Jibrin meets with police panel as party vows to punish him
Tue Aug 09, 2016 07:45:am Politics
2.1K By Buchi Obichie
Former Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriation, Abdulmumin Jibrin, on Monday met with the police Special Investigation Panel, SIP, on the budget padding crisis in the House.
According to reports, the meeting began at 12pm at the Force Headquarters, with Jibrin submitting a large number of documents and other evidence to prove his allegations against House Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, and the others he accused of padding the budget.
Sources disclosed that the lawmaker also promised to bring more documents necessary for the investigation; to show alleged illegal insertions under constituency projects in the 2016 budget.
The SIP, led by an Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Amodu Ali (retd.), reportedly received the documents, with a promise to diligently study them.
According to reports, police authorities had initially been confused by Dogara's posturing after his meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Aso Villa last Friday. They assumed that the Speaker may have managed to reach a political settlement with Buhari.
It was learnt that the Speaker's statement that "budget padding is not an offence under the nation's law" gave the public the impression that he and the President had agreed on the point.
However, recent findings indicate that the investigation panel was later told not to get carried away by the Speaker's publicized visit to the President, but must get to the root of the scandal.
Meanwhile, Jibrin has gotten into fresh trouble with his party, as the All Progressives Congress Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Timi Frank, in a statement in Abuja on Monday, said the Kano lawmaker would be punished for flouting the APC's order to cease public comments on the budget padding scandal in the House.
A letter addressed to Jibrin and signed by the APC Deputy National Chairman (North), Senator Lawal Shuaibu, last Thursday, had asked Jibrin to stop making public comments or issuing public statements on the lingering budget scandal after the leadership of the party had intervened in the matter.
But in 82 tweets which he posted on Sunday, Jibrin had accused Dogara of colluding with some serving Governors and ex-lawmakers to change the media narrative against him, and prevent him from meeting with the President.
Frank accused Jibrin of lack of respect for the Shuaibu-led committee, which was working "tirelessly to resolve the crisis."
The statement read in part: "It is now obvious how disrespectful and desperate Jibrin could be, even to the leaders of our party, which include the National Deputy Chairman, North; National Secretary, National Treasurer, and others who have been sleeplessly working to ensure that peace returns to the House.
"But if 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 Jibrin kept quiet and stopped this public show of shame before his excesses would be made known to Nigerians and the whole world."
Frank said Jibrin's continued "show of shame" did not only affect the lawmaker, but had great negative impact on the party, its members and the Buhari-led government.
"He should be also aware that disobeying the party in this manner may attract sanction, if the party deems it fit," Frank stated.
According to reports, the meeting began at 12pm at the Force Headquarters, with Jibrin submitting a large number of documents and other evidence to prove his allegations against House Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, and the others he accused of padding the budget.
Sources disclosed that the lawmaker also promised to bring more documents necessary for the investigation; to show alleged illegal insertions under constituency projects in the 2016 budget.
The SIP, led by an Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Amodu Ali (retd.), reportedly received the documents, with a promise to diligently study them.
According to reports, police authorities had initially been confused by Dogara's posturing after his meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Aso Villa last Friday. They assumed that the Speaker may have managed to reach a political settlement with Buhari.
It was learnt that the Speaker's statement that "budget padding is not an offence under the nation's law" gave the public the impression that he and the President had agreed on the point.
However, recent findings indicate that the investigation panel was later told not to get carried away by the Speaker's publicized visit to the President, but must get to the root of the scandal.
Meanwhile, Jibrin has gotten into fresh trouble with his party, as the All Progressives Congress Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Timi Frank, in a statement in Abuja on Monday, said the Kano lawmaker would be punished for flouting the APC's order to cease public comments on the budget padding scandal in the House.
A letter addressed to Jibrin and signed by the APC Deputy National Chairman (North), Senator Lawal Shuaibu, last Thursday, had asked Jibrin to stop making public comments or issuing public statements on the lingering budget scandal after the leadership of the party had intervened in the matter.
But in 82 tweets which he posted on Sunday, Jibrin had accused Dogara of colluding with some serving Governors and ex-lawmakers to change the media narrative against him, and prevent him from meeting with the President.
Frank accused Jibrin of lack of respect for the Shuaibu-led committee, which was working "tirelessly to resolve the crisis."
The statement read in part: "It is now obvious how disrespectful and desperate Jibrin could be, even to the leaders of our party, which include the National Deputy Chairman, North; National Secretary, National Treasurer, and others who have been sleeplessly working to ensure that peace returns to the House.
"But if 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 Jibrin kept quiet and stopped this public show of shame before his excesses would be made known to Nigerians and the whole world."
Frank said Jibrin's continued "show of shame" did not only affect the lawmaker, but had great negative impact on the party, its members and the Buhari-led government.
"He should be also aware that disobeying the party in this manner may attract sanction, if the party deems it fit," Frank stated.
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