Stop the cheap blackmail- Dogara tells sacked chairman of appropriation committee, Abdulmumin Jibrin
The
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, has released a
statement reacting to allegations of budget padding leveled against him by
dismissed chairman of the committee on Appropriations, Abdulmumin Jibrin who
was removed from office on Wednesday July 20th. Jibrin had in a statement he
released yesterday July 21st, alleged that himself and Dogara and other leaders
in the house began to have problems when he refused their proposition to pad
the 2016 budget.
He also alleged that he also fell out with Dogara and others after he opposed the immunity bill for the leadership of the National Assembly. A statement by the spokesperson for the house, Abdulrazak Namdas, dismissed Jibrin’s claims and asked him to stop the cheap blackmail. Read the full statement below
Our attention has been down to media statements
made by the former Chairman of House Appropriation Committee, Hon Abdulmumuni
Jibrin wherein he made wild allegations against the House of Representatives
and its leaders. We wish to say that it is the prerogative of the Selection
Committee of the House to appoint and remove Committee Chairmen. That power has
been so exercised in the case of Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin as chairman of
Appropriation Committee.
Most of the allegations on the 2016 budget
process and his opposition to immunity of Presiding officers are non-issues and
mere afterthought manufactured simply because the House relieved him of his
position. If he had all these ‘facts’ before, why didn’t he make them public?
Why is he doing that now? Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin, like any other member of the
House knows that there are conventions and precedents as it relates to budgets
and projects for principal officers of the National Assembly. Why is he making
it an issue now?
In any case, he is entitled to his opinion as a
Nigerian and as a legislator while acting within the laws of Nigeria and rules
of the House. We must make it abundantly clear that he was not removed because
of his support or otherwise on immunity bill. After all he is not the only one
who opposed the bill.
The bill is still pending before committee on
review of constitution and it has to be voted upon by each and every member of
the House, get Senate concurrence, endorsed by two-third of the 36 State Houses
of Assembly and be assented to by the President. It is a cheap blackmail on the
part of Hon. Jibrin to even insinuate that he was removed because he opposed
immunity bill. He should not distract the House from giving legislative support
on important issues facing the government concerning the revival of the
economy, insecurity in the country, pursuit of anti-corruption measures,
poverty alleviation, infrastructural development etc.
The Nigerian people are simply not ready to
waste their time on personal issues and personal egos of our leaders. We should
face the urgent tasks before us for which we were elected.
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