider, he urged Nigerians to be vigilant, adding that he knows how the House usually respond to issues.
“As you have started noticing, many investigative hearings and ad hoc committees are springing up like mushrooms.
“The
investigative hearings are intended to blackmail the executive arm and
coax them not to act on the allegations and the ad hoc committees are
used to settle aggrieved members as it provides avenues to collect
bribes.
“You will also see irrational grandstanding over
approval of MTEF/FSP and the budget or correspondence from the
President,” he said.
Revealing further, Jibrin alleged that
“these are legislative antics employed by the House to use the
institution of the House to shield corrupt members.
“This is exactly what Speaker Yakubu Dogara and his corrupt cabal are executing presently in the House.
“The
EFCC and the Police has severally been victims of this kind of tactics
by the House in the past to frustrate corruption investigation
“Nigerians
and the Executive arm of Govt must stand up against any blackmail from
the House of Reps as they are all antics to evade justice.
“The
Senate and the Executive arm of government can rely on doctrine of
necessity to bypass the House in the face of such grievous allegations
which has been described as the biggest corruption scandal in the
history of the parliaments in Africa and the world.
“Finally,
I wish to call on the Federal Govt to make me face the harshest penalty
prescribed by our laws if my allegations are found to be false.”
_socialtimesng